Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times takes an early look at how the Las Vegas Betting line is looking at the Huskies chances this season. All the games aren't in there yet but Bob figures Las Vegas thinks the Huskies will be favored to win six games this year which is a big improvement from previous seasons.
Bob also attended the informal workout yesterday at Husky Stadium and kept an eye on the position which is the Huskies biggest question mark going into the fall.
Kalani Aldrich was active during the time I watched, playing his usual DE spot, and appears, as head coach Steve Sarkisian said recently, on track to return for the beginning of fall camp. Everrette Thompson was among those not on the field so I didn't get a look at him, but he was spotted in the gym so he was around today probably working out elsewhere.
Ted Miller of ESPN says that Washington has the best combined backfield trio in the Pac 10 if not the nation.
Rivals tapped this threesome No. 1 in the nation. Locker ranked No. 2 on our list of the conference's top 25 players and he may go No. 1 in the 2011 NFL draft. Polk ranked fourth in the conference with 1,113 yards rushing in 2009. Kearse earned second-team All-Pac-10 honors after hauling in eight TD passes and leading the conference with a 17.3 yards per reception average.
Washington didn't make the conference top five on defense which is understandable but who would Washington's three headed monster be on defense? I would nominate LB Foster, CB Trufant, DT Elisara going into the season. I think it will be interesting to see who are top three defenders are by the end of the season.
USC loses more depth
USC lost another player today as word leaked out that FB D.J Shoemate was transfering to U-Conn because he wants to play tailback. Shoemate becomes the fifth player to leave since the NCAA hit USC with major sanctions June 10. He is the third player to take advantage of a provision that allows juniors and seniors to transfer without having to sit out a year.
The OC Register looks at what really happened in the Dillon Baxter incident. If the answer turns out to be "C" it will be a huge black eye for the program, however they could always say it was Tood McNair's idea.
So which is it? Some possible explanations:
(A) Baxter, 18, made the whole thing up, showing he’s just as creative off the field as on it.
(B) Baxter was contacted by the schools, or representatives of their interests, but USC was unable to prove it.
(C) Someone — perhaps a member of the USC coaching staff — told Baxter to make up the story.
(D) Baxter thought it was April Fool’s Day.
We also hear from Scott Wolf's blog that wide receivers Travon Patterson and Brandon Carswell are also weighing their options.