#4 USC Trojans will take on San Jose State in their season opener on Saturday at 3:30pm ET (12:30pm PT).
The Trojans will have a new quarterback at the helm in freshman Matt Barkley, the first true freshman starting quarterback in school history. Barkley, who graduated early from Mater Dei H.S. in Santa Ana, CA, became the starter after redshirt sophomore Aaron Corp injured his right fibula Aug. 10.
Barkley was also the first freshman quarterback to start at Mater Dei since former Trojan Todd Marinovich. Barkley threw for 6,594 yards and 57 touchdowns in four seasons at the school, which also produced Matt Leinart, while winning national awards in his junior and senior years.
USC returns its top five rushers and four of its five leading receivers from last season.
Senior Stafon Johnson rushed for a team-best 705 yards and nine touchdowns, and junior Damian Williams was the school's top pass catcher with 58 receptions for 869 yards and nine TDs. Junior tailback Joe McKnight added 905 all-purpose yards with 659 on the ground for an offense that returns nine starters, including the entire offensive line.
However, one starter won't be available for a while because receiver Ronald Johnson will miss six to eight weeks due to a broken collarbone suffered Saturday in a scrimmage. He was the team's third-leading receiver last year with 33 catches for 570 yards and eight TDs.
The defense has only three starters returning, although one of them is All-American safety Taylor Mays, who is considered one of the nation’s most devastating defenders.
Pete Carroll's team is favored to extend its record streak of Pac-10 championships to eight. The Trojans have an NCAA-record seven consecutive 11-win seasons, with a BCS bowl game appearance and season-ending top-four ranking in each year.
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