Matt Barkley is the future of USC football. It’s not a question of if. It’s a question of when. And the when is not now. Pete wants the race to continue because competition breeds motivation and motivation breeds precision and innovation. The media wants the race to continue because humans love struggle and struggle sells papers. And you, you want the race to continue because its Spring, and not the good Spring but the after Trojan basketball season ended type of Spring…the way too many months until football Spring. So I don’t want to be the one to play the role of coroner and notify the families, but everyone’s still staring at the track when the finish line’s already broken.

Please keep your hands and feet inside the vehicle at all times, you’re about to enter the Trojan DePo.

-Matt Barkley’s bark is worse than his bite.

I always assumed Corp would start, Mustain (though the most experienced) would be primary backup, and with Garrett Green, they would have enough just in case. Barkley would redshirt so that he may develop a taste for blood. A thirst to prove himself next Spring. Like starving a caged dog so that he learns to fight to eat. That’s history at USC in general, not just the Carroll era.

A true USC freshman quarterback has yet to start in all of a single season’s games. Only two have ever started at all in their first season, Carson Palmer for five games in 1998 and Rob Johnson with a single start in 1991. That’s since 1888! To put it in historical perspective, 1888 was 23 years after the battle that ended the United States Civil war and 23 years before Ishi, the last “wild” native American was captured alive and put on display in a San Francisco museum. So the odds of Barkley winning the start off the bat were a shot in the dark.

Couple that with the fact that under Carroll, Leinart waited his sweet time before taking the reigns from Palmer, Booty waited his for Leinart, and Sanchez for Booty to boot. Corp has only got a season under his belt. And what a season it was: two completions, 14 yards. But in all fairness the kid’s versatile. And he’s opening up. In high school at Orange Lutheran, 2006 season, Corp completed 212 of 311 for 2,750 yards, 21 TDs to 7 interceptions and managed 1,197 yards on 142 carries with 12 TDs. And he’s having flashes of that brilliance in practice and in drills. He’s managing. He’s adjusting. In the words of the immortal LL Cool J, Corp’s doin it and doin it well. And if Corp performs this season, why not think long term? He could be a three year starter. Redshirt Barkley now, and once Corp goes pro, you’ve nurtured a possible championship quarterback in Barkley with two college years left in him. The Trojan machine keeps rolling.

But then a funny thing happened: Barkley entered the picture. He showed up to practice as a football player that happens to be in college rather than a college student that happens to be playing football. And Corp knows that. Corp knows he has to make his case now. Because while it’s historically unlikely Barkley will start, -lightning strikes, and things fall out of the sky, and there’s always a first for everything, otherwise Neil Armstrong would be Neil who?…and Ben Rothlisberger wouldn’t have the best rookie QB start record in the NFL with a Championship ring by year two.

So while there are thunder clouds in the air, this is not the year for lightning. Barkley is in line to ascend the Trojan throne. He’s just not necessarily next. But his 10 of 13 for 195 yards in past Saturday’s scrimmage turned some heads. Especially Corp’s, and especially Mustain’s. That and the fact that Carroll only allowed Mustain a single snap a couple days ago during an extended scrimmage should have given him a little kick in the pants. Not to scare him. Not to goad him. Just a nudge. To say: You have one choice: show up. You have more college level experience than any of these other guys. If you fail, it’s because you allow yourself to fail. Don’t just try to be better…be better. And if Mustain gets that, he’ll get to be Corp’s backup. And if he doesn’t… that’s where Barkley makes it interesting.

If Mustain can’t breach the hump, do you still rely on him as a primary backup? I’m seems uneconomical not to redshirt Barkley. Though it would be tempting to give him a test drive on the field. And with Corp’s mobility, he’s a moving target. There’s a lot of big men jonesing to take that target down. With Corp knocked out and a season on the line could Mustain pull it off? I’m taking that bet, and I’m betting Carroll might too. So for all intents and purposes, put the binoculars down, grab a beer and take a deep breath. Odds are the race was over before it ever began. Corp’s the guy so long as he does not get injured before fall. Barkley’s the other guy, watching the guy, preparing for the day he will be the guy. And you, you’re the guy who can’t wait to see whichever guy dismantle the other guys.

Then again, perhaps for Pete, the spoils of competition, the financial viability of sports publishing, and most importantly the vested interest in your own sanity sans football, we must convince ourselves the race goes on. This is America. Anything is possible.

Just the other day I ordered a plate of nachos, and they brought me back tortilla chips with shredded cheese. But the cheese was not melted. The premise of nachos is melted cheese. How dare they…

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