In any football game, lots of matchups matter. One positional advantage can be overwhelmed by other positional deficiencies or statistical plot twists. That said, one position group battle does seem to loom larger than all the others when Oregon and USC meet this coming weekend in the Los Angeles Coliseum.
Oregon's identity and success have been built primarily on one foundation: the offensive line. If the Ducks have an offensive front which is carving out gaps for the running backs and makes the Oregon offense both balanced and unpredictable, it's really hard for opposing defenses to contain the athletes Dan Lanning and his staff regularly bring into the UO program. Oregon offensive lines have been very strong in the Lanning era, sending first-round
picks to the NFL draft and giving Oregon quarterbacks the time and comfort they need in order to be special. It's all about the O-line (not the O) at Oregon.
USC's defense has never come close to the Pete Carroll "Wild Bunch II" standard set in LA two decades ago. USC got back to the big time in college football with a very nasty front four which swallowed up Auburn in that memorable 23-0 shutout in 2003, the game which (alongside the 2002 Notre Dame game and 2003 Orange Bowl) launched the Pete Carroll dynasty. USC having a dominant defensive front made everything else possible for those teams. If the offense had a bad day, the defense had its back. USC was strong up the middle and made life easier for its athletes in both the offensive and defensive backfields.
USC has to get back to that identity - the defensive line dictating play - to become truly great. Oregon's offensive line has been struggling. This is USC's ultimate opportunity to finally outplay an Oregon offensive line. If the Trojans can do that, they should win. If they can't, their misery against Dan Lanning is likely to continue.
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This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USC D-line versus Oregon O-line is number one matchup in Trojans-Ducks
