USC RB/ST coach Johnny Nansen went in depth on his backfield and special teams with the media after Wednesday's practice. He believes one freshman tailback is currently ahead of the others and he also thinks one kicker is currently leading the race to kick-off.
How would you describe the freshmen tailbacks performance on Day 5?
Johnny Nansen: “Obviously they’re coming along. After practice, these guys are working hard. They’re starting to get it, they’re starting to understand the plays. You saw the improvement, Ronald (Jones) breaking one, ‘Ced (Aca’Cedric Ware) had a couple of good runs. I’m proud of where they’re at but they still have a lot of room for improvement.”
How are the freshmen different and how will you use them?
JN: “‘Ced is more of a power (back), Ronald is more of a break away guy. ‘Cedric is more of a Buck Allen, a guy that can do it all, good pass pro, reliable, very, very smart kid. And then, obviously, Dominic (Davis), he’s special. He’s in the backfield, motioning, trying to create some mismatches and things like that. He’s a tough runner… As soon as they start learning the plays, then we’ll have a better feel for where they stand.”
How do you sort the depth chart and utilize so many different weapons?
JN: “It's like I told them, we don’t have a depth chart. The next guy steps up and plays. It’s a platoon with whoever, the next guy has to step up and do the job. Obviously its a long season so like I told the kids, you have to come out here and you never know when you’ll get an opportunity to play with the ones and that’s how it’s going to be in a game, especially with our offense and the way we go. The next guy has to step up and I think that’ll help our older guys later on in the year so we can finish the games like we’re supposed to.”
What type of back is Ronald Jones?
JN: “Ronald is a break away, we haven’t had that in years. So it’s nice to have that, that option where a game can finish a game strong and at any time, he can break one.”
What are expectations for Tre Madden?:
JN: “Tre has been unbelievable the last four days. I have to do a better job of resting him a little bit. I’m trying to get him to the end. He’s a great footballer, he has a high football I.Q. and he’s special so we have to god job of watching his reps and making sure he plays in the game.”
Did you expect Madden to be this strong early in camp?
JN: “No doubt. It’s probably his best summer. When you talk to him he goes, coach, I’m in the best shape ever. And I think sitting out a couple of years kind of helped him. To see his drive to want to be the guy that’s there, he’s so determined, he wants to win so bad. He’s always in the video room, he’s always in meetings, he’s always asking questions. He's becoming a leader in that room”
How prepared is Madden?
JN: “Mentally, I think he’s ready to go. Physically, he has to be healthy to help us. So I have to do a better job of counting their reps and make sure the other guys are even so when we get into that situation at the end of the year, we’re not beating him up. If you saw the games last year, there were a couple of games where Buck, you can tell he’s kind of wore down because he took so many reps. So I want to make sure that Tre (Madden) and Justin (Davis) are not in that boat.”
Does that mean the young backs have to play?:
JN: “They’re going to play, they have to play. And I challenge them, that’s why they’re in there with the ones. You know, I'm counting on those guys to come in and help us not only with the offense but on special teams because they’re so gifted.”
What type of back is Aca’Cedric Ware?
JN: “When I went and watched him at his high school and I saw the way he worked, that was the start. Then he came to camp and he worked. After that I was telling Sark (Steve Sarkisian) that he’s not going to be the guy that puts up the numbers but when it’s third and four, he’s going to get that first down for you. He’s that type of kid. By far, he’s ahead of the other two kids right now in terms of assignments and all that stuff.”
Who are the other kick and punt returners besides Adoree’ Jackson?
JN: “Right now we’re trying to develop a couple of guys. You have (Steven) Mitchell, he’s one of them. You have the young kids in Ronald Jones and Dominic Davis, trying to develop. We’re still trying to work with those guys to understand the importance of how to catch the ball, where their eyes should be. I think the next guy right now that's ready to help us out is probably going to be Mitchell.” (Nansen also confirms that Mitchell would be a candidate to return either or both punts and kickoffs.)
Could Mitchell help on punts and kickoffs?
JN: (Nods head yes)
What’s happening with the placekicker battle?
JN: “Right now it’s too soon to say who the best guy is. Two weeks from now, I’ll probably know better.”
Could one player kick off while another player kicks field goals?
JN: “It might be. Like I said, the best guy is going to play. Last year, Woody (Alex Wood) played. So probably right now, he’s the guy on kickoff. But field goal wise, they’re competing. Probably two weeks from now, I’ll know better of who’s the guy.”
Why should special teams will improve?
JN: “The depth and then obviously the overall schemes and stuff like that. Our specialists have to help us out too and when you have a break down, it’s because of the lack of depth and we had to play with a lot of walk-ons. And I don’t want to use that as an excuse. We have to do a better job of coaching, make sure we're doing the right things and putting guys in the right place so that doesn’t happen anymore.”
How do you manage Justin Davis while he’s out?
JN: “During the walk throughs, he’s taking all the reps. Obviously he’s taking a lot of walk through reps and then in the meetings, he’s one of our guys that always asks questions. He’s so well ahead of where the young kids are. So those are things, he’s just got to get more reps in practice and through walkthroughs, mentally. And then when he comes back, he’ll be ready.”
What are your expectations for Davis if he’s healthy?
JN: “He’s special, both those guys (Davis and Madden). Like I’ve said, I wouldn’t be surprised if one guy starts one game and the next game starts here or there. They’re both special. Justin is a reliable guy and both those guys have great football IQ and they’re ready to play. So I don’t have a concern about Justin at all. He’s ready to go when healthy. He’s going to play a lot for us.”
