After a summer of limited contact, the USC Trojans are ready to bust some heads. The problem is…they keep busting one another’s.

This past Tuesday was the first “competition Tuesday” of the regular season; the corner stone of Pete Carroll’s coaching technique. The practice day where the coveted starting jobs are won and lost. No spot is safe. The best man wins the position. There’s no slacking here, because every member of the team is talented enough to start. This practice the older guys wanted to show the rookies how battles are done; what the famed Tuesdays are all about. This competition Tuesday, the blood was pumping.

INSIDE: Starting receiver Patrick Turner and center Matt Spanos injured during practice.

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It sounded like thunder. Starting receiver Patrick Turner and linebacker Rey Malaluga went full speed, helmet to helmet, for the ball. -BAM- When Malaluga turned around, Turner was down on the turf. Then, laying there flat on the field, Patrick Turner spit gems:

“What the F&*K, Rey?!”

And he was taken off the field for the remainder of practice.

Turner wasn’t the only Trojan injured in the civil war of practices. Center Matt Spanos injured a muscle in his arm and will undergo an MRI to determine the extent of his injuries. If he’s unable to perform against Idaho, Carroll has said left guard Jeff Byers would move to center.

Hopefully by this Saturday’s season opener against the Idaho Vandals there will be some healthy Trojans left to play…if they haven’t all killed each other yet. The Trojans are thirsty for contact. And in the aftermath of this competition Tuesday, there’s one thing I know for sure: I wouldn’t want to be an Idaho Vandal come Saturday. That is unless I really, really, really liked hospital beds and wheelchairs.

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