LOS ANGELES (AP) — Although Curtis McNeal’s fumble ended Southern California’s triple-overtime loss to Stanford last weekend, the Trojans won’t hesitate to put the ball right back in his hands.
That fumble should turn out to be no more than a footnote in the undersized junior’s breakout season for No. 21 USC (6-2, 3-2 Pac-12).
Coach Lane Kiffin says McNeal will start when the Trojans visit Colorado on Friday night, and McNeal could end up playing nearly every snap if senior Marc Tyler is still limited by injury.
McNeal was devastated after he fumbled into the end zone to end the No. 4 Cardinal’s 56-48 win. Yet the Trojans almost certainly wouldn’t have made it to extra time without McNeal, who scored on two long runs in the second half of his career-best 145-yard game.
