Jeff Byers

By the time USC center Kristofer O'Dowd arrived at training camp in August, he already had been selected to several preseason All-American teams. But the junior suffered a knee injury in the Trojans' second scrimmage and has struggled to regain his form while starting the last five games. So when the Trojans resume their Pacific 10 Conference schedule on Saturday against Oregon State, O'Dowd will be on the bench. "I haven't played up to my capability or my standards as well as my coaches' standards," O'Dowd said Thursday.

Armond Armstead watched his teammates play two games without him. He'll watch again Saturday when the Trojans play Syracuse. Armstead, a senior defensive lineman sidelined since spring because of an unspecified medical condition, said Thursday that he has been frustrated by a process that he hopes will conclude next week with a decision by USC regarding his status. "Outside of SC I've got two other opinions," he said. "[But] they can't clear me. They're not the ones who make the decisions.

UCLA defensive tackle Brian Price was named the Pacific 10 Conference's defensive player of the year Monday. Price was so dominant that he received the honor despite the fact the 6-6 Bruins finished eighth in conference with a 3-6 record. Stanford running back Toby Gerhart, a Heisman Trophy finalist, was named the offensive player of the year and Oregon's Chip Kelly is the coach of the year. Price, a junior who may declare for the NFL draft, led the conference with 22.5 tackles for a loss, which ranks him third nationally.

USC features a third-year quarterback who passed for 26 touchdowns last season, a top NFL prospect at left tackle, one of college football's most dynamic receivers and a stable of tailbacks including several ranked among the nation's top recruits of the last five years. Yet the Trojans' offense has scored only one touchdown in the second half this season. "We've had glimpses of what we're capable of — mostly in the first half," quarterback Matt Barkley said Wednesday.

Freshman Jeff Byers, regarded as one of the top players in USC's last recruiting class, will make his first start Saturday against Oregon State, Coach Pete Carroll said. Byers will play left guard in place of John Drake, who suffered a high left ankle sprain last week against Washington State and will not make the trip for the game at Corvallis, Ore. Byers, the 2003 national Gatorade player of the year at Loveland High in Colorado, came to USC as a center.

Freshman Jeff Byers will start in place of injured left guard John Drake if Drake does not recover in time for Saturday's Pacific 10 Conference game at Washington State, Coach Pete Carroll said Monday. Drake sprained his right ankle in the third quarter of last Saturday's 38-0 victory over Washington and did not practice Monday. Drake broke the same ankle last season against UCLA, and it required season-ending surgery.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- Rain was falling Thursday night when USC's team charter arrived here, a possible precursor to what the Trojans might have to deal with in their opener Saturday against Virginia. The game-day forecast calls for a high of 82 degrees with scattered thunderstorms, the likelihood of precipitation increasing slightly as the day goes on. How that might affect the Trojans, specifically quarterback Mark Sanchez's passing accuracy and the stability of his left knee, will be measured today when the Trojans practice.

No one outright questioned the manhood of the big guys who play along the USC offensive and defensive lines. No one had to. All week long, the guards and tackles and ends chewed over memories of walking off the field after being pushed around in an upset loss at Oregon State. "It's a sickness you get in your gut," offensive guard Jeff Byers said. "It's the worst thing." Saturday night was a different feeling altogether. At the heart of No. 9 USC's 44-10 victory over No.

USC defensive tackle Fili Moala wears No. 75, but he cannot escape the attention of No. 1. That's the overall spot an ESPN analyst shockingly slotted Moala into last April in an early 2009 NFL mock draft. For nearly the last two weeks, however, Moala has been forced to live with the reality of another number: zero. That's how many tackles the senior was credited with in the top-ranked Trojans' season-opening victory over Virginia. "Of course it bugs me," Moala said Wednesday.

Television cameras will follow the ball when 12th-ranked USC plays at Arizona State, but Saturday's game might be one in which interior-line play actually qualifies as highlight material. USC's offense will go against an aggressive Sun Devil front seven that has helped make Arizona State the Pacific 10 Conference's top-ranked defense. Freshman Vontaze Burfict , who originally committed to USC, starts at middle linebacker for a unit that gives up only 296 yards a game. The Sun Devils, however, also lead the conference in penalties and penalty yardage.

UCLA defensive tackle Brian Price was named the Pacific 10 Conference's defensive player of the year Monday. Price was so dominant that he received the honor despite the fact the 6-6 Bruins finished eighth in conference with a 3-6 record. Stanford running back Toby Gerhart, a Heisman Trophy finalist, was named the offensive player of the year and Oregon's Chip Kelly is the coach of the year. Price, a junior who may declare for the NFL draft, led the conference with 22.5 tackles for a loss, which ranks him third nationally.