How would you describe the freshmen tailbacks performance on Day 5?
Johnny Nansen: “Obviously they’re coming along. After practice, these guys are working hard. They’re starting to get it, they’re starting to understand the plays. You saw the improvement, Ronald (Jones) breaking one, ‘Ced (Aca’Cedric Ware) had a couple of good runs. I’m proud of where they’re at but they still have a lot of room for improvement.”
How are the freshmen different and how will you use them?
JN: “‘Ced is more of a power (back), Ronald is more of a break away guy. ‘Cedric is more of a Buck Allen, a guy that can do it all, good pass pro, reliable, very, very smart kid. And then, obviously, Dominic (Davis), he’s special. He’s in the backfield, motioning, trying to create some mismatches and things like that. He’s a tough runner… As soon as they start learning the plays, then we’ll have a better feel for where they stand.”
How do you sort the depth chart and utilize so many different weapons?
JN: “It's like I told them, we don’t have a depth chart. The next guy steps up and plays. It’s a platoon with whoever, the next guy has to step up and do the job. Obviously its a long season so like I told the kids, you have to come out here and you never know when you’ll get an opportunity to play with the ones and that’s how it’s going to be in a game, especially with our offense and the way we go. The next guy has to step up and I think that’ll help our older guys later on in the year so we can finish the games like we’re supposed to.”
What type of back is Ronald Jones?
JN: “Ronald is a break away, we haven’t had that in years. So it’s nice to have that, that option where a game can finish a game strong and at any time, he can break one.”
What are expectations for Tre Madden?:
JN: “Tre has been unbelievable the last four days. I have to do a better job of resting him a little bit. I’m trying to get him to the end. He’s a great footballer, he has a high football I.Q. and he’s special so we have to god job of watching his reps and making sure he plays in the game.”
Did you expect Madden to be this strong early in camp?
JN: “No doubt. It’s probably his best summer. When you talk to him he goes, coach, I’m in the best shape ever. And I think sitting out a couple of years kind of helped him. To see his drive to want to be the guy that’s there, he’s so determined, he wants to win so bad. He’s always in the video room, he’s always in meetings, he’s always asking questions. He's becoming a leader in that room”
How prepared is Madden?
JN: “Mentally, I think he’s ready to go. Physically, he has to be healthy to help us. So I have to do a better job of counting their reps and make sure the other guys are even so when we get into that situation at the end of the year, we’re not beating him up. If you saw the games last year, there were a couple of games where Buck, you can tell he’s kind of wore down because he took so many reps. So I want to make sure that Tre (Madden) and Justin (Davis) are not in that boat.”
Does that mean the young backs have to play?:
JN: “They’re going to play, they have to play. And I challenge them, that’s why they’re in there with the ones. You know, I'm counting on those guys to come in and help us not only with the offense but on special teams because they’re so gifted.”
What type of back is Aca’Cedric Ware?
JN: “When I went and watched him at his high school and I saw the way he worked, that was the start. Then he came to camp and he worked. After that I was telling Sark (Steve Sarkisian) that he’s not going to be the guy that puts up the numbers but when it’s third and four, he’s going to get that first down for you. He’s that type of kid. By far, he’s ahead of the other two kids right now in terms of assignments and all that stuff.”
Who are the other kick and punt returners besides Adoree’ Jackson?
JN: “Right now we’re trying to develop a couple of guys. You have (Steven) Mitchell, he’s one of them. You have the young kids in Ronald Jones and Dominic Davis, trying to develop. We’re still trying to work with those guys to understand the importance of how to catch the ball, where their eyes should be. I think the next guy right now that's ready to help us out is probably going to be Mitchell.” (Nansen also confirms that Mitchell would be a candidate to return either or both punts and kickoffs.)
Could Mitchell help on punts and kickoffs?
JN: (Nods head yes)
What’s happening with the placekicker battle?
JN: “Right now it’s too soon to say who the best guy is. Two weeks from now, I’ll probably know better.”
Could one player kick off while another player kicks field goals?
JN: “It might be. Like I said, the best guy is going to play. Last year, Woody (Alex Wood) played. So probably right now, he’s the guy on kickoff. But field goal wise, they’re competing. Probably two weeks from now, I’ll know better of who’s the guy.”
Why should special teams will improve?
JN: “The depth and then obviously the overall schemes and stuff like that. Our specialists have to help us out too and when you have a break down, it’s because of the lack of depth and we had to play with a lot of walk-ons. And I don’t want to use that as an excuse. We have to do a better job of coaching, make sure we're doing the right things and putting guys in the right place so that doesn’t happen anymore.”
How do you manage Justin Davis while he’s out?
JN: “During the walk throughs, he’s taking all the reps. Obviously he’s taking a lot of walk through reps and then in the meetings, he’s one of our guys that always asks questions. He’s so well ahead of where the young kids are. So those are things, he’s just got to get more reps in practice and through walkthroughs, mentally. And then when he comes back, he’ll be ready.”
What are your expectations for Davis if he’s healthy?
JN: “He’s special, both those guys (Davis and Madden). Like I’ve said, I wouldn’t be surprised if one guy starts one game and the next game starts here or there. They’re both special. Justin is a reliable guy and both those guys have great football IQ and they’re ready to play. So I don’t have a concern about Justin at all. He’s ready to go when healthy. He’s going to play a lot for us.”
