Picking USC/ND at 2:37 AM.

#6 USC at #25 Notre Dame

This is the year. We have a chance. Jimmy to Golden all day. Those are thoughts of most Notre Dame fans who are desperately wanting an Irish win over the rival Trojans.

Guess what? This isn't the year.

I applaud Notre Dame for their nice run so far this season, but let's look at who they played, shall we?

They opened up with Nevada, who statistically had one of the worst pass defenses in the nation last year. From there, they took on rival Michigan in Ann Arbor. Another horrible defense, Notre Dame's experience didn't prevail against the Wolverines and they have been the only team to defeat the Irish so far. And yes, this is the same Michigan team that lost to Michigan State and Iowa recently. Speaking of the Spartans, they were one overthrow away from losing to one of the worst teams in the Big Ten. Same with Purdue, who possibly IS the worst team in the Big Ten. A controversial and eventually game costing timeout call helped the Irish out. Washington might have defeated USC, but their defense is still bad. I think this game was the most impressive on the Irish's part, because that horrible defense made an incredible goal line stand that saved the game. The Huskies could have had some better play calling, but that's besides the point.

Now rolling in are the Trojans from Los Angeles. USC has gotten better after the loss to Washington, and Joe McKnight is finally looking like "the next Reggie Bush" as he was dubbed coming out of high school. This USC defense is the 4th ranked unit in the nation, a far cry from past defenses the Irish have faced. The Michigan State Spartans possess the toughest defense Notre Dame has faced this year - the 49th ranked unit. Their 22.8 PPG is a joke compared to the Trojans defense, who only allow 8.6 PPG and 238.6 YPG.

Now I'm going to be honest here: if Michael Floyd would play, I would give Notre Dame a chance. Floyd, in my opinion, is probably a top five receiver in the nation...when healthy. Unfortunately for the Irish and their fans, they will have to wait till possibly the Navy game for him to come back. That leaves Golden Tate as Jimmy Clausen's number one target, who is a mighty fine receiver himself. He's no Floyd, but he's really explosive and can make something out of nothing. However, he hasn't really faced a legit corner this season.

Matt Barkley will have to step up against an Irish defense who is ranked in the bottom half of yards allowed per game. If he can make a few big passes, it will really take the pressure of the running game. There are reports that Ronald Johnson will play in the showdown, a huge boost for the freshman quarterback. Johnson gives Barkley a deep threat - something that has killed the Notre Dame defense all year.

I expect the crowd to be rocking; I mean it's the USC game for crying out loud. But Pete Carroll will have his troops ready. Unless they haven't mowed the grass (2005 game reference), I expect the Trojans to come up victorious...by a huge margin. This Irish team is a lot better than last year's, that's a fact. However, they aren't good enough to beat a USC team yet, even one that I don't think will win the Pac-10. Weather might or might not be a factor, we will see.

USC 44, Notre Dame 20

Other Predictions
#2 Alabama 31, #22 South Carolina 17
#3 Texas 41, Oklahoma 30
#4 Virginia Tech 27, #19 Georgia Tech 17
#14 Penn State 24, Minnesota 10