Short game

In football, the idea is to move the ball north and south — up and down the field. But in this three-game breakdown of USC’s season, it’s clear that the Trojans like to throw east and west — to the sides. Two thirds of USC’s 112 passes (109 thrown by Matt Barkley) have been thrown to within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage, 27 to a target at or behind where the ball was snapped. Only four have been thrown to a receiver more than 30 yards down field. The illustrations show where the passes were thrown, not the yardage gained on the play.