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USC Plays Michigan in First Title Game

Posted on: Thursday, 1 January 2004, 06:00 CST

Pete Carroll has heard the question probably more than 100 times since the bowl bids were handed out last month: Hey coach, what do you really think about being snubbed for the BCS title game despite being ranked No. 1 in the polls?

Believe him or not, the answer has stayed the same since the controversial decision more than three weeks ago to send No. 2 LSU and No. 3 Oklahoma to the Sugar Bowl instead of the Trojans.

"We're playing in the Rose Bowl with a shot at the national championship," Carroll said Wednesday. "You can't ask for more than that. I'm not frustrated at all."

Come Thursday, all the talk about split titles, disputed finishes and computer rankings will be moot unless the Trojans can beat No. 4 Michigan in the Rose Bowl - the first of two title games this season.

History says USC will be in perfect position to claim The Associated Press' championship with a win against the Wolverines because the AP's top team never has dropped after winning its bowl.

But an undisputed championship is impossible for the Trojans, who were kept out of the Bowl Championship Series title game because of a weak strength of schedule. The USA Today/ESPN coaches' poll is obligated to give its title to the winner of the Sugar Bowl.

That sets up the possibility of college football's 11th split national championship - something that was supposed to be eliminated when the BCS started in 1998.

"Twenty years from now, that won't matter," USC cornerback Will Poole said. "We'll still get a ring."

To do that, the Trojans will have to get past a Michigan team that is playing as well as anyone after falling out of national-title contention with two early losses.

Michigan responded by winning its final six games, including three against Top 10 teams in November.

"I think we should be considered," offensive lineman Tony Pape said. "It's not how you start the race, but how you finish. We might not have started as fast as some other teams, but we're finishing as a championship team."

This game figures to be a shootout, with two of the country's most sophisticated offenses.

Norm Chow's Trojans offense is considered by some to be the best college football has seen in years.

Quarterback Matt Leinart stepped in for Heisman Trophy winner Carson Palmer and directed a high-powered attack to record numbers. He has many options at his disposal, led by All-American receiver Mike Williams, Keary Colbert and a trio of young running backs that provide balance to the offense.

USC used its big-play philosophy to top 40 points in seven straight games and is sixth in the nation in scoring with a school-record 42.2 points per game. The Trojans have had 18 plays go for at least 40 yards and more than three-quarters of their scoring drives have taken less than three minutes.

"It's the best offense I've seen since I've been at Michigan," senior defensive end Larry Stevens said. "It just doesn't stop. They have so many explosive players, so many stars, it's almost unreal. But that's what you expect when you play the No. 1 team in the country."

Michigan has a similar offense led by quarterback John Navarre, Heisman finalist running back Chris Perry and a deep receiving corps. The Wolverines scored at least 27 points every game and are ninth nationally at 37.2 points per game.

Michigan will try to control the ball with Perry to help ease the pressure on the defense. But if USC commits too many people to stopping the run, Navarre and receiver Braylon Edwards can capitalize.

"We're not as bullheaded as you think we are," Pape said. "We'll do whatever it takes to win, whether that's running the ball or passing the ball. We're not going to come into the game saying, `We're going to run the ball, we're going to run the ball.' That would be stupid."

Led by its "Wild Bunch II" defensive line, USC was second in the nation against the run, allowing only 61.1 yards per game and 1.9 yards per carry.

But the Wolverines had success against the top run defense in the country when Perry ran for 154 yards against Ohio State.

"We haven't faced a running team with an offensive line as good as Michigan's," USC defensive line coach Ed Orgeron said. "You can bring eight men in the box and they still know what to do."

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