New “Inside the Trojans’ Huddle” (Tuesday, Aug. 29) edition: San Jose State review, Nevada preview, and much more 

In Tuesday’s edition of Inside the Trojans’ Huddle, panelists Marc Kulkin, Erik McKinney, Chris Arledge, and Greg Katz review the San Jose State opener, preview Nevada, a new Big Ten lightning round, game predictions, and viewers’ questions and panel answers.   

In the first quarter of the Huddle, the panel examines and dissects the Trojans’ home opener with the San Jose Spartans. What did the panel like? What did they dislike? Thoughts on the offense and defensive performances. Panelist Chris Arledge goes on a complete tirade against the performance of the Trojans’ defense and points his finger at those he believes are responsible for the performance.

Naturally, there is high praise for true freshman Zachariah Branch for both his receiving skills and his equally explosive special teams TD kickoff return. Katz shows concern about Caleb Williams running the ball too much, and taking some big hits.  

In the second quarter of the Huddle, the panel looks ahead to Saturday afternoon’s game against the Nevada Wolfpack, another Mountain West team. The Wolfpack have lost ten consecutive games dating back to last season. Can the Men of Troy get anything out of this game other than beat the point spread? With Stanford and the opening of Pac-12 play on the on-deck circle, how will Lincoln Riley handle offense and defense against the Wolfpack?

The panelists go on to discuss whether this game will be treated the same as the San Jose State in terms of generous substituting, or will Riley decide to form units in anticipation of next week’s conference opener against Stanford?

Before reaching the Halftime portion of the Huddle, the show welcomes an exciting new sponsor in 2023, Gametime, an online ticket service. You’re invited to go to the official Gametime website (Gametime.co – not dot com) or download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code TROJANS for $20 off your first purchase (terms apply). Check out some great available tickets for the No. 6 Trojans’ upcoming game against Nevada this Saturday, Sept.  2, in the Coliseum at 3:30 p.m. PT.

Halftime answers three questions by the panel: Will Reggie Bush get his Heisman Trophy back by suing the NCAA? Will the class of 2026 QB commit Julian Lewis keep his USC commitment into his final high school season? In regard to the Bush situation, there is healthy debate as to what the NCAA will do. Two panelists believe suing the NCAA is a ploy to get to the negotiating table to compromise Bush getting back his trophy.

In terms of “JuJu” Lewis, there is a consensus on what it will take for Lewis to stay committed. The panel’s answer seems to make sense, and you’ll want to hear their rationale.   

In the third quarter, the panel does its Big Ten Lightning Round Q&A to a series of quick-hitters that require “over or under” or “yes or no” or “fill-in-the-blank answers.” Some of the questions are performance questions relating to Saturday’s upcoming game with Nevada along with some off-the-field questions. There is even a personal press box habit question directed at one of the panelists. Who was it, and how did the other panelists react? There are also predictions regarding the USC offense and defense as well as performance questions. The Bonus Question after the regular 10-question Big Ten segments is a scary proposition, so what was it?

There is a break in the action between the third and fourth quarter of the Huddle for the ceremonial and symbolic lighting of the WeAreSC Coliseum torch, just like at a USC Coliseum home game.

In the fourth quarter, the conversation turns to score predictions for Week 1 action. The panel picks the winners of selected Pac-12 games and a National Game of the Week prediction between a Pac-12 school and an SEC school. Did the panel choose Utah over Florida? Did the panel like LSU over Florida State?   

In Overtime, the panel takes viewers’ questions relating to the San Jose State game and the substitution patterns, offensive and defensive line evaluations, Zachariah Branch, the health of Caleb Williams, the patience of USC fans, Pac-12 game officials, and are fan expectations too high for the 2023 Trojans?

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USC Trojans videos from Los Angeles, California, from the staff of WeAreSC.