Notes and observations from Wednesday's practice...
USC is in full pads again.
Adoree' Jackson, practicing on offense for the first time this fall, drops a couple passes in warm-ups. Sark threatens to put him back on D. Adoree' would respond in a major way.
11-on-11:
On the third play, Adoree' gets behind the D and Cody Kessler goes over the top for a touchdown. Perfect throw, perfect play.
Chad Wheeler is in there with the first team. With Kevon Seymour limited and Adoree' on the other side, Jonathan Lockett and Biggie Marshall are the first-team CBs.
Tre Madden is the first TB and goes up the middle for a nice gain.
Justin Davis comes in and takes a sweep for about 10 yards.
Porter Gustin stops Davis for a TFL.
***
Max Browne is the victim of a pair of drops, by Isaac Whitney and Tyler Petite.
Noah Jefferson is back. He got some work on the second team, alongside fellow freshmen Christian Rector and Jacob Daniel.
Uchenna Nwosu has been playing well at strong-side linebacker. At of now, I'd say he probably fills in best for Su'a Cravens in terms of versatility and assuming his many responsibilities.
Cam Smith stops Aca'Cedric Ware for a TFL.
Smith sacks Max Browne.
***
Chris Hawkins makes a nice open-field tackle. He's had a few of those of late. Keith Heyward says he's transitioned to safety pretty well.
Jabari Ruffin applies pressure following a bad snap.
Dom Davis goes off tackle and picks up 20-plus yards but fumbles. Couldn't tell who knocked it loose.
1-on-1s (receiver catches pass inside 5, tries to beat defender into end zone):
(Chris Brown is at RG with the first team. Lobendahn is at LT.)
Anthony Sarao and Cam Smith run Madden out of bounds.
Madden picks up five yards right through the middle before Sarao pulls him down by the legs. He really gives USC something it didn't have last year.
Marvell Tell breaks up a wheel route to Adoree'.
Delvon makes a great TFL on JDavis.
Davis takes the next carry and skips outside for a TD. He just needs some room to work with and he'll make it worth it.
***
RoJo goes up the middle and then cuts outside for an 8-yard TD. Great vision there.
Matt Lopes pops RoJo on the following play and the ball comes out, although I thought either his knee was down or the ground caused the fumble.
Spears gets open in the back of the end zone but Browne overthrows him.
Adoree' makes a defender miss and beats those in pursuit to the corner for a touchdown.
Davis goes up the middle for a TD.
***
Ruffin with a TFL on RoJo.
RoJo catches a ball in the flat and Ruffin just manages to keep him from scoring.
RoJo take another handoff and perhaps learns a lesson. He started up the middle, broke left and then tried to reverse toward the heart of the D-line and was trucked by Michael Hutchings.
Isaac Whitney, who had a rough day, needed Clay Helton to line him up properly.
Adoree' got one handoff and he scored on that too.
7-on-7:
Kessler goes high to Petite, who brings it down.
Kessler goes back to Petite.
Taylor McNamara loses Cravens but he isn't targeted. Instead, Kessler goes to RoJo and he drops it.
Kessler goes back to Petite but it's too high.
Hawkins breaks up a pass to Hampton.
***
Max Browne goes deep and finds Adoree', who bobbles it while falling to the ground but hangs on for a spectacular grab.
Hampton makes a nice catch over the overmatched Jalen Jones.
Browne hits JuJu for 15 yards and then Darreus Rogers for 10.
Ykili Ross deflects a pass intended for Daniel Imatorbhebhe.
Whitney catches a pass over the middle. In looking at the receiver rotations, Whitney appears to be sixth (behind JuJu, Steven Mitchell Jr., Darreus, Adoree' Hampton).
***
Whitney then drops a perfect lob from Sam Darnold. He was open and would have scored easily. JuJu is there immediately to encourage the struggling Whitney. Surprising to see his regression. The tools are there for him to be better than average.
Petite makes a nice catch. He's really come on in the past few days.
Kevon is beaten by Robby Kolanz and then has a hard time getting up and walking off the field. He does not look well right now. Surprised he's even taking these reps with the third team.
Special teams
Su'a muffs a punt and Soma Vainuku, hustling on the play, recovers the fumble. Cravens hasn't been his usual self the past few days.
