Southern California quarterback Matt Leinart is a great player - just ask Arizona football head coach Mike Stoops, who in spring said even then he eclipsed Utah's Alex Smith, the NFL Draft's overall No. 1 pick in April.
But as with any great quarterback, a great offensive line sits in front of the 2004 Heisman Trophy winner, anchored by junior center Ryan Kalil.
Kalil, a 6-foot-3, 285-pound Corona, Calif., native, is the son of Frank Kalil, an Arizona center from 1980-1982, and nephew of Tucson businessman George Kalil.
Ryan Kalil, in his third season with the two-time defending national champion Trojans, is a tremendous asset to an offense that has averaged 54 points per game, said USC head coach Pete Carroll in a phone interview Monday.
"(Ryan)'s played great football," Carroll said. "He's a guy that's kind of the captain up front, making the calls, doing (it) all."
Carroll said Kalil is a leader on an offensive line that has just one senior: Mesa native Taitusi Lutui.
Arizona defensive coordinator Mark Stoops said that if the Wildcats have any chance of upsetting the nation's top-ranked team, the defense must get through Kalil and his fellow lineman to pressure Leinart.
"(The USC offense) buys itself a lot of time, because they like to play-action and move, and it's hard to get there to pressure (Leinart)," he said.
"(Leinart)'s a very patient quarterback. Even when he gets guys in his face, he likes to sidestep and buy more time and find the open receiver," Stoops said. "He's the best I've ever seen in that regard."
Leinart posted 280 yards and three touchdowns through the air in USC's 49-9 win over Arizona in November, and this season has scorched opponents for an average of nearly 340 passing yards per game.
Meanwhile, the senior star has been sacked just five times. That's a statistic senior defensive end Copeland Bryan said he would like to change Saturday at Memorial Stadium.
"What have (the Trojans) given up in sacks this year, one? I'd like to up that a little bit," he said.
Bryan said that will be no easy task, in part because of Leinart's mobility in the backfield.
Bryan sacked Cal quarterback Joe Ayoob three times last weekend in the Arizona defensive end's first game back from an ankle injury suffered on the second play Sept. 2 in Utah.
"You definitely can't go (into Memorial Stadium) intimidated by their numbers," he said.