2019 USC Men's Volleyball Season Outlook

The 2019 season is the 50^th of USC men's volleyball. Since 1970, the Trojan program has been among the finest in college: winning 4 NCAA championships, playing in 14 NCAA Final Fours and producing 20 Olympians, 34 All-American first teamers and 7 College Players of the Year.

Fourth-year USC head coach Jeff Nygaard and his Trojans are working hard in 2019 to live up to that standard and insure that 'Year 50' plays better than last year, when Troy had its most overall losses and fewest conference wins since 2005.

The team's catchphrase for 2019, therefore, is 'Resurgence."

"Last season did not meet the standard of excellence that we are used to at USC, not even close," said Nygaard. "All of us were disappointed and upset with how we performed. We have embraced the challenge of bouncing back in 2019. I believe we will."

USC went 8-20 in 2018, including 3-9 for a sixth place tie in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. However, the Trojans did advance to the MPSF Tournament semifinals and did post a pair of big late-season upsets, defeating No. 3 UCLA (the NCAA runner-up) and then No. 5 Pepperdine (in a road MPSF tourney quarterfinal match).

Fourteen squad members return from the 2018 roster, including 10 who saw action last spring (4 were starters, along with the libero). Among the key returnees are outside hitter Jack Wyett, a 2018 AVCA All-American honorable mention and All-MPSF first team pick, middle blocker Sam Lewis, a MPSF All-Freshman selection last year and captain of the 2018 USA Volleyball Junior National Team, outside hitters Gianluca Grasso, who made the 2018 MPSF All-Tournament team, and Ryan Moss, who joined Grasso as a 2018 All-MPSF honorable mention pick, and liberos Cole Paxson, who was named to the 2018 MPSF All-Freshman team, and Matt Douglas, who has 37 career starts.

The returnees join 6 talented newcomers, including the 2018 national high school Player of the Year and a promising junior college transfer.

"With the experience of the past and our new additions, I feel we will take a big step forward," said Nygaard. "We have revitalized our offensive and defensive systems and grown our volleyball IQ. The players have worked hard and they know the areas for improvement. They are ready to attack the 2019 season."

Gone from last year's squad are setter Gert Lisha, who started for parts of the past 3 seasons, middle blocker Connor Inlow (44 starts and a .356 hitting percentage in his career) and opposite hitter Jon Rivera (25 career starts).

Wyett, a 6-5 senior, had an eye-opening showing in 2018 after returning to the program from a 2-year absence. He never missed a start last season, leading USC in kills (403) and digs (151) and finishing second in blocks (48) and third in aces (14). He was 10th nationally in kills (3.77). He hit .290 last year and reached double figures in kills 22 times, including 7 times with 20-plus kills. This past summer, he trained with the USA National Team.

"Jack carried a big load for us last year and delivered, and I expect it will be more of the same this year," said Nygaard. "After gaining valuable training experience with the USA team this summer, he comes back more seasoned and physical and with higher expectations, from both himself and us."

Lewis, a sophomore who stands 6-10 (the second tallest player in program history), hit .334 last year with 152 kills and had a team-best 87 blocks. However, he enters the 2019 season recovering from a collapsed lung in the fall.

"Sam is one of the best middle blockers in the country," said Nygaard. "We look for him to build on last year's performance and the leadership he gained with the USA Junior National Team. Once he recovers from the collapsed lung, he should be back to full speed."

Grasso, a fiery 6-2 senior, has 40 starts under his USC belt. Last year, he was second on the Trojans in kills (275) while hitting .238 and added 125 digs and a team-high 45 aces (to rank 10^th nationally in aces, at .048). He had double figures in kills 15 times in 2018.

"Gianluca is a volleyball junkie and a great leader," said Nygaard. "He is the X factor for us, as he can take over a match from the service line or attacking or on defense or with his emotion."

The 6-8 senior Moss is USC's most versatile player, notching 38 career starts at opposite hitter, outside hitter and middle blocker. Last season while mostly playing at opposite, he had 272 kills while hitting .282, plus 142 digs, 44 blocks and 20 aces.

"We expect Ryan to contribute significantly this year, just as he did last season," said Nygaard. "He is an experienced player who has taken on more of a leadership role this year."

The sophomore Paxson and senior Douglas (each 5-10) both had starts at libero in 2018, with Paxson starting 19 times and Douglas 9 times. Paxson had 141 digs last season, but he is coming off fall surgery on both hips. Douglas has 310 career digs, including 77 in 2018.

"Cole is a tough-minded player who got valuable experience last year," said Nygaard. "Once he is fully healthy from the hip surgery, I expect him to be playing his best volleyball. I expect great things from Matt as a senior. He has tons of experience and has revitalized his commitment to our program."

Chris Hall, a 6-2 sophomore, is the most experienced setter on USC's 2019 roster. He started 10 matches last season as a first-year freshman, dishing 432 assists and getting 51 digs.

"Chris is on a rapid upward trajectory," said Nygaard. "He is expanding his repertoire, his influence and his volleyball knowledge."

