It’s hard to argue that USC’s win over Notre Dame last Saturday was not only the best win of Lane Kiffin’s career in Los Angeles, but also that of Matt Barkley as well. But with Andrew Luck and Stanford coming into town this weekend, can the Trojans keep it up?

I asked that, and many more questions to ESPN Los Angeles USC writer Pedro Moura, who joined the podcast on late Monday. Pedro has covered the Trojans for four years, and had a press box seat for USC’s win in South Bend Saturday.  Nobody knows this team better, and Pedro dropped knowledge you can’t find anywhere else.

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Amongst the topics he and I discussed on the podcast included:

- How the night atmosphere at Notre Dame Stadium impacted the crowd noise, and why it may have been to USC’s advantage more so than their detriment;

- How Dayne Crist’s fumble on the goal line completely swung the game for the Trojans, and may have re-invented their season;

- Why the win at Notre Dame was not only the best of Lane Kiffin’s time in Troy, but also the most mistake free performance that Matt Barkley has had as well;

- What- if anything- the Trojans did differently on Saturday against the Irish that they haven’t done in past games;

- Moving onto Saturday’s game against Stanford, why the Trojans need to actually focus on stopping the running game first, before they try and slow down Andrew Luck;

For most of you regular readers here at Aaron Torres Sports, you know that my focus is almost exclusively on college football. But every once in awhile, even I’ve got to head up to the pro ranks, which is exactly what I did on Monday, when I welcomed Buffalo Bills safety Bryan Scott onto the podcast.

Bryan is one of the key cogs of a resurgent Bills team, not to mention a man of many interests outside of football. He discussed it all on the podcast, sharing insight on the following subjects with me:

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- His passion for music, and how that helped him pass time during the lockout;

- How he spent the Bills recent bye week, and why as a veteran, he now values the bye week more than in the past;

- How lessons learned last year have helped the Bills exceed expectations in 2011;

- Why Bryan and his Bills teammates don’t pay much attention to what the Patriots, Jets and others are doing in the NFL, and instead focus solely on themselves;

- Bryan discusses his time at Penn State, and how he carries life lessons Joe Paterno taught him until this day;

- Finally, Bryan talks about a song that he recorded in the off-season called “Dedicated,” which will be released on iTunes today, and how its message lines up with Bryan’s “Pick Your Passion Foundation,” and his new website ShowYourDedication.com, which is running great contest giveaways over the next month.

Of every major national sports columnist, few have been as honest and candid about the state of the Big East Conference than the Sporting News lead college basketball writer Mike DeCourcy. And on Tuesday, Mike stopped by the podcast, to discuss his latest column “The Big East Makes All The Wrong Moves,” which ran on Monday. It came out following John Marinatto’s “state of the union” press conference that announced that the Big East had raised its conference exit fee from $5 million to $10 million.

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Mike definitely brought the hammer, and made me think of several subjects in ways I hadn’t before, as he and I discussed the state of the Big East, as well as some big picture college basketball. Included were the following subjects:

- Why accountability to the future of the conference starts at the top, and how key programs, especially Louisville, are dropping the ball in that department;

- Given the evolving state of the league, if there is enough to gain for schools like Houston, Central Florida and others to leave their current situations to join such an unstable conference;

- Why Mike doesn’t see a scenario when the conference drops football all together, and becomes a “basketball only” conference;

- How a restructuring of the next Big East TV deal (similar to that of the Big XII) could hold the conference together, and strengthen it going forward;

After a one week hiatus, the Aaron Torres Sports Podcast is back, with one of my favorite guests easing me back into my hosting chair. Who’s that guest? Well, none other than fellow podcaster Ty Hilldenbrandt of the ultra-popular Solid Verbal.

