USC vs. Oregon State Gameday Guide 2017: Matchups, lineups, links, odds and more

USC vs. Oregon State

LA Colisem | Los Angeles, CA1:00 p.m. Pacific | Pac-12 NetworkAll-time Series: 61-11-4Last meeting: USC 35, OSU 10 in 2014

For the second week in a row, USC will face a team they have not played in two years. Unlike Washington State, who entered last Friday’s game undefeated and primed for an upset, Oregon State has suffered defeat more often than they’ve tasted victory this year.

The Beavers are 1-4 on the year, with their lone win coming against an FCS opponent by a tight margin. They also have not left the Coliseum with a victory over USC since 1960. The Trojan home winning streak over the Beavers stands at 23 games.

The Trojans overall winning streak of 13 ended on Friday night against Washington State, dropping USC to 4-1 on the season.

On Saturday, the task will be to start a whole new winning streak.

Can Clay Helton keep his home record spotless? Or will Gary Anderson’s Oregon State play the role of spoiler on USC’s season?

Gameday Links:

Preview Podcast:

The latest episode of Reign of Troy Radio features co-hosts Michael Castillo and Alicia de Artola previewing USC’s matchup with Oregon State, with everything from stats to players to know.

LISTEN: USC vs Oregon State Preview

Having trouble? Listen on BlogTalkRadio, iTunes, Google Play or Stitcher.

USC Injury Report:

Out for season: K Michael Brown (knee), CB Greg Johnson (shoulder), LB Tayler Katoa (knee), CB Jonathan Lockett (hip), S Isaiah Pola-Mao (shoulder), OL Viane Talamaivao (pectoral), WR Keyshawn “Pie” Young (hamstring/redshirt)
Out: RB Stephen Carr (foot), OLB Hunter Echols (hip), OL Chuma Edoga (ankle), OLB Porter Gustin (toe/bicep), TE Daniel Imatorbhebhe (hip), OT Nathan Smith (knee), DL Marlon Tuipulotu (knee)
Questionable: DL Rasheem Green (ankle), WR Jalen Greene (concussion), LB Jordan Iosefa (concussion)
Probable: WR Deontay Burnett (shoulder), CB Jamel Cook (illness), DL Malik Dorton (knee), DL Josh Fatu (knee), LT Toa Lobendahn (infection), WR Steven Mitchell (groin), OL Andrew Vorhees (back)

Oregon State Injury Report:

Out for season: CB Dwayne Williams (knee)
Out: CB Xavier Crawford (back), S Drew Kell (undisclosed), QB Jake Luton (back), K Zach Standish (undisclosed), LB Shemiah Unutoa-Whitson (undisclosed)
Doubtful: LB Kesi Ah-Hoy (undisclosed), CB Jay Irvine (undisclosed), CB Jaydon Grant (undisclosed), RB Ryan Nall (ankle)
Probable: RB Artavis Pierce (shoulder), DT Paisa Savea (undisclosed), TE Noah Togiai (ankle)

Click here for more details from the USC and Oregon State injury reports.

When USC has the ball…

The Trojan offense has been far from potent over the last three weeks. The good news is they’re set to face a defense which ranks 113th nationally in S&P+, a defense which had given up 46.4 points per game, ranking 128th out of 130 teams in FBS.

The Beavers are led by senior inside linebacker Manase Hungalu, who leads the team with 40 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss.

Safety David Morris is the team’s second-leading tackler, which might be explained by the 6.47-yard per play average Oregon State has allowed.

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Helton credited the defense for having a “solid front” which helped hold Washington to just seven points in the first half. However, the Huskies exploded in the second half to finish with 42 points.

An injury-decimated secondary could open the door for Sam Darnold and the Trojan passing game to find their rhythm this week. At the same time, with the Beavers giving up an average of 202 yards per game on the ground, Ronald Jones II and the rushing attack could just as easily take control of the game, even with several injuries on the USC offensive line.

Projected OSU Defense

DE Baker Pritchard #95

NT Kalani Vakameilalo #97

DE Paisa Savea #92

OLB Bright Ugwoegbu #1

ILB Manase Hungalu #55

ILB Jonathan Willis #32

OLB Andrzej Hughes-Murray #49

CB Shawn Wilson #2

S Jalen Moore #33

S David Morris #12

CB Kyle White #27

Projected USC Offense

WR Steven Mitchell #4

WR Deontay Burnett #80

TE Tyler Petite #82

RT Chuma Edoga #70

RG Andrew Vorhees #72

C Nico Falah #74

LG Chris Brown #77

LT Toa Lobendahn #50

WR Tyler Vaughns #21

QB Sam Darnold #14

RB Ronald Jones II #25

When OSU has the ball…

USC’s defense has been a consistent strength for the Trojans, holding their own against the formidable offensive attack at Washington State. Oregon State should not provide the same level of competition.

The Beavers will be far from full strength when they come to the Coliseum. Starting quarterback Jake Luton and running back Ryan Nall are both unlikely to play on Saturday, the former because of a serious back injury and the latter because of an ankle problem.

In place of Luton, Oregon State has turned to Darell Garretson, who started the season last year.

“He does have experience,” Helton said of the backup quarterback. “He is an athlete that can do the zone read and things like that. And he can spin the ball very well. He brings both twofold run and pass.”

Garretson will be passing to a trio of wide outs Helton called “mismatch nightmares.” That’s because Jordan Villamin, Isaiah Hodgins and Seth Collins stand 6-foot-5, 6-foot-4 and 6-foot-3 respectively.

As for the ground game, Nall has been the most critical piece of the Oregon State offense going back to last season when he rushed for 951 yards and 13 touchdowns. He leads the Beavers this year with an average of 5.5 yards per carry and four touchdowns, but his impact may need to be filled by back ups Artavis Pierce and Thomas Tyner.

Projected OSU Offense

LT Blake Brandel #73

LG Gus Lavaka #63

C Sumner Houston #52

RG Trent Moore #67

RT Fred Lauina #64

TE Noah Togiai #81

WR Jordan Villamin #13

WR Isaiah Hodgins #17

WR Seth Collins #22

QB Darell Garretson #10

RB Artavis Pierce #21

Projected USC Defense

SLB Uchenna Nwosu #42

DE Rasheem Green #94

DT Josh Fatu #98

PRED Christian Rector #89

MLB Cameron Smith #35

WLB John Houston #10

NB Ajene Harris #27

CB Iman Marshall #8

SS Chris Hawkins #4

FS Marvell Tell #7

CB Jack Jones #25

Odds (USC -34):

USC opened as a 31-point favorite over Oregon State, per Sports Book Review. The line didn’t stay there long, moving up to 34 points. The over/under for the game sits at 59 points.

Oregon State is 0-5 against the spread in 2017. They failed to cover a 26.5-point spread in their one win over Portland State this year. Despite being favored over Minnesota they were blown out 48-14. As narrow underdogs to Colorado State and sizable underdogs to Washington State and Washington, they did not cover.

The Trojans have not been good against the spread either this season at 1-4 on the season. USC bested Stanford by well more than the 3.5-point margin, but did not cover double-digit spreads against Western Michigan, Texas and Cal while losing to Washington State.

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