Joe McKnight would like nothing more than a repeat performance. Two years ago, in a 20-13 victory over Arizona at the Coliseum, McKnight set up the go-ahead touchdown with a dazzling punt return. He followed with a long run from scrimmage to set up an insurance field goal. It was a coming out of sorts for McKnight, a freshman at the time who had been plagued by fumbles. "I remember being surprised to get in the game at that time," McKnight said Thursday. "I was surprised that Coach [ Pete ]

For the first time since 2001, Los Angeles' crosstown football rivalry doesn't have implications for a major bowl game. But that doesn't mean there aren't important things to play for. USC leads the series, 43-28-7, and has won nine of its last 10 games against the Bruins. Times staff writers Gary Klein and Chris Foster examine some of the issues involved in this year's game: Freshmen quarterbacks: Rise and fall Both teams start freshmen at quarterback, though UCLA's Kevin Prince is in his second full year with the Bruins.

After spending a week answering questions about their confidence, toughness and that embarrassing loss to Stanford, USC's players welcomed Saturday's open date. None, perhaps, more than middle linebacker Chris Galippo . While others among the Trojans' struggling front seven have been sidelined because of injuries or sat out plays because of rotations at their positions, Galippo has been on the field for nearly every meaningful snap this season. That, of course, includes recent blowout losses against Oregon and Stanford, games in which the Trojans gave up a combined 716 rushing yards and 102 points.

Television cameras will follow the ball when 12th-ranked USC plays at Arizona State, but Saturday's game might be one in which interior-line play actually qualifies as highlight material. USC's offense will go against an aggressive Sun Devil front seven that has helped make Arizona State the Pacific 10 Conference's top-ranked defense. Freshman Vontaze Burfict , who originally committed to USC, starts at middle linebacker for a unit that gives up only 296 yards a game. The Sun Devils, however, also lead the conference in penalties and penalty yardage.

By the time USC center Kristofer O'Dowd arrived at training camp in August, he already had been selected to several preseason All-American teams. But the junior suffered a knee injury in the Trojans' second scrimmage and has struggled to regain his form while starting the last five games. So when the Trojans resume their Pacific 10 Conference schedule on Saturday against Oregon State, O'Dowd will be on the bench. "I haven't played up to my capability or my standards as well as my coaches' standards," O'Dowd said Thursday.

USC players and coaches are looking forward to playing at Notre Dame. But not today's plane ride to get there. Memories of a harrowing arrival two years ago remain fresh for the sixth-ranked Trojans, who play the No. 25 Fighting Irish on Saturday at South Bend, Ind. "I bet there are still guys that are scared of flying because of that," offensive lineman Jeff Byers said Wednesday. Fellow offensive lineman Butch Lewis counts himself among them. The 6-foot-5, 285-pound Lewis and others on the charter flight in 2007 were hurled from their seats and bumped their heads on the ceiling when the plane dropped while making an approach through a lightning storm.

There was a distinctly medical tone to the USC football practice on Thursday, and the prognosis was encouraging. The good news started with a visit from a doctor who is treating Stafon Johnson for the severe throat injury the tailback suffered in a weightlifting accident last week. Johnson had undergone a series of tests earlier in the day. "They were beside themselves with the wonderful results they got, to see how everything they worked on is looking great at this point," Coach Pete Carroll said.

USC players and coaches are looking forward to playing at Notre Dame. But not today's plane ride to get there. Memories of a harrowing arrival two years ago remain fresh for the sixth-ranked Trojans, who play the No. 25 Fighting Irish on Saturday at South Bend, Ind. "I bet there are still guys that are scared of flying because of that," offensive lineman Jeff Byers said Wednesday. Fellow offensive lineman Butch Lewis counts himself among them. The 6-foot-5, 285-pound Lewis and others on the charter flight in 2007 were hurled from their seats and bumped their heads on the ceiling when the plane dropped while making an approach through a lightning storm.

There was a distinctly medical tone to the USC football practice on Thursday, and the prognosis was encouraging. The good news started with a visit from a doctor who is treating Stafon Johnson for the severe throat injury the tailback suffered in a weightlifting accident last week. Johnson had undergone a series of tests earlier in the day. "They were beside themselves with the wonderful results they got, to see how everything they worked on is looking great at this point," Coach Pete Carroll said.