Wyatt Schmidt attempts five field goals, all from long range, and makes three of them. Alex Wood isn't given an attempt but does kickoff and connects on an extra point. We're told later Matt Boermeester is out with a hip pointer.
11-on-11:
Gustin is with the first team at RE.
Greg Townsend brings pressure and Kessler gets it out in time and hits Adoree', who falls backwards for another TD. Outstanding adjustment by Adoree' after he initially had trouble locating the ball.
Kessler has good protection and finds Mitchell for a TD vs. Hawkins.
Townsend records a sack. Damien Mama is admonished afterward.
Wheeler, who's back with the first team, pulls and helps free up Adoree' on a screen and Adoree' scores again. That's TD No. 5 for him. (Cam Smith with the hurry.)
***
JuJu beats Biggie on a jump ball in the end zone.
Browne hits Darreus Rogers in the corner of the end zone for a TD vs. John Plattenburg.
Darreus beats Isaiah Langley on the following play for a TD. That had Heyward pretty upset.
Browne forces a throw over the middle and Ross picks it off in the end zone.
McNamara and Whitney catch consecutive passes.
***
Kessler hits JuJu and Darreus on back-to-back plays. Both guys are really using their bigger bodies well, posting-up defenders.
Scott Felix is in the backfield but Kessler gets it to Madden.
Hawkins smashes Davis on a short run. Hawkins has been tackling well all camp.
Davis gets vindication on the next play as he cuts outside and runs for 20-plus yards.
RoJo picks up a big chunk to the left side.
***
Ruffin with the TFL on RoJo.
Townsend pressures the QB and appears to be robbed of another sack.
Uchenna lays a good hit on Whitney.
Osa Masina pressures the QB.
Langley makes a great open-field tackle vs. Dom Davis.
***
Ware, who's been quiet the past couple days, erupts for a long run after making a shifty move at the second level.
Darnold stays in the pocket and hits Jalen Greene deep.
Kessler is sacked.
Madden cuts left and beats Uchenna outside for a 15-yard TD run.
***
USC will practice again this evening. It is closed to the media and public. The next open practice is Thursday at 2:30 p.m.
USC is in full pads again.
Adoree' Jackson, practicing on offense for the first time this fall, drops a couple passes in warm-ups. Sark threatens to put him back on D. Adoree' would respond in a major way.
11-on-11:
On the third play, Adoree' gets behind the D and Cody Kessler goes over the top for a touchdown. Perfect throw, perfect play.
Chad Wheeler is in there with the first team. With Kevon Seymour limited and Adoree' on the other side, Jonathan Lockett and Biggie Marshall are the first-team CBs.
Tre Madden is the first TB and goes up the middle for a nice gain.
Justin Davis comes in and takes a sweep for about 10 yards.
Porter Gustin stops Davis for a TFL.
***
Max Browne is the victim of a pair of drops, by Isaac Whitney and Tyler Petite.
Noah Jefferson is back. He got some work on the second team, alongside fellow freshmen Christian Rector and Jacob Daniel.
Uchenna Nwosu has been playing well at strong-side linebacker. At of now, I'd say he probably fills in best for Su'a Cravens in terms of versatility and assuming his many responsibilities.
Cam Smith stops Aca'Cedric Ware for a TFL.
Smith sacks Max Browne.
***
Chris Hawkins makes a nice open-field tackle. He's had a few of those of late. Keith Heyward says he's transitioned to safety pretty well.
Jabari Ruffin applies pressure following a bad snap.
Dom Davis goes off tackle and picks up 20-plus yards but fumbles. Couldn't tell who knocked it loose.
1-on-1s (receiver catches pass inside 5, tries to beat defender into end zone):
- Kevon stops Adoree'. That appeared to be an encouraging sign, until Kevon had an issue later.
- Lockett stops Deontay Burnett.
- JuJu Smith-Schuster beats Lockett.
- Leon McQuay stopcs De'Quan Hampton.
(Chris Brown is at RG with the first team. Lobendahn is at LT.)
Anthony Sarao and Cam Smith run Madden out of bounds.
Madden picks up five yards right through the middle before Sarao pulls him down by the legs. He really gives USC something it didn't have last year.
Marvell Tell breaks up a wheel route to Adoree'.
Delvon makes a great TFL on JDavis.
Davis takes the next carry and skips outside for a TD. He just needs some room to work with and he'll make it worth it.
