Husker Fans Buy Up USC Season Tickets - KETV-TV
A Big Red invasion is on its way to southern California with as many as 40,000 Husker fans headed to The Coliseum...

...Husker fans hope to...take over their stadium like Nebraska fans did to Notre Dame in 2000.

"They're estimating there should be 35,000 to 40,000 NU fans at that game," said California Husker fan Lowell Pollema.

Pollema said many NU fans found it cheaper to buy USC season tickets than the single game.

"They had to shut down their season-ticket sales because they found out a lot were being sold to people in Nebraska," Pollema said...

[Dienhart] How to prepare for USC - Sporting News
Talked to Arkansas defensive coordinator Reggie Herring...I asked Herring to break down the Trojans...

On how he defended USC: "We were a little bit soft on the run...Somebody who is talented enough...who can be physical up front...would bode better than we did.

On John David Booty: He doesn't lose it for them. He made good decisions. I really like their misdirection and their bootleg. It complements their running game. He has impeccable poise...You can't blitz him. They are very protection conscious...

Student Body Left (Out?) - LA Times
...a new limit on student seats this season might spur change, and possibly some game-day anger, beginning on Saturday when the fourth-ranked Trojans play 19th-ranked Nebraska.

USC, which established attendance records in each of the last three seasons, has reduced student seating from about 12,000 a game to 8,000...

..."We have data to show this should be plenty," said Steve Lopes, a senior associate athletic director.

Some USC students are not so sure...

Nebraska's West Coast offense heading west - Daily Trojan
Nebraska, once known for running the ball down its opponents' throats, has been running an NFL-style offense the last two years...

...USC coach Pete Carroll said the offense is most similar to the West Coast offense that the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers run...

...the Trojans feel like Nebraska's pro-style offense is similar to the one that USC runs every day in practice.

"They throw the ball a lot, but their offense is pretty similar to ours, so I feel pretty comfortable about it," freshman safety Taylor Mays said.

Nebraska quarterback Zac Taylor broke school records last season for passing yards (2,653), passing attempts (399) and completions (233)...

Also, Callahan Is Latest Test of NFL-Tinged Streak - LA Times
Williams Is Ready for the Matchup - LA Times
Callahan: Trojan D will be big test - Lincoln Star-Journal

Jackson's goal: To be best DL in country - OC Register
Considering he is on the "watch list" for practically every award a defensive player can gather, maybe it's fitting that Lawrence Jackson is talking big. The USC defensive end has set an ambitious goal for himself.

"I want to be the best defensive lineman in the country," Jackson said. "Obviously, it was my goal every year, even my freshman year, but you kind of have to work yourself up to it."

That's been the theme for the 265-pound redshirt junior. Jackson missed three weeks of training camp recovering from a hip-flexor injury...

Trojans report: Inside slant - CBS Sportsline
The competition at running back is still "wide open," according to coach Pete Carroll, and it might actually be expanding.

There is no shortage of candidates, and all of them have some sort of question mark. C.J. Gable (the starter against Arkansas on Sept. 2), Emmanuel Moody and Allen Bradford are true freshmen. Chauncey Washington is a junior who missed two seasons due to academic ineligibility and has been slowed by a hamstring injury suffered in camp. Junior Desmond Reed is coming back from torn knee ligaments suffered last season.

Another true freshman, Stafon Johnson, closed the gap during off-week practices after not playing against the Razorbacks...

Also, Trojans report: Notes, quotes - CBS Sportsline
Trojans report: Strategy and personnel - CBS Sportsline
Texan Moody Was Hooked on Trojans - LA Times
Tailback Battle Remains Fierce - LA Times

[Whicker] USC's Powdrell pulls his weight, and then some - OC Register
Those tacklers who wear Ryan Powdrell's tire tracks on their backs, helmets and chests this fall will have many people to thank.

They can send their heartfelt gratitude to Saddleback College and the coaching staff therein, which nurtured Powdrell after Fresno State wouldn't admit him.

They can cite the NCAA - "the student-athlete-friendly NCAA," said USC coach Pete Carroll, with a mocking smile - after it restored a year to Powdrell's career that the Trojans staff almost blew.

Mostly, they can shake Powdrell's hand in person, if they dare get close...

Ellis Injures Left Knee - Inland Empire Press-Enterprise
It was just a typical pre-practice walk-through for the USC defensive linemen on Monday. But then, junior nose tackle Sedrick Ellis grabbed his left knee and, after a half-dozen coaches and trainers checked him out, was whisked off the field on a cart.

Ellis, who is 6-foot-1 and 295 pounds, did not return to the field and was scheduled for an MRI exam later Monday.

His availability Saturday for the Trojans' game against 19th-ranked Nebraska (2-0) was unknown Monday evening.

"I think he'll be OK," defensive coordinator and line coach Nick Holt said...