In the midst of checking with sources on Bru McCoy over the past week, I also received intel on those already in the football program. Here's some of the chatter from within the team coming out of spring football:
- It can't be overstated how much simpler Graham Harrell's offense is compared to previous seasons. I'm told the players absolutely love it, and it was definitely a selling point in recruiting Bru McCoy back to USC. Last year at this time the returning quarterbacks and several others were still very much in a learning phase with the playbook. Michael Pittman, in our recent podcast, alluded to how the offense slowed players down and hurt competition because reserves had a tougher time picking things up with fewer reps. The players now are doing repetitions of what they've already learned.
- Barring an injury in training camp, JT Daniels is going to be the starting quarterback. Sears still demonstrated too much of an inclination to run, which runs counter to what Harrell wants in this offense. His comments in the final week of spring practice were extremely telling. A key for this offseason is more leadership from the QB position, which is also something Harrell harped on. While Sam Darnold didn't have a strong vocal presence, he was a uniting force and universally liked in the locker room. The Trojans sorely lacked leadership last year and getting more of it from their QB would be a pivotal development.
- Freshman QB Kedon Slovis was a pleasant surprise to just about everyone. I'm told his play even had an impact on Matt Fink wanting to transfer. With that said, the staff feels his performance was a bit over-hyped by some media outlets this spring. He's still very inconsistent as a passer and thus has days where he's lighting it up but others where he's just off.
- Tim Drevno is believed to be significantly improving the offensive line. I don't have more on this, just that this was the takeaway within the team. Giving credence to this is an interview I did during spring with left guard Alijah Vera-Tucker that I never wrote about in which he described the differences between Drevno and Neil Callaway: "My technique has gotten a lot better. Both coaches are great. I think Drevno’s just a little bit more focused on technique. I think Callaway just focused more, uhh, I don't know. That’s a hard question. I can't really think about that right now. ... I think we’re definitely more in sync. I can tell, the O-line can tell, I feel like the coaches could tell, too. I'm being repetitive right now but communication, we got to get that down. We got to get it 100 percent, and Drevno has us working on that every day. That was one of our biggest problems last year."
- I've gotten word on nearly every new assistant coach being respected and popular among players within their respective position groups.
- The best review is reserved for strength and conditioning coach Aaron Ausmus, which was also apparent in the Pittman interview. The players are said to be much more plugged into offseason workouts. The feeling is Ivan Lewis had gotten too comfortable the past few years and wasn't connecting with the players. Ausmus was one of multiple strong hires Clay Helton made this offseason.