As most of you know, Ty is a huge Notre Dame fan and a Penn State alumnus, and he and I had plenty to catch up on regarding those two schools, and beyond. We discussed several topics, including the following:

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- The rumors which leaked late last week of Penn State’s interest in Urban Meyer, and why a Freudian slip on Meyer’s behalf sent the Nittany Lion faithful into a frenzy;

- What percentage of Penn State fans actually want Joe Paterno to just retire, and why at this point most fans are numb to the idea of Paterno actually leaving;

- Moving over to Notre Dame, why Ty believes the Fighting Irish will be kicking themselves in a few weeks over early season losses, and why he expects this team to finish with a bang;

- Ty defends himself and Dayne Crist, in the “Crist vs. Tommy Rees,” debate;

- Turning to national storylines, Ty and I discuss some of the bigger second half headlines, and why “Bedlam,” between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State could end up being more significant than LSU-Alabama;

- Ty again defends himself, this time in the role that he and his co-host Dan may have played in the firing of Mike Stoops at Arizona;

Well Big Ten football fans, your time has come. After a weekend that could at best be described as “uneventful,” and at worst “nightmarish,” the conference opens up play this weekend with a pair of key games: Michigan State travels to Ohio State, and Nebraska makes its conference debut at Wisconsin.

And on Wednesday evening, Adam Jacobi of CBS Sports and BlackHeartGoldPants.com stopped by to break it all down with me, discussing the following subjects:

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- Last weekend’s dull, dreary and boring conference slate, that was lowlighted by Minnesota’s loss to North Dakota State and highlighted by Tim Brewster's new role as a Fox Sports sideline reporter.

- The emergence of Russell Wilson at Wisconsin, and how he has exceeded every feasible expectation early on in the season.

- Nebraska’s continued struggle on defense, and why it will almost certainly come back to haunt them in Madison this weekend.

- Ohio State turning the page with Braxton Miller, and why it still might not be enough for Luke Fickell to keep his job at the end of the season.

- The painful quarterback “battle,” that has Penn State fans ready to jump off the ledge, and why it isn’t getting better any time soon.

- Why Michigan is set to take a “Rich Rod-ian” like fall now that conference play has kicked off.

- And finally, and most importantly, Adam discusses how you can help BlackHeartGoldPants.com raise money for the Iowa Children’s Hospital and their "Touchdowns For Kids," program.

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For those of you who are regular listeners to the Aaron Torres Sports Podcast, you know that for the most part, I pretty much stick exclusively to talking about a handful of sports. College football and college basketball rule the airwaves, with an occasional MLB or NBA chat.

However, when I was presented the opportunity to interview my first ever Olympian on the podcast, I had to jump at it. And that’s exactly what I did earlier this week, as I welcomed 2008 Olympic Gold Medalist Natasha Hastings to the show.

Natasha is one of the most accomplished women in track right now, and over the course of her career has taken home an NCAA title at South Carolina, a World Championship, and a Gold Medal in Beijing in the 4x400 relay.

And on Wednesday, she stopped by and chatted with me about the following subjects:

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- How she grew up around track, and knew from a young age that was the sport she wanted to focus on;

- Her time at South Carolina, and when she realized that she had a future as a professional track athlete;

- Being a professional, and why the sport of track and field is much bigger in Europe than it is in the United States;

- The difference between running a relay vs. an individual race, as well as running a short relay vs. a long one;

- Why team chemistry and camaraderie is just as important in track as it is in other sports

With every team in the SEC having played at least one conference game so far this season, it only seemed appropriate to do a podcast that both recapped everything that’s happened so far, while also looking ahead to this weekend's upcoming games. And on Monday night, I did exactly that with Barrett Sallee of College Football News.

Barrett is amongst my favorite guests to have on the show, and knows this conference about as well as anyone in the business. And on Monday, he and I discussed the following:

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- In his eyes which team was more impressive in their Saturday win: LSU or Alabama? Is Jarrett Lee the most improved player in college football? Are the weapons around him better than expected?

- What to make of Alabama’s dominant win? Has Barrett been surprised so far by A.J. McCarron’s development? Also, what do we make of Arkansas? Can they rebound and get themselves back into the SEC West race?

- How about Auburn? They had a win over Florida Atlantic on Saturday, but the problems for this team remain. Is 6-6 and a bowl game even a guarantee at this point?

