Highlights from our latest round of interviews ...
Su’a Cravens
--on his decision to go pro
"It was hard, especially with Helton coming back and the team we have coming back and he schedule Is aw. I like a challenge and I think no schedule gets harder than the one we have next year. The rumors I heard and the talks I had with my family and different evaluations, I think it was time to go. I had a lot of inside information, so it was time for me to go. Scouts, different GMs that would talk to the coaches, I think I had a good feeling of where I’m going to go. From what I’ve heard, I’ll be a mid to late first round pick."
--on what he needs to do to improve his draft stock
"If I want to be a definitely early round guy, top-15 kind of guy, I’m going to have to run a 4.4, 4.5 flat. If I want to go late and go into the later days, I’m going to have to run slow in the 40. To e, the 40 doesn’t matter, it doesn’t define you as a football player. It doesn’t matter on the football field, there are a lot of fast guys in the league that don’t play. But at the end of the day, teams invest a lot of money into you and they want to see how fast you run."
--on whether he took out insurance for the Holiday Bowl
"I’ve already taken out insurance on my body earlier in the year. That was done before the season started."
--on what he can run in the 40
"We did laser time here during the summer and I ran a 4.58. And I was about 220 pounds then. We’ll see." (He said he’s currently at 222.)
--on if he has different perspective knowing this will be his final game at USC
"No, I play every game like it’s my last. I don’t think you can turn on any game to see that my effort is any different or see that I’m not giving it my all. This is going to be the same thing. I’m going to prepare for it like it’s my last and it just happens to be my last (at USC)."
--is this what you planned all along
"I would think it’s every kid’s dream to go to the NFL and with the opportunity I have at hand, that was too good to pass up. With hat said, it was a very hard decision. I’m talking to Helton and seeing Coach Sirmon come back an seeing the schedule, like I said, I’m a competitor, (They) get to play Alabama at Cowboys Stadium next year, it’s pretty good for the true freshmen coming in next year. It was really hard. I love USC."
--on Helton encouraging him to leave
"I came to talk to Helton probably a week before. I was talking to him about it and asking for advice on what he thought I should do. He said, what are you talking about? You’re leaving and I'm not going to let you stay. I’ll pack your bags for you. And I heard that from about four other coaches on the team. It was a lot of support and I appreciate it."
--on whether he was let down by USC going through so many coaching changes
"No, I didn’t come to USC for a specific coach. I just came to be great. And I think that the four different coaches we had, that helped the process. Along with the 100 positions I played, I think it just helped me out in the long run. I don’t look t it as a negative. In the long run it really helped me."
--on whether he would have announced it on Twitter had he been returning
"Yeah. I don’t like making things dramatic. I feel like you hurt people’s feelings when you make things dramatic, especially when it’s not the decision that they want. At the end of the day it’s your decision, you’re going to do what makes you happy. But I’m not a drama queen. Just go ahead and get it done and move on."
--on announcing before the Holiday Bowl
"I just didn’t want the focus of the coaches and all the other players and recruiting for next year. If Su’a comes back, am I going to go there because I play the same position as him? Is Su’a coming back during the Bowl game? There’s just a whole lot of drama that I wanted t avoid. The decision is final so let’s go focus on the game."
Adoree’ Jackson
--on why he won’t practice with the offense much moving forward
"It’s one of those where I feel like I don’t need to be practicing with the offense every practice, just to run a go route or a bubble or an arrow. Those are the routes. It’s simple. I understand guys like JuJu and Darreus Rogers and Jalen Greene who have to come out of their breaks and curls, break it off as slants, posts, out routes, whatever it may be. They have to work on it because that’s their full-time job."
--on being named team MVP
"To be honest, I was shocked. I didn’t feel like I should have won. I thought they were going to give it to Cody or JuJu or whoever else. That’s just me. Personally, I didn’t feel like I should have won."
--on his conversation with Helton regarding spring practice
"We talked about it and he told me it’s up to me. He remembered the promises he made me when he was in recruiting me, that I can go out there and run track. He said it’s totally up to me if I want to go out there and do it, and if I’m out there, to compete and give it my all. …
"I’m talking to my dad, seeing what he wants. For me, I would rather go out there and really try to win a national title in the long jump and compete for the Olympics. I’m just going to see what he thinks is best and weight it out. (He’s telling me) to just go after my heart, whatever my heart’s feeling."
--on whether having a new DC will be a factor
"To be honest, not at all. They’re not switching the offense, so I pretty much know those plays. And defensively, I feel like I picked it up quick. I can just go in there and study and meet with them and just get mental reps. I don’t think that will be difficult to learn a new defensive scheme."
--on whether he made the progress he wanted to make at CB this year
"I feel like I made some progress. I was just inconsistent, that’s what it was. Progress, but not consistent. It’s just having repetitions. Some plays I do it, some plays it’s off. Me being an athlete, some people wouldn’t notice it but others, a technician to the sport, would understand. …
"That’s why I’m here after practice every day, I’m getting that extra work in, just getting that repetition. You know, we don’t press all the time, so getting that press repetition. I do special teams, corner and receiver, so (I’m) just doing it after practice to help me out."
