2017 USC Men's Water Polo Season Outlook

Football teams put out a depth chart. Water polo teams, on the other hand, are more focused on a depth CHARGE. USC head coach Jovan Vavic is notorious for constructing a roster that allows him to sub in waves, piecing together a relentless rotation that enables his Trojans to maintain momentum and stay stacked with skill at every position. With eight All-Americans back in the water for 2017, Vavic has more All-American talent than he has room for in his starting lineup. That's no problem in Vavic's eyes. But it is certain to be a big problem for USC's opponents this season.

"In terms of talent and positions, like last year, we are two or three deep at every position," Vavic said of his 2017 Trojans. "We definitely have the experience, and I think we can be very good on both sides of the pool. We are very deep; we can play for the center and can play for the outside shooters. We have five lefties and excellent speed. I like to think that we could be a very smart team."

In that core group of decorated All-Americans, seven are seniors. Two of them are repeat team captains — Blake Edwards and James Walters — both two-time All-Americans. One is Cutino Award winner McQuin Baron, whose 6-foot-9 frame backs up the Trojan defense an who is poised to take over as USC's most prolific goalie. With 817 saves collected in his first three seasons, Baron is just 39 saves away from becoming USC's all-time saves leader. Also charging up the career charts are a set of All-American senior sharpshooters. Blake Edwards, Matteo Morelli and Grant Stein all boast 110 career goals as they enter their final season as Trojans. Fellow senior Lachlan Edwards is just a step behind, gripping 108 career goals to date. In all, the Trojans return 90 percent of their scoring production from last season as well as their entire goalkeeping corps.

Baron looms largest in that pile of goalies, getting solid backup from returners Will Rubschlager and Simon Wu. Matt Ambrose comes off a redshirt season with added experience gleaned during the Trojans' summer training trip to Europe, where fellow goalie Matt Moran-Flores also was inducted into USC's talented mix of goalies. That European adventure brought the entire USC squad together as a team, offering up invaluable opportunities to gel in the water and out. In fact, the last three USC teams to take a similar summer training trip to Europe came back to the USA and won the national championship that same year. It's a theme that bodes well for the 2017 Trojans, who boast a senior class that is 13 Trojans strong and who have 11 redshirt freshmen and newcomers lined up for their first official action this season.

As valuable as the hefty senior and first-year crews are, Vavic has his eyes on a few other returners as linchpins in this season's efforts. Now sophomores, Olympian Thomas Dunstan, MPSF Newcomer of the Year Matt Maier and FINA Junior World Championship silver medalist Marin Dasic are even more prepared to be impact players for the Trojans. Junior Zach D'Sa and redshirt sophomore Daniel Leong both had breakout seasons last year and are primed for major playing time in 2017. Redshirt junior Tim Leong has also maneuvered his way into an increased role for his final season of work at USC, while redshirt sophomore Sam Slobodien, too, made major strides last season and during the summer, lining himself up for extra duty at the two-meter mark along with fellow centers Maier, Walters and Lachlan Edwards.

"On any given day any of those guys can play in there," Vavic said of his two-meter men. "Also, all four can defend two-meters, along with Mihajlo (Milicevic)."

One of those seven All-American seniors, Milicevic enters his senior season full strength and as one of USC's most intelligent defenders. His smarts are matched by those of fellow senior All-American Matteo Morelli, who is one of USC's savviest offensive threats as well as a crafty defender.

"Matteo is the glue to connect the centers and outside players," Vavic said of Morelli. He's outstanding in defense, arguably one of our best players, and the guys respect him."

USC's powerful 13-man senior class is rounded out by Bryce Hoerman, Lazar Pasuljevic, Mitch Embrey, Brock Hudnut and Murphy Slater, who have contributed 129 combined goals during their time as Trojans to date. With so many seniors, leadership opportunities abound. Still, it is the wisdom and lead-by-example tendencies displayed by seniors Blake Edwards and James Walters that make them team captains once again for the Trojans. Edwards and Walters, along with the rest of the USC seniors, will be called upon to set an example and guide their younger Trojan teammates. Expectations are high for the 2017 squad, which is bound and determined to finish on top when the final horn blows on this year's national championship.

Among the talented Trojan youth movement, Vavic taps redshirt freshmen Luke Wyatt, Chas Hornecker and Luka Karaman and true freshmen Marko Vavic and Christian Hockenbury as the brightest stars who are seeing the benefits of their hard work and skills developed in the run-up to this 2017 campaign. At 6-foot-6 and with U.S. National Team experience, Marko Vavic stands to be a quick and powerful fit into his father's gameplan.

Now in his 23rd year at the helm of the USC water polo program, Jovan Vavic has guided the Trojans to the NCAA title match every season for the past 12 years. He's captured seven championships during that stretch. Last season, USC manufactured a 24-2 overall record, losing just one road game during the regular season, winning the MPSF Championship and then falling in a frustrating NCAA final that went to overtime in its opponent's home pool. For a Trojan team that had come up just short in the final for three years in a row, it felt like a failure. But Vavic feels otherwise.

"I thought we did a good job last year in preparing the guys and having them ready," Vavic said. "We won so many big games and different guys stepped up every time. It was a bummer how it ended. Our guys really did everything we asked them to do. We understand that we can't leave it in anyone else's hands but our own. The only thing you hope is that it makes us even more hungry. We have a chip on our shoulder now and we know we need to put in the extra effort. I think these guys will do that. We will do the best we can to finish strong."

A strong finish will be even more enjoyable for the Trojans as they set up to host the 2017 NCAA Championships at USC's home pool, Uytengsu Aquatics Center. The last time the Trojans hosted the national championship, they capped it off by hoisting the championship trophy. This year, on December 3, USC aims to once again successfully defend the Trojans' home waters while adding a 10th NCAA trophy to the men's collection of championships.

Players Mentioned

Matt Ambrose

McQuin Baron

Zach D'Sa

Marin Dasic

Thomas Dunstan

Blake Edwards

Lachlan Edwards

Mitch Embrey

Christian Hockenbury

Bryce Hoerman

Chas Hornecker

Brock Hudnut

Luka Karaman

Daniel Leong

Tim Leong

Matt Maier

Matt Moran-Flores

Matteo Morelli

Lazar Pasuljevic

Will Rubschlager

Murphy Slater

Sam Slobodien

Grant Stein

Marko Vavic

James Walters

Simon Wu

Luke Wyatt