***
RoJo goes up the middle and then cuts outside for an 8-yard TD. Great vision there.
Matt Lopes pops RoJo on the following play and the ball comes out, although I thought either his knee was down or the ground caused the fumble.
Spears gets open in the back of the end zone but Browne overthrows him.
Adoree' makes a defender miss and beats those in pursuit to the corner for a touchdown.
Davis goes up the middle for a TD.
***
Ruffin with a TFL on RoJo.
RoJo catches a ball in the flat and Ruffin just manages to keep him from scoring.
RoJo take another handoff and perhaps learns a lesson. He started up the middle, broke left and then tried to reverse toward the heart of the D-line and was trucked by Michael Hutchings.
Isaac Whitney, who had a rough day, needed Clay Helton to line him up properly.
Adoree' got one handoff and he scored on that too.
7-on-7:
Kessler goes high to Petite, who brings it down.
Kessler goes back to Petite.
Taylor McNamara loses Cravens but he isn't targeted. Instead, Kessler goes to RoJo and he drops it.
Kessler goes back to Petite but it's too high.
Hawkins breaks up a pass to Hampton.
***
Max Browne goes deep and finds Adoree', who bobbles it while falling to the ground but hangs on for a spectacular grab.
Hampton makes a nice catch over the overmatched Jalen Jones.
Browne hits JuJu for 15 yards and then Darreus Rogers for 10.
Ykili Ross deflects a pass intended for Daniel Imatorbhebhe.
Whitney catches a pass over the middle. In looking at the receiver rotations, Whitney appears to be sixth (behind JuJu, Steven Mitchell Jr., Darreus, Adoree' Hampton).
***
Whitney then drops a perfect lob from Sam Darnold. He was open and would have scored easily. JuJu is there immediately to encourage the struggling Whitney. Surprising to see his regression. The tools are there for him to be better than average.
Petite makes a nice catch. He's really come on in the past few days.
Kevon is beaten by Robby Kolanz and then has a hard time getting up and walking off the field. He does not look well right now. Surprised he's even taking these reps with the third team.
Special teams
Su'a muffs a punt and Soma Vainuku, hustling on the play, recovers the fumble. Cravens hasn't been his usual self the past few days.
Wyatt Schmidt attempts five field goals, all from long range, and makes three of them. Alex Wood isn't given an attempt but does kickoff and connects on an extra point. We're told later Matt Boermeester is out with a hip pointer.
11-on-11:
Gustin is with the first team at RE.
Greg Townsend brings pressure and Kessler gets it out in time and hits Adoree', who falls backwards for another TD. Outstanding adjustment by Adoree' after he initially had trouble locating the ball.
Kessler has good protection and finds Mitchell for a TD vs. Hawkins.
Townsend records a sack. Damien Mama is admonished afterward.
Wheeler, who's back with the first team, pulls and helps free up Adoree' on a screen and Adoree' scores again. That's TD No. 5 for him. (Cam Smith with the hurry.)
***
JuJu beats Biggie on a jump ball in the end zone.
Browne hits Darreus Rogers in the corner of the end zone for a TD vs. John Plattenburg.
Darreus beats Isaiah Langley on the following play for a TD. That had Heyward pretty upset.
Browne forces a throw over the middle and Ross picks it off in the end zone.
McNamara and Whitney catch consecutive passes.
***
Kessler hits JuJu and Darreus on back-to-back plays. Both guys are really using their bigger bodies well, posting-up defenders.
Scott Felix is in the backfield but Kessler gets it to Madden.
Hawkins smashes Davis on a short run. Hawkins has been tackling well all camp.
Davis gets vindication on the next play as he cuts outside and runs for 20-plus yards.
RoJo picks up a big chunk to the left side.
***
Ruffin with the TFL on RoJo.
Townsend pressures the QB and appears to be robbed of another sack.
Uchenna lays a good hit on Whitney.
Osa Masina pressures the QB.
Langley makes a great open-field tackle vs. Dom Davis.
***
Ware, who's been quiet the past couple days, erupts for a long run after making a shifty move at the second level.
Darnold stays in the pocket and hits Jalen Greene deep.
Kessler is sacked.
Madden cuts left and beats Uchenna outside for a 15-yard TD run.
***
USC will practice again this evening. It is closed to the media and public. The next open practice is Thursday at 2:30 p.m.