Su’a Cravens
--on his decision to go pro
"It was hard, especially with Helton coming back and the team we have coming back and he schedule Is aw. I like a challenge and I think no schedule gets harder than the one we have next year. The rumors I heard and the talks I had with my family and different evaluations, I think it was time to go. I had a lot of inside information, so it was time for me to go. Scouts, different GMs that would talk to the coaches, I think I had a good feeling of where I’m going to go. From what I’ve heard, I’ll be a mid to late first round pick."
--on what he needs to do to improve his draft stock
"If I want to be a definitely early round guy, top-15 kind of guy, I’m going to have to run a 4.4, 4.5 flat. If I want to go late and go into the later days, I’m going to have to run slow in the 40. To e, the 40 doesn’t matter, it doesn’t define you as a football player. It doesn’t matter on the football field, there are a lot of fast guys in the league that don’t play. But at the end of the day, teams invest a lot of money into you and they want to see how fast you run."
--on whether he took out insurance for the Holiday Bowl
"I’ve already taken out insurance on my body earlier in the year. That was done before the season started."
--on what he can run in the 40
"We did laser time here during the summer and I ran a 4.58. And I was about 220 pounds then. We’ll see." (He said he’s currently at 222.)
--on if he has different perspective knowing this will be his final game at USC
"No, I play every game like it’s my last. I don’t think you can turn on any game to see that my effort is any different or see that I’m not giving it my all. This is going to be the same thing. I’m going to prepare for it like it’s my last and it just happens to be my last (at USC)."
--is this what you planned all along
"I would think it’s every kid’s dream to go to the NFL and with the opportunity I have at hand, that was too good to pass up. With hat said, it was a very hard decision. I’m talking to Helton and seeing Coach Sirmon come back an seeing the schedule, like I said, I’m a competitor, (They) get to play Alabama at Cowboys Stadium next year, it’s pretty good for the true freshmen coming in next year. It was really hard. I love USC."
--on Helton encouraging him to leave
"I came to talk to Helton probably a week before. I was talking to him about it and asking for advice on what he thought I should do. He said, what are you talking about? You’re leaving and I'm not going to let you stay. I’ll pack your bags for you. And I heard that from about four other coaches on the team. It was a lot of support and I appreciate it."
--on whether he was let down by USC going through so many coaching changes
"No, I didn’t come to USC for a specific coach. I just came to be great. And I think that the four different coaches we had, that helped the process. Along with the 100 positions I played, I think it just helped me out in the long run. I don’t look t it as a negative. In the long run it really helped me."
--on whether he would have announced it on Twitter had he been returning
"Yeah. I don’t like making things dramatic. I feel like you hurt people’s feelings when you make things dramatic, especially when it’s not the decision that they want. At the end of the day it’s your decision, you’re going to do what makes you happy. But I’m not a drama queen. Just go ahead and get it done and move on."
--on announcing before the Holiday Bowl
"I just didn’t want the focus of the coaches and all the other players and recruiting for next year. If Su’a comes back, am I going to go there because I play the same position as him? Is Su’a coming back during the Bowl game? There’s just a whole lot of drama that I wanted t avoid. The decision is final so let’s go focus on the game."
Adoree’ Jackson
--on why he won’t practice with the offense much moving forward
"It’s one of those where I feel like I don’t need to be practicing with the offense every practice, just to run a go route or a bubble or an arrow. Those are the routes. It’s simple. I understand guys like JuJu and Darreus Rogers and Jalen Greene who have to come out of their breaks and curls, break it off as slants, posts, out routes, whatever it may be. They have to work on it because that’s their full-time job."
--on being named team MVP
"To be honest, I was shocked. I didn’t feel like I should have won. I thought they were going to give it to Cody or JuJu or whoever else. That’s just me. Personally, I didn’t feel like I should have won."
--on his conversation with Helton regarding spring practice
"We talked about it and he told me it’s up to me. He remembered the promises he made me when he was in recruiting me, that I can go out there and run track. He said it’s totally up to me if I want to go out there and do it, and if I’m out there, to compete and give it my all. …
"I’m talking to my dad, seeing what he wants. For me, I would rather go out there and really try to win a national title in the long jump and compete for the Olympics. I’m just going to see what he thinks is best and weight it out. (He’s telling me) to just go after my heart, whatever my heart’s feeling."
--on whether having a new DC will be a factor
"To be honest, not at all. They’re not switching the offense, so I pretty much know those plays. And defensively, I feel like I picked it up quick. I can just go in there and study and meet with them and just get mental reps. I don’t think that will be difficult to learn a new defensive scheme."
--on whether he made the progress he wanted to make at CB this year
"I feel like I made some progress. I was just inconsistent, that’s what it was. Progress, but not consistent. It’s just having repetitions. Some plays I do it, some plays it’s off. Me being an athlete, some people wouldn’t notice it but others, a technician to the sport, would understand. …
"That’s why I’m here after practice every day, I’m getting that extra work in, just getting that repetition. You know, we don’t press all the time, so getting that press repetition. I do special teams, corner and receiver, so (I’m) just doing it after practice to help me out."
