USC Trojans vs. Stanford Cardinal Preview & Prediction

The Stanford Cardinal (1-1) put a dismal opening week at Northwestern behind them with a rousing 31-7 home opener win over UCF last week. However, things get much tougher in a hurry on Saturday when the Cardinal visit the #6 USC Trojans in Southern California. Can Stanford break their current two-game losing streak to the Trojans in Saturday's Pac-12 opener? Here's our Stanford Cardinal vs. USC Trojans Preview & Prediction.

Line: USC by 10

What's The Stakes?

Stanford can completely erase their opening debacle against the Wildcats with a similar upset to what USC pulled on then-#5 Stanford in 2013. With a win, the Cardinal vault back into the AP Top 25, no questions asked. For the Trojans, this is a chance to make a statement against a name Pac-12 rival and inch closer to the projected College Football Playoff cut line before the calendar turns to October.

Key To The Game:

Which Kevin Hogan will show up on Saturday -- the one who futzed his way through the Northwestern loss or the one who threw for 341 yards and three scores against UCF? For Stanford to have any chance against USC, Hogan #2 has to be locked and ready to go from the opening whistle against USC's formidable pass defense.

What They're Saying About The BYU Cougars:

The Cougars get another shot at glory

The Rose Bowl is the perfect place for a BYU upset

What They're Saying About The UCLA Bruins:

Inside the Bruins heading into Saturday's tilt

Josh Rosen ego watch

Prediction: USC 34, Stanford 27 (2 OT)

It's USC vs. Stanford. Something screwy ALWAYS happens when these two California rivals have at it. We're not saying that Stanford is on the Trojans' level, mind you. We're just saying that this is the kind of game that screams on-screen entertainment value because of how these two programs get up to play one another.