And a Freshman Shall Lead Them

Southern California freshman quarterback Matt Barkley handed the ball off to Stafon Johnson with just more than a minute remaining Saturday night and watched the tailback march two yards into the end zone, completing a comeback that only added to the intrigue and hype surrounding the No. 3 Trojans' newest leader.

But if Barkley one day cements his place among the luminous USC quarterbacks under Coach Pete Carroll, knowledgeable college football fans will not look back at the final play of a 14-play, 86-yard drive that took down No. 8 Ohio State on the road as the moment of Barkley's arrival. Rather, they will reflect on a key play at the drive's outset that made the Trojans' 18-15 victory possible.

Facing third and eight with just less than six minutes remaining, Barkley dropped back and found tailback Joe McKnight for a 21-yard completion. From there, USC's offense operated with smooth precision in front of 106,000 fans at Ohio Stadium. Barkley to Anthony McCoy for a 26-yard gain. Barkley converting on a fourth and inches with a quarterback sneak. Barkley rushing for four more yards on third and two.

And then there was Johnson's burst around the right side for the game-winning score.

"When we punched it in there," Barkley said, "it was good to hear the silence."

Barkley completed a two-yard pass to McKnight on the two-point conversion attempt to provide the Trojans with their final margin of victory. McKnight finished with 60 yards rushing and 45 yards receiving. Barkley threw for 195 yards and an interception, though Carroll pointed out Barkley's stat line will not define his performance Saturday night.

"He's not 19," Carroll said of his young quarterback. "He's our quarterback. I'm not worried about how old he is. Numbers mean nothing."

Tell that to the Buckeyes, who looked up at the scoreboard at the end and found themselves on the losing end for the sixth time in as many meetings against top-five opponents. Ohio State's defense played admirably for most of the night, limiting USC's offense to 229 total yards before the game-winning drive.

The Buckeyes' offense, however, was not nearly as productive. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor showed flashes of brilliance but could not sustain his strong play for long enough stretches to pile up points. He completed 11 of 25 passes for 177 yards and an interception. Pryor went 2 of 8 for nine yards in the fourth quarter. Ohio State Coach Jim Tressel might argue that those numbers -- and a few others -- mean something.

USC has won seven straight games against Ohio State, 10 straight games against Big Ten teams and 14 of its last 16 games against top 10 opponents.

"You need to score more than five points in the second half," Tressel said. "They came up with plays on that last drive they needed to and so they go home with the spoils."