USC held its longest scrimmage period of the spring Saturday and it was a revealing exercise for the QB race. All four candidates received a healthy dose of reps, with JT Daniels still getting the bulk of first-team work.
After nine practices, the most pressing question surrounding the position is, who's the second-best quarterback? We know who the starter is but the backup isn't clear. The quarterback performing the best in practice in the non-Daniels realm is true freshman Kedon Slovis.
"I'll be honest with you, very, not surprised but pleased," Clay Helton said. "He's out here and really executing at a high level for a true freshman. I'm very pleased with him. He's making clear, decisive decisions. Good accuracy, good timing, and good decision-making. He's not making critical errors -- which, that's what you normally see from young people."
I've learned over the years that coaches almost never will admit surprise to anything. It seems to be taboo of sorts for them to say something was unexpected. But I guarantee you Helton has been surprised to a degree with Slovis' play. Not because of his recruiting pedigree but because these are his first college practices and he's 17. Most every player I've seen in those circumstances struggles.
I asked Helton why he suspects Slovis hasn't been turnover- and/or sack-prone early on, as is customary in this situation. He praised the tutelage of high school OC Kurt Warner and USC's own evaluations, which both deserve credit. But my hunch is Slovis' ability to eliminate big mistakes is in large part because of the offense. If you're a confident thrower, which he appears to be, the system is designed for easy, quick reads that neutralize the pass rush and minimize INTs (on a per-throw basis). Slovis, as I've mentioned, throws the intermediate ball better than Jack Sears and Matt Fink, and it's perhaps the most important throw in this offense.
"Obviously, he was extremely well-coached and hes a work ethic guy," Helton said. "He puts a lot of study into it and puts the extra work into it and wants to be great."
Saturday's scrimmage had Helton reiterating that he's encouraged overall with how the offense is functioning. It was another positive day for that unit. The offense committed just one penalty over the past two practices -- a false start by a lineman Saturday. Mind you, this entails about 200 plays of 11-on-11. His lone critique was that he believes they can “play at a faster pace."
"A couple things are happening,” Helton explained. “Our ultimate goal when we decided to go this route, we wanted a simpler offense that would allow our quarterbacks to play faster, but more importantly allow our skill to pay fast. ...
“It just seems like everybody is playing at a higher level."
That includes the offensive line. Helton called it the most improved position group on the team this spring, singling out tackles Austin Jackson and Jalen McKenzie as the leaders of the starting five.
"They're being vocal, they've being dominant, they're being physical," Helton said of Jackson and McKenzie, before saying the O-line as a whole has "taken the biggest step forward, from a confidence standpoint, from a demeanor standpoint, physicality, from an assignment standpoint. Coach Drevno's got those guys pointing in the right direction."
It's been difficult to draw conclusions about the run game given how little USC has run the ball. Helton again cited the fact Graham Harrell's offense at North Texas produced 2,000 yards in the past. I'd be stunned if we saw such production this coming year. Given the strength of the offense -- the receiving corps coupled with a pocket QB -- I don't believe USC will run nearly enough to approach that benchmark.
With that said, the running backs are on the field all the time -- I have't noticed USC go four-wide much -- they're just being asked to do other things. With tight end Josh Falo sidelined Saturday, the Trojans employed a few two-back sets. The most frequent personnel group is 11 (one RB, one TE), with 12 and 20 being the alternatives. That of course places a bigger emphasis on the backs being able to pass block and catch passes. Those are the two areas in which redshirt freshman bruiser Markese Stepp has the most to grow in.
He has struggled at times when asked to do something other than run the football, which surfaced Saturday.
"He's captured the essence of the offense," Helton said. "I don't see him making mistakes. Now it's about being an every-down back. He's learning. He's always been a great runner -- he's a physical runner -- but he's learning about pass protection, assignment-wise, and fundamentals and technique, and he's learning how to be a natural ball catcher. That takes some time to be able to do that. ...
"You just don't want to be known as a runner. You want to be known as an every-down back."
Scrimmage highlights:
Today's 11-on-11 periods were more situational than a week ago, with the plays not always continuing at the spots of the previous one. The defense had the upper hand early, as Chase Williams recorded a PBU; Palaie Gaoteote stopped a Stephen Carr run in the backfield; Williams, Raymond Scott and Hunter Echols each applied pressure en route to a pair of incompletions and a short pass, and Jordan Iosefa making a nice run stop inside the 5.
In between, Daniels hit Michael Pittman for a short TD, Fink threw a score to walk-on TB Quincy Jountti, and Slovis found Amon-Ra St. Brown in the back of the end zone for another TD.
