By John Sleeper
Herald Writer
SEATTLE – It’s a game between two teams with very pressing issues.
How long can No. 11 Washington (1-0 in the Pacific-10 Conference, 3-0 overall), with a first-year starter at quarterback and a revamped offensive line, keep pulling out miracle finishes that make up for its early-game sleepwalking?
When will unranked USC (0-2, 1-3) wake up at all?
The Huskies very nearly paid for a slumbering first half before they made adjustments on both sides of the ball against Cal last Saturday. Perhaps Cal is the only team in the Pac-10 against which Washington can afford to be on the lower end of a 21-7 score. But whether the Huskies have been lucky, good or a little bit of both, the focus this week in practice has been in the area of intensity.
“If we get beat, we get beat,” UW coach Rick Neuheisel said, “but we can’t allow one to slip away because of lack of intensity.”
Neuheisel also worries about growing attrition among the troops. Jerramy Stevens, a projected first-round NFL draft pick at tight end, will miss nearly all of the season with a broken foot. And this week, it was discovered that linebacker Kai Ellis, the second most productive tackler on the team, will miss two to six weeks because of cartilage tears in both knees.
The Huskies have replaced Stevens by committee. Joe Collier and John Westra are solid blockers. Kevin Ware is a solid receiver who made a huge catch against Cal that led to a touchdown pass from Cody Pickett to Paul Arnold.
Starting tailback Willie Hurst is back after missing the Cal game because of a pulled hamstring. Rich Alexis gained a blue-collar 94 yards on 26 carries in Hurst’s absence and figures to get his share of carries again, given Braxton Cleman’s broken clavicle.
In addition, Washington’s depth at wide receiver has helped absorb the absence of Justin Robbins, whose hamstring has had two setbacks since fall camp.
“We have been fortunate that the kids we have asked to go in and play have done a nice job,” Neuheisel said. “Hopefully, we can keep ourselves glued together and hang in there throughout the season.”
Observers have asked the same question since the Trojans’ last Rose Bowl appearance in 1996: How, with the prodigious talent the program attracts each year, does USC continue its mediocrity?
Pete Carroll is the Trojans’ third coach since 1996 and already the media and alumni are restless, four games into his tenure.
“It’s been frustrating for us,” Carroll said. “We’re a developing program, is what it looks like. We’re making too many mistakes against good teams right now. We’re battling, but we haven’t gotten the victories we want.”
Much criticism has been aimed at quarterback Carson Palmer, who, despite rolling up big numbers in his time at USC, has been on the winning end just 11 times in his 24 games.
Part of the problem, however, is the Trojans’ shocking lack of a ground game. In USC’s 21-16 loss to Stanford last week, USC had just 28 rushing yards on 24 carries. Sultan McCullough, who ran for 1,163 yards a year ago, managed just 32 yards on 16 carries against the Cardinal.
USC is last in the conference in rushing.
That, says Carroll, puts excessive pressure on Palmer.
“He’s been under the gun a bunch because we haven’t had the kind of balance we’d like,” Carroll said. “He’s had to carry a lot of the weight of production on his shoulders without a good, solid running game. He’s battled well and given us a chance to win in every football game. I’d like for us not to have been turning the football over like we have in the last couple of games.”
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