- Moving over to the SEC East, man, oh man, what is going on at South Carolina? Is the Gamecocks performance a direct reflection of Stephen Garcia? And if so, is it time to bench him?

- How about Florida? Is Barrett surprised by how good they’ve looked so far? Any reason to think that they can’t, or shouldn’t be favored to win the East?

- Wrapping up, why Barrett believes that Georgia’s play reflects the leadership at the top with Mark Richt. Also, why Tennessee will still be a tough out, even without Justin Hunter.

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After a one day hiatus from actual sports talk, the Aaron Torres Sports Podcast is back, and actually discussing the action on the field. No game is bigger this weekend than the LSU vs. West Virginia matchup on Saturday, and believe me when I say, it’s sure to be a bourbon-drinkin’, couch-burnin’ good time.

But regardless of whether the game turns into a code-orange security threat or not, there will be some good football being played. Because of it, I welcomed Carter Bryant, Director of Sports at KLSU Radio down in Baton Rouge to discuss the big game with me.

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Carter is around the LSU team seven days a week, from August to January, and he shared the following during the podcast:

- Given all the off-season controversy at the school, why even people in Louisiana are surprised at just how good this team has looked so far;

- Why LSU’s defense might actually be better from player 1-22 than they were last year. Carter and I also agree that they are the most athletic defense in college football;

- The development of Jarrett Lee, and if he is actually a better quarterback for this particular LSU team that Jordan Jefferson. If Jefferson did come back, would he even play?

- Looking ahead to Saturday night’s game, is there any chance for a letdown?

- How does LSU plan on attacking the fast, but athletic 3-3-5 defense of West Virginia? Can they stop Dana Holgorsen’s high-powered passing attack when West Virginia is on offense?

- How LSU’s attitude is different than in years past, and why because of it Carter thinks the Tigers will win this game;

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As much as I love sports, there are times when even I need a break from them. Which is why today, I’ve got a special edition of the Aaron Torres Sports Podcast, which actually has nothing to do with sports at all. Instead, my old buddy Michael Felder of InTheBleachers.net stops by to talk about…wait for it…the season premiere of our favorite television show, How I Met Your Mother.

Oh that's right, it's going to be legend....(wait for it)....ary.

Mike is a passionate fan of the show, as he and I discuss the following from Monday night’s back-to-back episodes:

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- The beginning of Season 7, including the revelation that Robin still has feelings for Barney, while at the same time Barney still likes Nora. What does it mean big picture? Who will Barney end up with in the end?

- Ted's use of a magazine to pick up girls, and how even when Ted tries to be cool, he still fails miserably.

- The emergence of Marshall’s alter-ego “Beer-culeus,” and why Mike may have this year’s Halloween costume already picked up.

- The re-emergence of Ted’s ex-girlfriend Victoria, and what it might mean going forward.

- And in honor of Victoria’s return, we wrap up with a power ranking of Ted’s ex-girlfriends, with Mike and I disagreeing on who’s No. 1, and more importantly, what the hell did they see in Ted?

Plus plenty more...

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While a game up the road in Tallahassee  is stealing quite a few of the weekend headlines, down in Gainesville, an equally enticing matchup will take place Saturday afternoon when the Florida Gators host the Tennessee Volunteers. Both teams have looked better than advertised, with each entering this game at 2-0.

And with this big game headlining another awesome week of college football, I figured what better way to commemorate, than by having my old buddy and Florida alum Marc Ryan on the show. Marc hosts The Morning Wrap on 100.3 The Ticket down in Florida, and is the first to admit that he wears the orange and blue proudly. Amongst the topics we discussed, included:

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- Where Tennessee ranks in Florida’s rivalries with other SEC schools and beyond. Considering how bad Tennessee has been of late, can they even be considered a rival?

- Where each program ranks in the college football hierarchy. Is Florida still a Top 3 program? Where does Tennessee rank?

- Why Marc is genuinely excited about the first two weeks of the Will Muschamp era in Gainesville, and genuinely terrified of Tyler Bray;