If the Illini are to win their first Rose Bowl since 1964, they’re going to have to knock off Pete Carroll’s perennial Pac-10 champions.

Illinois head coach Ron Zook was quick to praise the USC Trojans, calling them one of the best teams in the nation. He voted USC fourth in his most recent top-25 ballot, behind only Ohio State, LSU and Oklahoma.

USC finished the season 10-2 and atop the Pac-10 for the sixth straight season. The Trojans knocked off rival UCLA in the final game of the regular season to clinch their Rose Bowl berth. USC’s two blemishes came at home against Stanford and on the road at Oregon.

The then-No. 5 Ducks handed the Trojans their second loss of the season in October. Oregon quarterback Dennis Dixon and the Ducks’ spread offense tallied 339 total yards in the 24-17 victory.

Will Illini offensive coordinator Mike Locksley look to a similar Oregon offense for ideas to beat the Trojans?

“We break down the games where we see some relation to what we do,” he said.

It was the same Oregon offense that gave Michigan fits in the second week of the season. But the Wolverines were able to adjust to the Illini’s offense and pull out a victory at Memorial Stadium.

The USC offense looks to tight end Fred Davis as its primary receiving target. The 6-foot-4 Ohio native finished the season with team highs in catches (55) and receiving touchdowns (7). Illinois linebacker J Leman said facing an offense with a tight end as its main receiver is something the Illini have already seen this season.

“Wisconsin probably uses their tight end as a wide receiver a lot more, in (Travis) Beckum,” he said. “But that creates a lot of challenges and (Davis) is a good player.”

On the ground, Carroll used three different backs at different points throughout the season. Chauncey Washington led the offense with nine rushing touchdowns and averaged 81.2 yards on the ground in 11 games. Down the stretch the Trojans put the bulk of the workload on freshman Joe McKnight’s shoulders. He responded with a season-high 89 yards and a touchdown against UCLA in the final regular-season game.

“They stay fresher as the game goes on,” Leman said. “But all three of them can really run the rock well.”

The Trojans’ first loss came at home against intrastate rival and 41-point underdog Stanford. The defeat snapped the Trojans’ 35-game home winning streak and may have cost USC a chance at playing in the BCS National Championship Game. The Trojans outgained Stanford 459 yards to 235, but five turnovers helped seal the loss. Trailing 9-0 at halftime, the Cardinal outscored USC 17-7 in the final quarter. Stanford backup quarterback Tavita Pritchard found receiver Mark Bradford in the end zone from 10 yards out with 49 seconds remaining in the game.

With three weeks still before game day, the Illini sit as nearly two touchdown underdogs, and many in the national media are predicting a Trojan victory.

“They can say what they want,” Leman said. “All that we can do is take care of our ball club. We can’t worry about what other people are saying. We just have to work as hard as we can everyday.”