October 20, 2012; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Southern California Trojans defensive tackle Antwaun Woods (99) and Colorado Buffaloes defensive lineman Andre Nichols (58) reach for a fumbled ball in the second half of the game at the Los Angeles Coliseum. Southern California won 50-6. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Stats: 13 games played, 16 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss (15 yards), 3 sacks

What Stood Out:Stats don’t tell the full story with Antwaun Woods. Woods is a huge body and he occupies 2 spaces at once. In an ideal setting, he would be a nose tackle. Stats rarely tell the full story with Woods because of his size & ridiculous strength. Woods has the strength to be an effective pass rusher in obvious passing situations. This was evident as he racked up 3 sacks as a freshman.

What Needed Work:Technique, by far. As was already mentioned, Woods has superior strength. He lacks technique & finesse, but you can expect that he will progress under Orgeron. Additionally, he currently lacks the motor to be an every down guy. He’s a situational guy, but could become an absolute terror if he increases his stamina and football acumen. With additional coaching and an increase in role responsibility, Woods will be expected to take big steps moving forward. Especially if USC is to be dominate in Pendergast’s schemes.

Final Word:It’s far too early in Woods’ career to give a final word on anything. He’s young, raw, and talented, but he needs veteran guidance. With the addition of 3-4 schemes, Woods should see an increased role in USC’s defensive schemes. He definitely has to tools to be the defensive line leader when the team is in a 34 base.

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UCLA will toe the line on Saturday with three freshmen on the offensive line, including right tackle Simon Goines, who has been dinged up this week in practice. While the Bruins are talented up front –Xavier Su’a Filo was a top 10 tackle in the Class of 2012– they’re allowing more than three sacks per game, sitting at 112th in the nation, signalling a mis-match with the Trojans’ 4th ranked pass rush.

The Bruins’ offense as a whole deploys a scheme similar to Noel Mazzone’s previous employer, Arizona State, yet more advanced and with better talent. Knowing how much the Trojans shut down ASU, as evident by holding them to just 76 total yards in the second half last Saturday, USC’s defense should enter the Rose Bowl with plenty of confidence, even just two weeks removed from a 700-yard performance from the No. 1 ranked Oregon Ducks.

Last week, the Trojans deployed a blitz scheme that was reminiscent of the Pete Carroll era, as they blitzed continuously on second and third down to force Taylor Kelly to make poor decisions and force the ball to his playmakers. The result was seven sacks and three interceptions.

UCLA has more playmakers than ASU, namely Johnathan Franklin, so by no means can the Trojans expect to waltz into the Rose Bowl and hold the Bruins to a minuscule amount of yards on the ground. But given the success of the pass rush and the Bruins’ struggles to protect Hundley, it would be surprising if the Trojans didn’t at least force the freshmen into tight spots on occasion.

Hundley has been terrific this year to not let himself appear to play as a first-year starter typically would, but given his speed and athleticism, there’s a lot to be said for still being sacked more than three times per game.

Against SC, he’ll have to read the blitz off the edge and up the gut, in addition to buying time to get the ball out and thrown away, as opposed to being too confident in his speed and backing himself into a corner like Kelly did a week ago when he totaled 56 lost yards on the day.

Hundley’s got the tools. He can avoid the rush and be a matador with the talent he has, and he’ll have to if the Bruins are going to control the game on offense.

Tavai(right, upper left), a sophomore, played in parts of seven games last season, making four tackles. He was expected to compete for the starting job at nose guard along with redshirt freshman Antwaun Woods. However, with the swap, Tavai found himself splitting reps with JuCo transfer Morgan Breslin at defensive end, opposite of Wes Horton.

Physically, it’s a move that makes sense for the Trojans. At 6-foot-2, 265 pounds, Tavai is undersized for a tackle, considering that he gives up 40 pounds to Woods, 20 to Cody Temple and 10 to George Uko. Williams graduated high school at 6-foot-5, 270 pounds, and can only get bigger. He has a frame that is similar, yet thicker than former Trojan Kyle Moore from seasons past, who played end.

That versatility in size can be seen in Williams, as he lined up at the three-technique on Monday night, not the nose guard spot. While George Uko is the incumbent starter, it doesn’t hurt to throw Williams into the fire at the three-gap and see how he can use his raw skills as a pass rusher on the interior of the line, which is the skill set that defines that role.

Going into camp, the left end and nose tackle spots were to be the biggest position battles up for grabs, and now with the changes, the battles change significantly, with Breslin vs. Tavai now billed as the featured battle at defensive end, at least after one day of practice.

What’s it mean for Antwaun Woods at nose guard? Well, at least for one night, he gained that much more confidence.