Here are the keys to the game for Ohio State to avoid the upset bid against a USC team facing the most pressure of this era of Trojans football to date. Make no mistake, this is a tough spot for the Buckeyes.

Now, you can point to the positives. Ohio State is coming off a bye week, it just picked up a great win against Indiana, and all of that works in its favor. That extra week matters even more because the Buckeyes have to break in a new quarterback.

Practice speed is not game speed and whoever starts at QB has to be ready

Let me be clear out of the gate here, practice is one thing. Game speed is a completely different thing.

Luke Fahey or Tavien St. Clair could be under center. Either way, expecting the starting quarterback to walk into USC and hit on all cylinders on the first couple of drives is asking a lot. Maybe the Buckeyes even get an opening drive for a score. Then the wheels start to get a little shaky on the road, and the crowd gets loud. How do they respond? When you’re talking about a true freshman like Fahey, you can’t guarantee anything.

And you may say, Tegan, they’ve had two full weeks to get ready for this. Sure. Two weeks of practice reps still don’t simulate a desperate USC team smelling blood in the second quarter.

Bo Jackson has to carry the load in the run game

That brings me to the biggest point. This is a road game against a program desperate to keep a pulse before the administration pulls the plug on the Lincoln Riley era. In that setting, the question becomes simple: can you run the football with Bo Jackson?

I think the backup quarterback theory is absolutely in play here. For two weeks, Ohio State has known it needs to play its best football to put its quarterback in the best position to succeed. Don’t make him win this game. Make him a point guard. Make him comfortable. Get him into third-and-short.

The Buckeyes’ rushing attack has been inconsistent at best. I know the group has been banged up, but now is the time to uncork it and let loose on the ground. USC’s front seven got bullied by Wisconsin. Wisconsin! Ohio State knows it has the athletes and the capability to do the same thing. Lean into the run game and let Jackson carry the load.

Ohio State doesn’t need a shootout

Defensively, the Buckeyes just have to weather the storm. I do think USC puts together a really good offensive performance in this one, and Ohio State shouldn’t panic when it happens.

As long as the defense holds up, Ohio State only needs somewhere between 24 and 27 points. Because of the bye week, I feel confident the offense can get there. That’s the whole formula. Run the ball, protect the quarterback, and let the defense bend without breaking.

Am I 110 percent on this one? No. I’m genuinely curious how this offense responds if things get dicey early, and that’s the one piece of this game that keeps me from stamping a blowout. But this is Ohio State we’re talking about. Honestly, I think this program is a little bit immune to losing to Lincoln Riley, of all people.

So give me Ohio State to win, and give me the Buckeyes to win by more than a touchdown. If Riley pulls the upset and proves me wrong, I’ll live with that. I just don’t see it. Ohio State leaves Los Angeles with a win and turns its full attention to a huge matchup against Oregon.