Ohio State searches for upside after long weekend
USC FYI
Buckeyes will probably have Beanie Wells, Donald Washington and Jamario O'Neal back against the Trojans.
Heading into Saturday evening's showdown against top-ranked USC, Ohio State is searching for a bright side to a weekend that saw the Buckeyes struggle against unranked Ohio and slip to No. 5 in the polls.
First and foremost, they expect tailback Beanie Wells to be recovered from a toe injury that kept him out of the 26-14 victory over Ohio.
They will also have cornerback Donald Washington and safety Jamario O'Neal returning from two-game suspensions for violating team rules.
Washington showed big-play potential as a sophomore starter last season, returning an interception 70 yards for a touchdown against Kent State.
In addition to the talent coming back, cornerback Malcolm Jenkins hopes the Buckeyes will learn from their miscues against Ohio.
"I think it was a good experience for us as a team just to face some adversity going into this next week because we're going to face a lot of it going away on the road and a night game in a hostile environment," Jenkins said.
Ohio State players talked about cleaning up the sloppy play that resulted in blown assignments and missed tackles. Kicker Ryan Pretorius missed a field-goal and an extra-point attempt.
At the very least, tailback Maurice Wells told the Columbus Dispatch, the Trojans might be lulled into overconfidence by studying videotape of the game.
"They're probably thinking it's going to be a slam-dunk win," he said.
david.wharton@latimes.com
