USC can’t take ‘desperate’ Colorado for granted if benched star sits

If, and in reality, when, Travis Hunter sits against USC on September 30, All Trojans’s Matt Levine believes Caleb Williams and Co. would be unwise to take a “desperate” Colorado football program — one coming off a 42-6 blowout loss to Oregon in Week 4 — for granted.

“It remains to be seen if Hunter will play, but Sanders provided his response (‘you ain’t ready’) to his star player,” Levine prefaced before saying, “It indicates that he may not play against USC, but we shall see what happens over the rest of the week.

“Either way, if Hunter misses this game, it would give the Trojans a significant advantage. But they can’t take the Buffalos for granted if he does miss. The Trojans must come into this game ready to go because the Buffalos will be coming in with a desperate mindset.”

https://twitter.com/MohsanLFC/status/1706408708731703594

Colorado football catching USC on a down week as well

Though the Buffs’ down week against Oregon was the biggest down week a ranked team has had during the 2023 season, USC too had a failure relative to their own expectations in their 42-28 victory over Arizona State.

On the surface, marching into Tempe and taking down ASU by two touchdowns is an impressive win, but as a nearly five-touchdown favorite at the spread and facing a team with no postseason eligibility due to self-imposed sanctions, USC didn’t have its most impressive showing; hence the Trojans dropping three spots in the AP Top 25.

Colorado can’t assume USC has nothing to prove, with Lincoln Riley under some pressure to make the Trojans a College Football Playoff contender in Year 2 in L.A. Not to mention the numerous celebrities that will be in attendance USC can steal the spotlight in front of.

Coach Prime has a tall task ahead of him, and USC’s disappointment against ASU may have increased the height of said task.