USC was in full pads today. Here's a rundown of the news:
LB Jordan Iosefa will miss the remainder of spring practice as he will undergo a minor knee surgery. Clay Helton said he had a dislocated a kneecap and tore some cartilage. His estimated rehab is 3-4 weeks, which should make him available for the beginning of summer workouts (June 1).
Kana'i Mauga has taken the majority of first-team reps in Iosefa's place. I got some great insight on him, Talanoa Hufanga and several others on defense during a 15-minute interview from Clancy Pendergast. (We'll post the full transcript later.)
QBs coach Bryan Ellis was absent to be with his wife -- they are expecting their first child. Helton filled in as the QBs coach.
C Brett Neilon (ankle), DT Brandon Pili (ankle) and CB Je'Quari Godfrey (hamstring) remained out. WR Michael Pittman (shoulder) also did not practice. WR Josh Imatorbhebhe (head) wore a non-contact jersey. WR Keyshawn Young did not finish practice with an undisclosed injury.
OT Chuma Edoga returned after being limited by back pain Tuesday.
CB Jonathan Lockett worked with the first team. We've seen a few different guys claim the reps vacated by Jack Jones and Lockett has arguably been the best.
1-on-1s (OL vs. DL)
Mauga beats Erik Krommenhoek
Jordan Austin stops Jay Tufele
Liam Jimmons beats Jacob Daniel
Porter Gustin and Chuma Edoga draw even
Caleb Tremblay beats Andrew Vorhees
Tufele beats Justin Dedich
Chris Brown stops Connor Murphy
Clayton Johnston stops Hunter Echols
Mauga beats Krommenhoek
Gustin beats Jalen McKenzie
Tremblay beats Alijah Vera-Tucker
Austin stops Tufele
Murphy beats Daniel
Frank Martin stops Juliano Falaniko
*Something I've been meaning to note is that I believe we're seeing more full sets of O-linemen and D-linemen go head-to-head during individual drill work.
Impressions from 11-on-11:
It was another so-so day for the QBs. The more notable moments involved Matt Fink. He was picked off by Marvell Tell in the early period on a deep throw to Tyler Vaughns. The final period began with him getting sacked, by Mauga and another defender. He then rolled out, sprinting away from Gustin, and hit Josh Falo on the backside for a TD. Beautiful execution here.
Then Fink really ran into trouble.
He was stripped by John Houston, who also recovered the ball. His next two throws fell incomplete, though one was dropped by Imatorbhebhe near the sideline. It's the type of play Tee Martin alluded to on Tuesday that Imatorbhebhe needs to make at this point. Fink then rolled right and tried the same pass to his left that he hit Falo on but Gustin sniffed it out and batted it high in the air, giving Tufele enough time to run under it for the INT. The big man returned it for a long pick-six, inciting a celebration from the entire defense (and a few choice words from Edoga). Good times. Fink concluded his series with an incomplete pass out of the back of the end zone.
The only notable play that I recorded from this period involving Sears was a play-action roll-out to Krommenhoek for a short TD. Great sell by Sears. In 7-on-7, Biggie Marshall broke up his deep ball to Imatorbhebhe. Later, Vaughns beat Isaiah Langley on a 50-50 ball down the sideline. Langley made it hard for Vaughns, who positioned himself well to haul it in without stepping out of bounds while making a tumbling catch. I'm not certain that Vaughns got that first foot in but it was a tremendous effort by him nonetheless. By both of them, really. Great throw by Sears, too.
Ykili Ross also broke up a pass to Imatorbhebhe, who is still learning how to use his body before the catch. He's a monster after it. Levi Jones then tackled Krommehoek for a loss following a short pass that seemed doomed to fail. The offense is having a tough time moving the ball of late.
Vavae Malepeai continues to look really good running around, which is promising given that it was a hamstring that limited him for the first half of spring. Those can really linger sometimes. He picked up a first down on a counter.
USC didn't run too much today but outside of the carry above from Malepeai, there wasn't much for the running backs to work with. Aca'Cedric Ware was swarmed in the backfield by a host of defenders, leading to a brief tussle between the offense and defense. DBs coach Ronnie Bradford barked, "stupid," and he is probably right, but I kind of like the offense and defense not being chummy in practice. It's something that I remember about Carroll's practices. The two sides often practiced with a disdain for one another.
***
USC's next practice is Saturday at 10 a.m. (followed by the annual
Swim With Mike event) and it might be the realest scrimmage of the spring. Helton said he's going to put the ball down and let them play. They'll have full possessions (with three and four downs to work with) and no coaches on the field. I asked Helton what he wants to see from the quarterbacks with just four practices remaining and his answer was simple: "Just the movement of the ball and the protection of the ball." He added that Saturday's practice will be telling.
As I mentioned earlier, I'll post the full Pendergast transcript once I finish transcribing it. I interviewed Biggie Marshall as well. We also have a new
They Said It featuring Michael Pittman, Aca'Cedric Ware and Jack Sears.
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