What to watch for in USC Trojans' game against Notre Dame

What to watch for in USC Trojans' game against Notre Dame is a gamer, a winner and Superman.

Caleb Williams is the USC quarterback. He threw for 470 yards and a touchdown against UCLA. USC is playing in the Pac-12 championship game on Saturday. The team released a website and social media campaign to promote him. Michael Jackson III thinks he should be the winner.

Williams has been among Heisman contenders all year. He has thrown for 3,480 yards and 33 touchdowns with just three interceptions and completed 64.9% of his passes. USC's 14-point comeback against UCLA vaulted him into pole position. To stay in the Heisman race, he needs another rivalry win against No. 13 Notre Dame.

Lincoln Riley can match Howard Jones and John Robinson for the most wins by a USC coach in his debut season with a win against UCLA on Saturday. USC's improvement from four to 10 wins is the second-biggest single-season turnaround in school history.

The CFP committee chair hinted that USC's defense is keeping the Trojans behind two-loss Louisiana State in the rankings. The defensive coordinator Alex Grinch agrees. The Trojan defense set records for futility last year with school worsts in yards allowed per play (6.4), points per game (31.8) and points allowed (26.3). This season, the defense gives up 26. 3 points and 6.1 yards per plays.

The USC defense gave up 234 receiving yards to Utah's Dalton Kincaid this year. The defense will focus on stopping Michael Mayer, who is considered the best tight end in the country. He is a senior with 711 receiving and 59 catches, 59 yards and seven touchdowns.