LOS ANGELES — The trumpets of the Trojan Marching Band were blaring on one side of McClintock Avenue. The football team’s new sound system was competing for airspace on the other side of the street, belting out crowd noise.
A remix of “Circle of Life” cut through the air one minute and the next, it was an overwhelmingly loud “We are Penn State” call-and-answer chant.
“It’s pretty awesome,” tight end Carson Tabaracci said of the sound system. “It really just makes us focus more on our jobs, whatever we’ve got to do on a certain play and just locking in because it’s going to be a great crowd on Saturday night.”
No. 19 USC (5-1 overall, 2-1 Big Ten) travels to State College this weekend to play Penn State (3-2, 0-2) in the Nittany Lions’ annual “White Out” game – a program first for the Trojans.
It’s considered one of the toughest playing environments in college football inside a stadium that boasts a capacity of 106,572. The game has not been announced as a sellout yet, but it sounds like the Trojans are prepared for the extreme.
Reporters are not allowed in the practice area during the season, making it difficult to assess the actual volume of USC’s sound system. It was, however, difficult to hold a conversation just outside the practice facility due to the noise.
Loud environments can lead to communication difficulties between players, especially defensive players who shout instructions to each other to make sure assignments and alignments are understood.
Tabaracci pointed to last season’s ‘Black Out’ game at Nebraska – which had an attendance of 86,529 – as a tough playing environment, and freshman Ethan “Boobie” Feaster has drawn on his experience as a high school football player in Texas.
Feaster said he played in front of crowds of as many as 50,000 while at De Soto High School.
“It’s college football,” Feaster said. “I know it’s different from high school, but I mean, for me, it’s never really been a factor, how loud a place is. I just make sure I know what I’m doing. I know the little details and know what I’m supposed to do. I know everybody else on my team is going to do their 1/11th.”
USC head coach Lincoln Riley is emphasizing Saturday’s playing environment with careful intention.
“The place has a really good reputation in terms of the atmosphere and some of the challenges that it provides,” Riley said.
“I don’t think you need to be consumed by it. You can overdo something like that, but also, we’re not gonna act like we’re not going into something that is going to be a little bit different, or this is going to provide some challenges. And it’s going to be awesome.”
FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
USC defensive end Luke Wafle was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week on Monday. Wafle had five tackles, two tackles for loss and his first career sack in Saturday’s 25-21 victory over Washington.
The Trojans’ defense stepped up in the final moments of the game, and Wafle played a big part. He tackled Huskies quarterback Demond Williams on back-to-back plays in Washington’s second-to-last drive of the game and also sacked Williams for a loss of two yards with 3:51 left in the game.
TMB ON ‘WoF’
The USC Trojan Marching Band was the cold open alongside Ryan Seacrest and Vanna White for Monday’s episode of “Wheel of Fortune”, which was held at the Hollywood Bowl.
The band has performed at the Hollywood Bowl every year since 1983 and, on Monday, performed the long-running game show’s theme song alongside USC Spirit Leaders and Song Leaders.