What's Ahead in SoCal Sports

By John Horvath
Published

The Rams (3-1) welcome the Seattle Seahawks (2-2) to the Coliseum in a NFC West showdown on Sunday afternoon, with Seattle missing a key component of their defense. Cliff Avril will be missing the game with a neck injury that he sustained against the Colts last Sunday night.

The Rams are 4-2 against the Seahawks dating back to 2014, and they will look to continue their recent success with an upstart offense that has scored an NFL-best 142 points. Through the first four weeks of the NFL season, RB Todd Gurley leads the league in touchdowns scored. QB Jared Goff ranks tenth in QBR and sixth in touchdowns thrown.

Despite their torrid start offensively, Los Angeles is still looking to find their groove on defense. They have given up 102 points this season, fifth-highest among NFL teams. The Rams also have struggled against the run, giving up the fourth-most rushing yards (606). Aaron Donald & co. will look to reverse their fortunes against a Seattle offense that scored 43 points in the final three quarters last week.

Kickoff is slated for 1:05 PM PT.

 

The Chargers (0-4) continue to search for their first win in Los Angeles as they go up against the Giants (0-4). The Chargers will have a new kicker on Sunday, as they signed Nick Novak and released Younghoe Koo earlier this week.

A key matchup to watch in this one will be how the Giants offensive line holds up against the Chargers pass rush. Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram will go up against a Giants offensive line that will be missing at least one starter, as C Weston Richburg has ruled OUT with a concussion. Starting RB Paul Perkins has been ruled OUT with a rib contusion as well.

Odell Beckham was not listed on the injury report and is expected to play. Kickoff is scheduled for 10 AM PT.


















 

No.19 San Diego State (5-0) will head to UNLV to play the Rebels (2-2) in what is sure to be an emotional game on Saturday night (7:45 PM PT). It will be UNLV's first game since the tragedy that occurred last Sunday night in Las Vegas, and both teams plan to show solidarity with one another by wearing special decals on their helmets. UNLV in particular will be wearing a special helmet this weekend:

https://twitter.com/UNLVathletics/status/915720947893551104

A pregame tribute is planned as well.

SDSU's defense will have their hands full on Saturday night, facing a Rebels' rushing attack that is currently averaging over 300 yards per game. They will also have to deal with a dynamic QB/WR duo in QB Armani Rogers and WR Devonte Boyd.

Look for the Aztecs to go to RB Rashaad Penny early and often, as UNLV has surrendered an average of 192.3 rushing yards per game through the first five weeks. That mark ranks 99th among FBS teams.
















 

The USD Toreros (3-2) have a bye week this week, and will begin preparation for their battle vs. Morehead State on October 14th.

Last week, USD defeated the Dayton Dragons by a final score of 23-7. QB Anthony Lawrence threw for 273 yards and two scores, Emilio Martinez ran for 114 yards, and USD's defense stifled Dayton's offense. Dayton was only able to manage 294 yards of total offense.

 

The No. 14 USC Trojans (4-1) will look to get back to their winning ways against Oregon State (1-4) on Saturday. After throwing nine interceptions in all of 2016, QB Sam Darnold has thrown eight interceptions through the season's first five weeks. This seems like a good week for him and the Trojans' offense to get back on track, as the Beavers defense has allowed no fewer than 32 points in every game this season. As a matter of fact, in all but one game, Oregon State has failed to hold their opponent to under 42 points. Kickoff is slated for 2:00 PM at the Coliseum.

 

UCLA (3-2) was able to take home a 27-23 victory over Colorado last week, which snapped a two-game losing streak. Josh Rosen threw for 372 yards in the victory, and the 23 points allowed tied the season low for the Bruins defense. They are off this weekend, with their next game being on October 14th at Arizona.


















The San Diego Gulls (0-0) open up their season on Saturday night in Tucson against the RoadRunners. It will be the first of twelve matchups against Tucson this season.

The Gulls concluded preseason play with an 0-2-1 record.

The puck is scheduled to drop in Tucson at 7:05 PM.

 

The Anaheim Ducks (1-0-0) will face off against the Philadelphia Flyers (1-1-0)  on Saturday night (7:00 PM PT) at the Honda Center. The Ducks are coming off of a thrilling home opener in which they scored four unanswered goals in the final two-periods to win 5-4. Corey Perry paced the attack for the Ducks with two goals and an assist.

The Flyers are coming off a 2-0 shutout loss against the Kings. The Kings' Jonathan Quick turned back shot after shot en route to his 45th career shutout (35 saves). The Flyers did win their opener, though, 5-3 over the San Jose Sharks.

Flyers-Ducks will be shown on Fox Sports San Diego, and will also be available to stream on FoxSportsGo.


















The Clippers will continue their preseason slate with their first game of the year at the Staples Center on Sunday against the Portland Trail Blazers. Although it is preseason, coach Doc Rivers had to like what he saw during the Hawaii trip. In both games against the Raptors, the Clippers had their fair share of exciting plays like this:

https://twitter.com/LAClippers/status/915456698441113600

The Clippers will play three more preseason contests, and then open up their season at the Lakers on October 19th. The game will tip off on Sunday at 12:30 PM.