USC [4-1, 2-1 Pac-12] @ WASHINGTON [3-2, 1-1 Pac-12] -- Trojans venture northward for Qwest Field contest against Huskies as LANE KIFFIN & STEVE SARKISIAN, assistants under Pete Carroll at USC, square off anew as sideline supervisors of USC & Washington, respectively.
Kiffin coached at USC from 2001-06 prior to stints w/Oakland Raiders & Tennessee; he returned to USC as HC in 2010. Sarkisian was at USC from 2001-03 and 2005-08 before being named Washington HC in '09. Trojans turned back Utah 38-28 last week while Huskies lost to #2-ranked Oregon 52-21 in Eugene. Trojans moved back into Top 10 nationally at #9 ranking this week. Trojans rank 2nd among Pac-12 defenses, allowing 338.0 yards/game; Huskies rank 4th. Penn State transfer SILAS REDD [75-415-5 TD] is USC's leading ground gainer, ranks 7th among conference RBs. Trojans QB MATT BARKLEY [111-173-1,308-15 TD] is Pac-12's 4th-leading passer. His top target, WR MARQISE LEE, tops all Pac-12 receivers [52-649-7 TD]. WR ROBERT WOODS [31-272-5 TD] is potent complement to Lee downfield. QB KEITH PRICE [94-158-882-5 TD] leads Washington offense. Soph KASEN WILLIAMS [31-340-3 TD] is leading receiver who had 36 grabs all last season. Senior DB T.J. McDONALD [19-19-38] is Troy's leading tackler; he is son of former 49ers defensive back Tim McDonald. USC offensive line has allowed just 7 sacks in 5 games. The Series: USC leads alltime series with 49 wins to 28 for Washington and 4 ties. Last USC win: 2011, 40-17, @ Los Angeles, CA. Last Washington win: 2010, 32-31 @ Los Angeles, CA. Last USC win in Seattle: 2007, 27-24. Kickoff: 4 p.m. PDT/7 p.m. EDT. TV: Fox Sports [national].
NAVY [2-3, Independent] @ CENTRAL MICHIGAN [2-3, 0-2 MAC] -- Navy makes its first-ever visit to host Chippewas, who hail from Mt. Pleasant, MI. Navy last week defeated fellow Commander-in-Chief trophy opponent Air Force 28-21 in overtime; Central Michigan lost its 2nd straight, 50-35. Chippewas' biggest victory in several seasons came earlier this year with 32-31 win over Big Ten foe Iowa. Navy freshman QB KEENAN REYNOLDS led Mids to game's final 15 points in relief on injured starter TREY MILLER [ankle]. His status for this week's game is unknown; Reynolds would get starting assignment if Miller is unable to go. Navy has dominated service academy play over last decade, going 18-2 overall; perfect 10-0 mark vs Army and 8-2 vs Air Force. Navy senior OLB KEEGAN WETZEL is believed to be the only FBS-level player to score a perfect 1600 score on his SAT exam; Wetzel owns 3.89 GPA in systems engineering, is Academic All-American candidate, and has 23 stops, 4 TFL, 3 sacks and fumble recovery in 5 games. Navy's 3 losses to date [Notre Dame, Penn State, San Jose State] have come to teams with combined 13-3 record. Irish are currently No. 7 nationally while Nittany Lions and Spartans have both received Top-25 votes. True freshman K NICK SLOAN is perfect from field with 5-of-5 field goals and 9-of-9 PATs. He is one of just five FBS kickers who are perfect on season; Sloan had career-long 41-yard FG in last week's Air Force triumph. The Series: Third meeting in series that began in 2003. Navy has won the previous two meetings. Last Navy win: 2010, 38-37 @ Annapolis, MD. Kickoff: 5 p.m. PDT/8 p.m. EDT. TV: ESPN2 [national].
NAVY [2-3, Independent] @ CENTRAL MICHIGAN [2-3, 0-2 MAC] -- Navy makes its first-ever visit to host Chippewas, who hail from Mt. Pleasant, MI. Navy last week defeated fellow Commander-in-Chief trophy opponent Air Force 28-21 in overtime; Central Michigan lost its 2nd straight, 50-35. Chippewas' biggest victory in several seasons came earlier this year with 32-31 win over Big Ten foe Iowa. Navy freshman QB KEENAN REYNOLDS led Mids to game's final 15 points in relief on injured starter TREY MILLER [ankle]. His status for this week's game is unknown; Reynolds would get starting assignment if Miller is unable to go. Navy has dominated service academy play over last decade, going 18-2 overall; perfect 10-0 mark vs Army and 8-2 vs Air Force. Navy senior OLB KEEGAN WETZEL is believed to be the only FBS-level player to score a perfect 1600 score on his SAT exam; Wetzel owns 3.89 GPA in systems engineering, is Academic All-American candidate, and has 23 stops, 4 TFL, 3 sacks and fumble recovery in 5 games. Navy's 3 losses to date [Notre Dame, Penn State, San Jose State] have come to teams with combined 13-3 record. Irish are currently No. 7 nationally while Nittany Lions and Spartans have both received Top-25 votes. True freshman K NICK SLOAN is perfect from field with 5-of-5 field goals and 9-of-9 PATs. He is one of just five FBS kickers who are perfect on season; Sloan had career-long 41-yard FG in last week's Air Force triumph. The Series: Third meeting in series that began in 2003. Navy has won the previous two meetings. Last Navy win: 2010, 38-37 @ Annapolis, MD. Kickoff: 5 p.m. PDT/8 p.m. EDT. TV: ESPN2 [national].
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