USC gets aggressive on offense and it pays off
Xs and O's
First possession against Washington State includes several key passing plays that set the tone.
A look at USC's first drive Saturday against Washington State:
Offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian could not have asked for a better first possession than the one the Trojans had against Washington State on Saturday night at the Coliseum.
Thirteen plays. Eighty-three yards. Touchdown. A dream start for any offense.
Years from now, statistics will read that quarterback John David Booty and tight end Fred Davis hooked up for a six-yard touchdown pass that gave No. 1 USC a 7-0 lead en route to a 47-14 victory over the Cougars.
But that would not tell the entire story.
The Trojans' first drive of the game made a statement because they did it threw the air after dominating Nebraska with their running game last week.
Whether it was Booty completing first-down hitch passes to Patrick Turner or David Ausberry or a fourth-down touchdown to Davis, USC was aggressive from the start.
On first down, the Trojans tipped their hand to what was to come when they used run-action to the left and then completed a quick sideline pass to Ausberry for an easy seven-yard gain.
On the second play, Booty dropped straight back and completed another sideline pass, this time to Turner, who ran a simple out pattern against a soft-playing secondary.
To keep the pressure on the Cougars' defense, USC turned to play-action on its third play of the drive when Booty rolled left and completed a short pass to Davis. On the fourth play, the Trojans gave the ball to senior tailback Chauncey Washington for a five-yard gain.
Booty returned to the air for the fifth play, completing a five-yard pass to Turner, who seemed to gain more confidence with every catch. On the sixth play, Booty dumped off a check-down pass to fullback Stanley Havili, who was able to weave his way along the sideline for another USC first down.
USC's seventh play was another quick sideline pass to Ausberry, who picked up four yards. Booty made his first mistake on the eighth play when he threw behind a wide open Vidal Hazelton in the middle of the field.
No sweat. On third and six, Booty calmly found Turner on a crossing route for 14 yards and a first down to keep the drive alive.
On the 10th play, Booty displayed great patience and maturity when he decided not to force the ball downfield and settled for a short completion to Hazelton in front of a sagging zone defense.