Kyle Gear, at 6-8, will look to crack the lineup at either middle blocker or opposite hitter. He saw action in 22 matches last spring (mainly in the middle), with 9 starts, and hit a team-high .349 while getting 40 kills and 36 blocks.

"Kyle is a big, versatile player who will find a way to contribute in 2019," said Nygaard. "He is one of our most effective players, always gives us his full effort and has high character and values."

Battling to get into the rotation at outside hitter are 2 sophomores—6-7 Clay Dickson, who saw brief action in 5 matches last year, and 6-6 Noah Franklin, who recorded 23 kills and 23 digs while appearing in 18 matches in 2018—along with 6-6 redshirt freshman Billy Fauntleroy, who can also play opposite hitter. Franklin, though, is coming off a back injury this fall.

"Clay has made monstrous strides and has the frame and ability to be an effective contributor," said Nygaard. "He embraces being coached and fixing bad habits. Noah is working hard to return from his back injury. He is staying positive and finding ways to contribute. Billy is still developing as a player, but has a bright upside and a high ceiling. He is the hardest worker on our team and has a cannon arm."

USC's other returnees from 2018 are 6-3 sophomore setter Matt Faraimo, who redshirted last season after seeing action in 6 matches (with 2 starts) in 2017, 6-8 junior middle blocker Tyler Resnick, who has yet to see action in his Trojan career (a shoulder injury slowed him in 2018), and 5-8 soph libero Michael Chang, who hasn't played yet at USC.

"Matt is a dependable setter and we are comfortable with him setting, just as he is comfortable doing his job," said Nygaard. "He is a hard worker, especially in the weight room, and he brings a calming influence to the court. "Tyler is better than ever after his shoulder surgery. He gives 100 percent all the time. He will find a way to help us this year. Michael is a great team player and carries a strong voice among his teammates in helping us build the kind of culture we want here."

USC's newcomers could make an impact in 2019.

Brandon Browning, a 6-4 freshman outside hitter from Corona del Mar (Calif.) High, was the 2018 VolleyballMag.com Boys National High School Player of the Year and All-CIF Division 1 Player of the Year. He was on the USA Volleyball Youth National Team in 2016 and 2017.

"Brandon is the real deal," said Nygaard. "There is no mystery why he was so highly decorated in high school. He has no real weaknesses for a young player and he gives relentless effort."

Vecas Lewin, a 6-7 junior middle blocker, transferred to USC after starting the past 2 seasons at Santa Monica (Calif.) Junior College. He had 292 kills and 118 blocks in his juco career.

"Vecas is working hard to make the transition from junior college to this level," said Nygaard. "He is physical at the net, has natural blocking instincts, is powerfully explosive and gives us a big window on offense."

Jameson McKibbin, a 6-3 freshman setter who led Punahou School in Honolulu to a pair of state crowns, made 2018 VolleyballMag.comAll-American honorable mention and joined Browning on the VolleyballMag.com Fab 50 list. He becomes the fifth McKibbin to play volleyball at USC, including brothers Riley and Maddison (who both led the Trojans to a pair of NCAA appearances) and his uncle and aunt (who were part of USC national championship squads).

"Jameson is a high energy, high charisma player," said Nygaard. "He is very coachable and is hungry to get better each day."

Three other freshmen will look to get playing time: 6-6 outside hitters Michael O'Toole, a 2018 All-State pick for state champion Barrington (Ill.) High, and Izac Carracher from Sydney (Australia) Grammar School, who competed 2 years in the Australian Volleyball League, and 6-8 middle blocker Liam Schroeder, a 2-time All-State performer (he set the state season blocks record) on a Marquette University High in Milwaukee (Wisc.) club that won the 2017 state championship.

"Michael is a young, developing player who is very committed to the sport and has high character," said Nygaard. "Izac is an outstanding young man, is very coachable and has a tenacity about him to improve. I look forward to watching him progress. Liam has great middle blocker instincts, works hard, wants to be coached and has a strong internal character."

Gary Sato returns for his fourth year as an assistant coach and he will be joined by newcomer Greg Walker, who was the men's head coach at Sacred Heart the past 3 seasons and also has coached with the USA Volleyball program. Also new to Nygaard's staff is volunteer assistant Matt LaSance, who worked under Walker last year after being a setter at Rivier.

In addition to its 12 MPSF contests, Troy's 2019 schedule features early-season tournaments in Honolulu and Tennessee, plus non-conference home-and-home clashes with defending NCAA champion Long Beach State and UC Irvine. For the first time, USC hosts the mid-season Pac-12/Big Ten Challenge, welcoming Penn State and Ohio State to the Galen Center, along with UCLA.

Players Mentioned

Brandon Browning

Izac Carracher

Michael Chang

Matt Douglas

Matt Faraimo

Billy Fauntleroy

Noah Franklin

Kyle Gear

Gianluca Grasso

Chris Hall

Connor Inlow

Vecas Lewin

Sam Lewis

Gert Lisha

Jameson McKibbin

Ryan Moss

Michael O'Toole

Cole Paxson

Tyler Resnick

Jon Rivera

Liam Schroeder

Jack Wyett