Opinion: Keaontay Ingram Carrying USC's Offense Behind Drake London
USC's offense has been all over the place this season. Whether it's red zone struggles, penalties or execution based issues; it's safe to say this year hasn't been the best for the Men of Troy.
The Trojans currently rank No. 34 nationally for total offense behind teams like Oregon State, Texas, Michigan State, Ohio State and Alabama. While the unit hasn't preformed great cohesively, two players continue to shine week-after-week.
Wide receiver Drake London has already accumulated over 1,000 passing yards this season with 79 receptions and five touchdowns. He is without a doubt Kedon Slovis' favorite target to hit on the field, due to his flawless execution. When the pass game needs some relief, Keaontay Ingram holds it down on the ground, as a force for the Trojans' run game.
Ingram poured in a season-high 138 yards in South Bend during a 31-16 loss to Notre Dame. After three straight games tallying 14 carries, the former Texas star upped his count to 24. Half-back counterpart, Darwin Barlow, saw just four carries on the night.
Ingram got his name on the scoring sheet in the fourth quarter, on a four-yard rushing touchdown to cap off a solid nine-play drive for the Trojans.
“I knew [the touchdown] was going to be wide open just because my free hitter was too far over there,” Ingram told reporters after the game. “I just was patient, did everything, zoned in, and just hit it.”
Of Ingram’s 138 yards, 97 of those came after contact. The senior ran hard, found holes in the defense and exploded through them. He forced a total of four missed tackles against the Fighting Irish.
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Ingram should have a field day on Saturday against the [0-7] Arizona Wildcats, who head to Los Angeles giving up 181.2 yards on the ground. Matching up against the Wildcats gives USC offensive coordinator, Graham Harrell a chance to experiment with the run and put some more points on the board.
The Wildcats have allowed six runs of at least 30 yards, tied for the most in the Pac-12 alongside UCLA. Ingram should run circles around Arizona's defense to give USC their fourth win of the 2021 season.
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