Considering the fact that basically the whole length of the state of California separates the USC Trojans and the Stanford Cardinal, it isn't commonplace to refer to the series between the two teams as a rivalry. However, of all of the series in the Pac-12 over the course of the last decade or so, there might not be a better one than this.
WHEN THE USC TROJANS HAVE THE BALL
Cody Kessler has stated his case through two games to be on the Heisman Trophy watch list for sure. He's 45-of-57 passing for 650 yards with seven scores and no picks, and the Men of Troy are gaining 11.4 yards on average every time he throws the rock.
Ronald Jones is averaging 12.1 yards per carry, Tre Madden is good for 7.5 yards per carry, Justin Davis is at 14.8 yards per carry, JuJu Smith is already at 281 yards on 14 catches with three touchdowns… In short, it's good to be a Trojan on offense at the moment.
Of course, we must be tempered. Idaho and Arkansas State aren't exactly the cream of the crop in college football, though the SEC won't want to hear anything bad about the Red Wolves after Missouri nearly lost to them last weekend.
The key is going to be the Stanford defense. The Cardinal don't get a lot of publicity for their strong defensive unit, but the fact that of the matter is that they have allowed a total of 23 points in two games against a pair of bowl-bound teams in Northwestern and UCF. In fact, that defense has clearly and definitively been good enough to win both games, and you can bet that this unit is going to keep Stanford in this game, too.
Last season, Kessler and the Trojans did win 13-10, but they were held to just 291 yards and were largely outplayed at Stanford Stadium.
WHEN THE STANFORD CARDINAL HAVE THE BALL
There was a point that Kevin Hogan was considered one of the future arms of college football. He really has never panned out, and the start of his senior season has been abysmal at best.
The fact that Hogan has been sacked six times already in two games is a huge demerit on this offensive line, as is the fact that as a team, the Cardinal are averaging just 3.30 yards per carry.
That's really good news for an incredibly talented USC defense. Sure, Leonard Williams is no longer playing along this defensive line, but the one thing that the Trojans always have are massive linemen who are incredibly athletic and gifted. That's bad news for the Cardinal up front, and live bettors should know that a number of drives are going to be stalled out by sacks or otherwise negative plays on early downs.
TREND TO TRACK
Though in a vacuum, it appears as though USC is justified at -10, going back and look at the history of this series tells a different tale, one which live bettors should be aware of.
David Shaw has been a part of a number of these games, and he knows what it takes to stick in there with the pro-style Trojans. The last five meetings of these two have been decided by eight points or fewer, and three of those five were decided by three points or fewer.
Though Stanford is surely not the better team in this game, it shouldn't be lost on live bettors either that this was a Top 25 team before losing to Northwestern, now a Top 25 team in its own right. The Cardinal have some real talent, particularly defensively, and when you're talking about a game which could have a lot more stops than scores, points could be incredibly valuable no matter when a live bet is made.
The NCAA football spread for this Saturday game was first available at BookMaker Sportsbook, and the USC Trojans surfaced as 9.5-point chalks. The total opened at 51.5. Minute-by-minute spreads, totals and props are available for this game using the live betting platform at BookMaker.
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook! The contest between the USC Trojans and Stanford Cardinal will start at 8:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, September 19, 2015, at the Los Angeles Coliseum. The matchup will be televised on ABC.
