CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — On one side of the country, Virginia's players anticipate their game against No. 3 Southern California as an opportunity to test themselves against the standard by which all college football programs are judged and the biggest game most of them have ever played.

And on the other, there's Trojans tailback C.J. Gable, scoffing.

"They're not better than our defense," he said of the Cavaliers this week. "We've got the best defense I'm ever going to play against. ... Their defense is nothing compared to ours."

The answer will come today, when Cavaliers linebacker and co-captain Clint Sintim said he and his teammates would be foolish not to go in thinking they are decided underdogs.

"It's one of the better teams in the nation, it has been for quite some time," Sintim said. "It's a great opportunity for our program to play a team of that caliber."

He added: "Nobody expects us to win."

That is not to say that Virginia doesn't look forward to pulling off a shocker.

"I think everyone is going to be a little bit nervous," left guard Zak Stair said. "It's the first game and for a lot of guys, it's going to be their first start."

That will even be true of the Cavaliers quarterback, who is not expected to be revealed until Virginia's first offensive series. Through training camp, coach Al Groh has contended that senior Scott Deke, and sophomores Peter Lalich and Marc Verica have battled evenly.

Lalich is the only one of the three to have ever thrown a pass in college.

The battle has drawn a lot of attention throughout training camp, and none of the candidates has spoken publicly since Deke announced that all three had agreed, with Groh's blessing, to withhold any comments until they actually accomplish something on the field.

Wide receiver Kevin Ogletree said he isn't concerned about the choice taking so long.

"We know whoever it's going to be, they're going to be ready," Ogletree said.

Ogletree will help make that so, bringing a deep threat to the wide receiver position in his return from missing all of last season with a knee injury. He caught a team-best 52 passes for 582 yards the year before and is eager to finally get his season underway.

The Trojans are too, and are expecting a stiff test at sold-out Scott Stadium.

"We know they're a solidly coached defense, a very disciplined group. I know it's going to be a challenge for us," quarterback Mark Sanchez said. "We're a new team, we're trying to put our stamp on the USC tradition. ... We'll find out a lot about ourselves on Saturday."

Sanchez has already shown his toughness, needing just 17 days to bounce back from a dislocated kneecap before declaring himself ready to go behind a rebuilt offensive line.

The line will protect him, said guard Jeff Byers, the lone returning starter.

"I really feel like we're ready for any blitz situation they throw at us," he said. "If we can handle this situation, we can handle anything. The only way you become the best is to play the best. ... I believe, I hope, we're going to do special things."

GEORGIA SOUTHERN AT NO. 1 GEORGIA

ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia coach Mark Richt shouldn't have to bring up Appalachian State when warning his No. 1 team about the danger of opening against Georgia Southern today.

The Mountaineers, who compete with Georgia Southern in the Southern Conference, rocked college football by beating No. 5 Michigan in an opener last year.

Later in the season, Georgia Southern won at Appalachian State.

"That gets my attention," Richt said.

And if that doesn't get the Bulldogs' attention, he can just remind them what happened four years ago.

Georgia was No. 3 in the preseason poll and coming off an 11-win season when it opened against in-state little brother Georgia Southern in what may have looked like an easy win.

The reality was different. Georgia won, 48-28, but Richt had to rush his starters back in the game after Georgia Southern, which rushed for 294 yards, scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns to trail by only 13 points.

Georgia returns quarterback Matthew Stafford, tailback Knowshon Moreno and nine defensive starters from the team that finished 11-2 by winning its last seven games last season, including four over ranked opponents.

The expected real challenges to Georgia's top ranking are expected to come next month, when the Bulldogs play Arizona State and South Carolina in back-to-back road games, followed by home games against Alabama and Tennessee. More tests, including back-to-back games at LSU and against Florida in Jacksonville, come later.

But Georgia Southern?

There's something about high school teammates and rivals being brought back together that seem to blur the lines between Georgia, the BCS conference power, and Georgia Southern, the Championship Subdivision team.

"We have a high level of respect for Georgia Southern," Richt said. "Most of their kids are from in-state, just as ours are. We think it will be a pretty heated rivalry. A great majority of our Georgia guys have high school teammates on their team."

NO. 20 ILLINOIS AT NO. 6 MISSOURI

ST. LOUIS — Coming off a 12-win season and ranked higher than ever to start the season, No. 6 Missouri is counting on an immediate test from Illinois.

The 20th-ranked Fighting Illini feel likewise.

"I think the positive is we're going to know exactly where we are," Zook said. "When you play a team the caliber of Missouri, it's going to give you an opportunity to know exactly where your program is and the things you have to work on."

Missouri's 40-34 win last year in a border rivalry fast gaining steam ended up being just as much of a springboard for the losing team.

Though the Tigers won their first Big 12 North title, made it to No. 1 for a week and thrashed Arkansas in its first New Years' Day bowl game since 1970, that was more of a logical progression in coach Gary Pinkel's seventh season.

Illinois, on the other hand, was a surprise Rose Bowl participant with a second-place finish in the Big Ten and an upset of Ohio State after going 2-19 the first two seasons under coach Ron Zook.

Illinois, which finished 9-4 last year, has six starters back on each side of the ball, including quarterback Juice Williams.

Missouri had to replace only one starter on defense, which should lessen the burden on its 40-points-per-game offense, although linebacker Van Alexander is likely to miss the opener while rehabbing from knee surgery.

The Tigers' offense shouldn't miss a beat. Last season, they only missed the 30-point mark once, in the Big 12 championship game. Chase Daniel had 33 touchdown passes last year, finishing fourth in the Heisman balloting.