Dick LeBeaursquos group was having none of it

Not as far as defensive schemes and game planning were concerned His Husky defenses this year havent been all that great However, he knows how to teach the basics He made pass rushers like Clay Matthews, Jr and Kyle Moore effective. He taught his players how to get penetration and containment Above all, he demanded toughness. And no arm tackles!Also the success of the USC offense has actually hurt the defense. All season long fans have been calling for Jeremy Bates to open up the offense and let Matt Barkley throw the long ball.Over the past two games that is exactly what has happened. So, instead of sustained scoring drives that kept the Trojan defense on the sidelines, USC scored quickly, and the defense found itself right back on the field again.Last week Oregon State ran 77 plays versus 58 for USC The week before, Notre Dame ran 75 plays to 62 for USC But against Cal, the numbers were reversed USC ran 77 plays to 65 for Cal USC must return to the same type of ball-control offense. The defense is not deep enough to remain on the field for 70-plus plays.However, with the offense now banged up just like the defense, I dont expect the Trojans to come out on top against No 10 Oregon at a place like Autzen Stadium.

But that does not mean they wont.The trick is the offense must grind it out with sustained, ball-control scoring drives against the nations No. In a game that was far from perfect, the Pittsburgh Steelers came away from Heinz Field on Sunday with a much needed win. Some of the same problems that we’ve seen each week were present: critical dropped pass, this time by Hines Ward; untimely turnover (Rashard Mendenhall’s fumble); mental breakdown (giving up a kick return for a touchdown, after Brett Keisel’s strip and Lamar Woodley’s scoop and run should have all but ended the game).The Steelers needed a second spectacular play on defense by Keyaron Fox to finally put the game on ice.The two spectacular defensive plays marked the first time all year that the defense stepped up and made a big play when they had to in the fourthquarter. The defense was solid all game, holding Adrian Peterson in check, until the fourthquarter, when he made a train wreck of William Gay. Brett Favre, the crafty veteran that he is, looked to have his team poised to steel one (no pun intended) in Pittsburgh.Dick LeBeau’s group was having none of it. Despite having a bye next Sunday, the Steelers D should be able to take the momentum of this game into the next two contests (against Denver and Cincinnati), games which will have a lot to do with defining the Steelers season.A week after this writer called the Steelers an offensive team, two things happened: the defense stepped up (as previously mentioned) and Bruce Arians returned to his questionable play calling ways.The Steeler offense, and Ben Roethlisberger, could never get into a rhythm. The play calling returned to plain vanilla, with the exception of the three end-arounds.There were no attempts to stretch the field I thought at least one deep ball to Mike Wallace per game was a given by now. The two long pass plays, which accounted for 85 of Ben’s 175 yards passing, were of the catch and run variety.The best drive of the game for the Steelers was when they were in the no-huddle just before half-time. Which begs the question: Why not use the no-huddle in the second half, when the offense was strugglingMuch credit has to go to a tough Viking defense. But this was a team that was 20thin the league against the pass.The Steelers are yet to put together a complete game. But this game was their best from a defensive standpoint, and was the first time all year that they showed heart and determination in the fourthquarter.A sign that they are indeed ready to repeat as Super Bowl champs. If only Bruce Arians play calling doesn’t trip them up.. While I may hate both teams involved, the World Series this year has provided some very good baseball thus far. The reality is, these teams both legitimately deserve to be there this year. Some thoughts on the matchup so far:A split had to be something the Phillies were hoping for coming out of New York. Whereas either team's success will make me sad, the failure of the other team will make me happy.

If the Phillies win, it'll be hilarious that the Yankees spent all that money, finally made it to the World Series, and lost It's not quite 18-1, but it's close. If the Yankees win...well, a team from Philly lost, and I don't usually have a problem with that.Ryan Howard has been pretty quiet so far Only two singles and three strikeouts Big guy needs to pick up his game Though he did steal a base, which is hilarious Yes, I know he stole eight in the regular season. All of them were hilarious.A-Rod's postseason success is not a recent phenomenon. Possibly more on that in a later post, but I've posted about it here ad nauseam before, so maybe not.Where's all the steroid talk As Fire Jerry Manuel said on Twitter: "baseball people usually complain about how NFL steroid usage gets glossed over well, look at pettitte/arod right now. If you like what you read here, check out our home page for more. Sixty Feet, Six Inches This article is also featured on Sixty Feet, Six Inches.

This World Series has been dominated by fantastic pitching which has plagued the sluggers in each lineup, emphasis on Ryan Howard and Alex Rodriguez. Now, as the Series shifts to Philly, those starting pitching matchups become a little uneaven. With the unbalance swinging in New York's favor.In game three it will be Cole Hamels against veteran Andy Pettitte. So far Hamels, last year's World Series MVP, has been very shakey to say the least.