Sears had a rough drive in which only one of his four passes was completed. To be fair, all his receivers were walk-ons.
No one is going to say it, but based on who his reps often include and how they're going, it looks like he's falling out of favor. He did have a better sequence in 7-on-7s, in which he connected with Pittman on a really long TD pass, Carr on the perimeter for a long gain, and then Stepp on a swing pass that produced good yardage.
Practice closed with a lengthy scrimmage period that saw all four quarterbacks lead an extended series. Slovis rebounded from a sack by Eli'jah Winston with a pass downfield to St. Brown, who initially bobbled the throw before regrouping and turning upfield for a big gain. After the play, Pittman took exception with something Isaac Taylor-Stuart did and the two had words. ITS was then blocked off by Scott, who he shoved. Fun times.
After a short completion to Tyler Vaughns, Vavae Malepeai ran through a nice hole for a 7-yard TD run. This sequence is basically what we've been seeing out of the run game -- it's being sprinkled into a pass-heavy attack.
Sears' drive opened with an incomplete pass to Stepp, who wasn't looking for the ball and then had it bounce off his hands. Without assigning blame, it appeared as though Stepp was the first read on that play. Sears came back with a pair of completions to John Jackson III, who was back on the field after missing Thursday's practice, and a checkdown to Jountti, and that was the extent of his work here.
Fink entered and immediately flung a 40-yard pass to Pittman, who towered over the defender for the catch. After a couple quick passes to Pittman and Vaughns, Fink hit Devon Williams inside for a short TD.
Daniels' drive began with a sack by Jay Tufele, whom Helton later remarked might be having the best spring of anyone on defense. (I would agree.) Daniels was later sacked by Echols (with added pressure from Jacob Lichtenstein). He completed three short passes otherwise.
Slovis and Fink were then both given an extra series in the red zone, with the former hitting Erik Krommenhoek for a TD. Iosefa reacted wildly to the development, charging after walk-on DB Brandon Perdue. It was an odd sight. Fink was sacked by Lichtenstein before delivering a beautiful ball to walk-on WR Jack Webster just over the reach of a defender for a practice-closing TD.
Notes:
CB Greg Johnson returned to practice.
TE Jude Wolfe, OT Clayton Bradley and DL Caleb Tremblay remained out.
USC begins its penultimate week of spring practice Tuesday.
Here are the OL vs. DL 1-on-1s. I'll have Standouts from Week 3 later this weekend.
After nine practices, the most pressing question surrounding the position is, who's the second-best quarterback? We know who the starter is but the backup isn't clear. The quarterback performing the best in practice in the non-Daniels realm is true freshman Kedon Slovis.
"I'll be honest with you, very, not surprised but pleased," Clay Helton said. "He's out here and really executing at a high level for a true freshman. I'm very pleased with him. He's making clear, decisive decisions. Good accuracy, good timing, and good decision-making. He's not making critical errors -- which, that's what you normally see from young people."
I've learned over the years that coaches almost never will admit surprise to anything. It seems to be taboo of sorts for them to say something was unexpected. But I guarantee you Helton has been surprised to a degree with Slovis' play. Not because of his recruiting pedigree but because these are his first college practices and he's 17. Most every player I've seen in those circumstances struggles.
I asked Helton why he suspects Slovis hasn't been turnover- and/or sack-prone early on, as is customary in this situation. He praised the tutelage of high school OC Kurt Warner and USC's own evaluations, which both deserve credit. But my hunch is Slovis' ability to eliminate big mistakes is in large part because of the offense. If you're a confident thrower, which he appears to be, the system is designed for easy, quick reads that neutralize the pass rush and minimize INTs (on a per-throw basis). Slovis, as I've mentioned, throws the intermediate ball better than Jack Sears and Matt Fink, and it's perhaps the most important throw in this offense.
"Obviously, he was extremely well-coached and hes a work ethic guy," Helton said. "He puts a lot of study into it and puts the extra work into it and wants to be great."
Saturday's scrimmage had Helton reiterating that he's encouraged overall with how the offense is functioning. It was another positive day for that unit. The offense committed just one penalty over the past two practices -- a false start by a lineman Saturday. Mind you, this entails about 200 plays of 11-on-11. His lone critique was that he believes they can “play at a faster pace."
"A couple things are happening,” Helton explained. “Our ultimate goal when we decided to go this route, we wanted a simpler offense that would allow our quarterbacks to play faster, but more importantly allow our skill to pay fast. ...
“It just seems like everybody is playing at a higher level."
That includes the offensive line. Helton called it the most improved position group on the team this spring, singling out tackles Austin Jackson and Jalen McKenzie as the leaders of the starting five.
