The Cal-USC game still has big implications

We asked John Robinson what he thinks about the upcoming game between No. 23 California and No. 7 USC. Despite USC’s early-season loss to Washington and Cal’s 42-3 loss at Oregon, Robinson thinks this game still has championship implications.  He also gives some insight on the Stafon Johnson injury.

How did the Cal loss affect the upcoming game with USC?

“I don’t think it changes anything. Both those teams have one loss, and if they get two losses in the conference, they’re out. So, it’s a desperation game for both teams. The rivalry is there, it will set up as a big game and it will be a big game.”

What does USC need to do differently this week?

“USC has to start playing. I think they’ve kind of sleepwalked through these first four games. So much focus has been on the quarterback. Is he good? Is he great?  Which one is going? I think they’ve gotten caught up a little bit in that. Against Washington State, they could have ran the ball and controlled everything. But they threw the ball a lot to kind of make Barkley look good I thought. They need to get the rest of their team playing with some vigor, and up to this point, I have not seen that.”

How will Stafon’s Johnson freak weightlifting accident affect the team?

Stafon Johnson had a very serious throat injury and underwent a successfull 7-hour surgery, and he will be 100 percent in due time.  Knowing he will fully recover has re-energized the team. It won’t change their strategy a bit, because they have so many running backs that participate in all phases of the game. In the short yardage situations where Pete was using Johnson, he’ll just use one of the other backs.

Print Story