College Football Spread - Arizona Wildcats vs. USC Trojans (-7)
by Dave D
Saturday, December 5th – 3:30 PM ET
Los Angeles Coliseum
College Football Point Spread: USC -7
Arizona: The Week That Was:
The Wildcats defeated in-state rival Arizona State, 20-17, thanks to a late bit of good fortune. With the score tied at 17-all and only 1:02 remaining in regulation, Arizona State’s Kyle Williams – who had caught a tying touchdown pass just a minute earlier – muffed a punt on his own 22. Arizona recovered the fumble, drained ASU’s remaining timeouts, and used a 32-yard field goal from kicker Alex Zendejas to win on the final play of the game.
This was a gritty gut-check triumph for the Wildcats. They gave up two touchdowns in the fourth quarter; were limited to just 265 yards; saw quarterback Nick Foles struggle (24-of-43 completions); and failed to push the ball downfield, as evinced by a six-yards-per-completion average. Their ability to win without their best stuff says a lot about a team that’s tougher than its 7-4 record might suggest.
USC: The Week That Was:
The Trojans’ offense struggled mightily, but a defense that had been gashed by Oregon State, Oregon and Stanford in consecutive weeks made good use of a Nov. 21 bye week. The rested Trojans smothered UCLA’s offense in a 28-7 win on Saturday, Nov. 28.
USC scored just one offensive touchdown in the game’s first 54 minutes, as the Men of Troy needed a pick-six to establish a 14-7 advantage just inside the six-minute mark of regulation time. Quarterback Matt Barkley threw for only 206 yards on a night when USC’s offense generated only 336 yards. Moreover, the Trojans threw a late 48-yard touchdown pass only after UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel called an incendiary timeout with less than one minute left in regulation. In essence, Barkley threw for only 158 yards and no touchdowns (subtracting the late long ball), and USC amassed only 288 yards of offense.
Wildcats vs. USC Trojans -7 >> Join Now to Bet
The Week That Is:
The football traditions of these two teams suggest that USC should win, but tradition really hasn’t meant much to the Trojans this season. Pete Carroll’s club has been pounded for much of the past month, and an offense that seemed to be hitting its stride in late October has failed to score more than 21 points in each of its past four games, dating back to a 47-20 loss at Oregon on Oct. 31. It’s true that Matt Barkley and Co. have suffered because their defense couldn’t stop anybody for quite some time, but against UCLA, the Trojans didn’t have similar excuses. No one is playing consistently well for this USC offense, a sign of concern heading into battle with a potent Arizona team.
The Wildcats have a great chance to win this game, but their physicality and speed aren’t quite on par with the Oregon and Stanford offenses that devastated SC’s defense. USC’s offensive weaknesses will keep this game very close, but one has to wonder if Arizona has the willpower to absorb several punches and prevail on the road. USC wins in a one-score game.
Football Pick: Arizona +7