"They're being vocal, they've being dominant, they're being physical," Helton said of Jackson and McKenzie, before saying the O-line as a whole has "taken the biggest step forward, from a confidence standpoint, from a demeanor standpoint, physicality, from an assignment standpoint. Coach Drevno's got those guys pointing in the right direction."
It's been difficult to draw conclusions about the run game given how little USC has run the ball. Helton again cited the fact Graham Harrell's offense at North Texas produced 2,000 yards in the past. I'd be stunned if we saw such production this coming year. Given the strength of the offense -- the receiving corps coupled with a pocket QB -- I don't believe USC will run nearly enough to approach that benchmark.
With that said, the running backs are on the field all the time -- I have't noticed USC go four-wide much -- they're just being asked to do other things. With tight end Josh Falo sidelined Saturday, the Trojans employed a few two-back sets. The most frequent personnel group is 11 (one RB, one TE), with 12 and 20 being the alternatives. That of course places a bigger emphasis on the backs being able to pass block and catch passes. Those are the two areas in which redshirt freshman bruiser Markese Stepp has the most to grow in.
He has struggled at times when asked to do something other than run the football, which surfaced Saturday.
"He's captured the essence of the offense," Helton said. "I don't see him making mistakes. Now it's about being an every-down back. He's learning. He's always been a great runner -- he's a physical runner -- but he's learning about pass protection, assignment-wise, and fundamentals and technique, and he's learning how to be a natural ball catcher. That takes some time to be able to do that. ...
"You just don't want to be known as a runner. You want to be known as an every-down back."
Scrimmage highlights:
Today's 11-on-11 periods were more situational than a week ago, with the plays not always continuing at the spots of the previous one. The defense had the upper hand early, as Chase Williams recorded a PBU; Palaie Gaoteote stopped a Stephen Carr run in the backfield; Williams, Raymond Scott and Hunter Echols each applied pressure en route to a pair of incompletions and a short pass, and Jordan Iosefa making a nice run stop inside the 5.
In between, Daniels hit Michael Pittman for a short TD, Fink threw a score to walk-on TB Quincy Jountti, and Slovis found Amon-Ra St. Brown in the back of the end zone for another TD.
Sears had a rough drive in which only one of his four passes was completed. To be fair, all his receivers were walk-ons.
No one is going to say it, but based on who his reps often include and how they're going, it looks like he's falling out of favor. He did have a better sequence in 7-on-7s, in which he connected with Pittman on a really long TD pass, Carr on the perimeter for a long gain, and then Stepp on a swing pass that produced good yardage.
Practice closed with a lengthy scrimmage period that saw all four quarterbacks lead an extended series. Slovis rebounded from a sack by Eli'jah Winston with a pass downfield to St. Brown, who initially bobbled the throw before regrouping and turning upfield for a big gain. After the play, Pittman took exception with something Isaac Taylor-Stuart did and the two had words. ITS was then blocked off by Scott, who he shoved. Fun times.
After a short completion to Tyler Vaughns, Vavae Malepeai ran through a nice hole for a 7-yard TD run. This sequence is basically what we've been seeing out of the run game -- it's being sprinkled into a pass-heavy attack.
Sears' drive opened with an incomplete pass to Stepp, who wasn't looking for the ball and then had it bounce off his hands. Without assigning blame, it appeared as though Stepp was the first read on that play. Sears came back with a pair of completions to John Jackson III, who was back on the field after missing Thursday's practice, and a checkdown to Jountti, and that was the extent of his work here.
Fink entered and immediately flung a 40-yard pass to Pittman, who towered over the defender for the catch. After a couple quick passes to Pittman and Vaughns, Fink hit Devon Williams inside for a short TD.
Daniels' drive began with a sack by Jay Tufele, whom Helton later remarked might be having the best spring of anyone on defense. (I would agree.) Daniels was later sacked by Echols (with added pressure from Jacob Lichtenstein). He completed three short passes otherwise.
Slovis and Fink were then both given an extra series in the red zone, with the former hitting Erik Krommenhoek for a TD. Iosefa reacted wildly to the development, charging after walk-on DB Brandon Perdue. It was an odd sight. Fink was sacked by Lichtenstein before delivering a beautiful ball to walk-on WR Jack Webster just over the reach of a defender for a practice-closing TD.
Notes:
CB Greg Johnson returned to practice.
TE Jude Wolfe, OT Clayton Bradley and DL Caleb Tremblay remained out.
USC begins its penultimate week of spring practice Tuesday.
Here are the OL vs. DL 1-on-1s. I'll have Standouts from Week 3 later this weekend.
