Road-weary USC Trojans Hopes to Get Sharper at Home

LOS ANGELES (AP) - After traipsing from the humid New Jersey swamps to rain-soaked Seattle over the past few weeks, Matt Barkley is awfully grateful to be back in the Southern California sunshine.

With a travel-heavy first half of the year finally behind them, the No. 11 Trojans (5-1, 3-1 Pac-12) will leave Los Angeles just once for the rest of the regular season, which begins with Saturday's visit from lowly Colorado. USC doesn't blame the schedule for its unintimidating performances thus far, but it's clear the preseason's No. 1 team probably will benefit from the comforts of home.

Although the Trojans have hardly been the juggernaut many expected, Barkley and his teammates believe their lofty goals are still achievable if they settle into a flow of strong play after a disjointed month since their only loss at Stanford.

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