The Trojans are hitting their stride as they enter the final leg of Spring Football these last two weeks before the Spring Game on Saturday, April 16.
- The coaching staff implemented a 20-play, all pressure situation on Tuesday that highlighted defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast's aggressive scheme, making it a "hard day for the quarterbacks" according to head coach Clay Helton.
- Though it was hard, it was an important day for the quarterbacks. The coaches were able to see how they each reacted to pressure situations, a key factor in the coaches' decision-making process. "I really feel that our offense, just like most offenses, will live and die by the quarterback and how the quarterback plays," said the head coach.
- Quarterbacks coach Tyson Helton echoed his brother in praise of both redshirt junior Max Browne and redshirt freshman Sam Darnold, noting that USC is one of the few schools that has two legitimate quarterbacks that can win football games. Helton described Darnold as an impressive young athlete who can hit open guys for touchdowns.
- With Browne, it's a more schematic relationship based on the redshirt junior's impeccable understanding of the position. "We're speaking the same language. It's great to have a guy in the room that you can have a conversation with, you're actually talking back and forth where you're asking his opinion and how he feels about things," said the quarterbacks coach. "You can't do that with a lot of quarterbacks because they don't know why they're doing it."
- Not only are the quarterbacks adjusting to a new coach and slightly different offensive scheme, but their receivers are also transitioning to new guys throwing them the ball. "Max's strength is his timing on the ball," explained rising redshirt senior Steven Mitchell Jr. "Right as you get out of a route, the ball is right there. He's very, very smart. He knows the offense like the back of his hand.
- The wide receiver is also enjoying working with Darnold, who has a slightly different style than Browne. "With Darnold, his arm is amazing, he has great zip on the ball. He can throw a great deep ball. He's an athlete," said Mitchell Jr. "It's good to see a quarterback that can run. I didn't know he was that fast."
- Helton's goal is to create a 50/50 pass and run balanced offense most of the game, and then rely on a physical run game from tailbacks like Justin Davis and Ronald Jones II down the stretch.
- Davis broke out last season as a junior and is now demonstrating even more maturity this spring."My freshman year when I first got here, I really thought running back was just getting the handoff and running the ball. Now, I know there's a whole lot more to the puzzle. You've got to be able to catch the ball and provide pass protection," said the running back. "In the past couple of years, I've been able to learn from the best - Silas Redd, Buck Allen - and they kind of taught me the basics of it. I took it from there and have been working on it ever since."
- The senior is also leaning on new running backs coach Tommie Robinson to guide him in his final season as a Trojan. "He's more of a tough coach. I've kind of developed some bad habits since the last time he was here, and he's been on me," said Davis. "He's going to get me back on my toes. He's the type of coach that is going to get rid of all your bad habits, make sure you're on top of your game at all times, and that's going to bring me into top shape, ready to play Alabama."
- After dealing with some injuries this spring, the coaching staff is starting to look at some players in different positions in case of emergency. Ajene Harris is starting to see some time at the corner position due to his athleticism and experience from high school, while Jordan Simmons is getting some reps at the tackle position since he had experience playing right tackle in high school.
- Injury update - Noah Jefferson (back) returned to practice today, but was limited to individual drills.
- Here is the head coach after Tuesday's practice...
