Sunday, April 15, 2012
Barkley Mania
LOS ANGELES -- Following Saturday afternoon's USC spring game at the Coliseum, the long line to get Trojans senior quarterback Matt Barkley's autograph looked like something out of a Hollywood premier to see the latest Harry Potter adventure or newest Twilight flick.
If Saturday is any indication of the popularity for this heartthrob from Newport Beach, Calif., it might be mindboggling what will happen when the fall rolls around and all those national magazine cover shots grace newsstands everywhere.
Call it the prelude to Barkley-mania in a city that once experienced Beatlemania.
If Saturday is any indication of the popularity for this heartthrob from Newport Beach, Calif., it might be mindboggling what will happen when the fall rolls around and all those national magazine cover shots grace newsstands everywhere.
Call it the prelude to Barkley-mania in a city that once experienced Beatlemania.
USC Spring Game
The USC spirit is alive and well and ready for a big 2012 season, at least it was for one day at the Coliseum for the spring game.
There was a genuine sense of excitement Saturday, as a large crowd of more than 15,000 gathered in the Grey Lady to get a glimpse of the Cardinal and Gold in action. It was the first public look at the team this spring -- as all USC practices are closed these days -- and the fans soaked up every second of the game-day atmosphere.
There were early morning tailgates, the Trojan Marching Band, the Song Girls and a sideline full of USC legends from Ronnie Lott to Marcus Allen and Anthony Munoz. Most of all, however, the fans were there to see Matt Barkley, T.J. McDonald and the rest of their Trojans in action.
There was a genuine sense of excitement Saturday, as a large crowd of more than 15,000 gathered in the Grey Lady to get a glimpse of the Cardinal and Gold in action. It was the first public look at the team this spring -- as all USC practices are closed these days -- and the fans soaked up every second of the game-day atmosphere.
There were early morning tailgates, the Trojan Marching Band, the Song Girls and a sideline full of USC legends from Ronnie Lott to Marcus Allen and Anthony Munoz. Most of all, however, the fans were there to see Matt Barkley, T.J. McDonald and the rest of their Trojans in action.
Defensive End Kylie Fitts Picks USC
The USC Trojans added another piece to their 2013 recruiting class on Saturday afternoon, as they received a verbal commitment from defensive end Kylie Fitts (Redlands, Calif./Redlands East Valley).
"All glory to God, and with that said, I did commit to the University of Southern California today," Fitts said. "It's a dream come true. That has always been a dream school for me. Growing up I always wanted to go there. I'm really happy right now."
The 6-foot-4, 245-pound Fitts fills a need for the Trojans as they look to continue to build up the defensive line, and Fitts will fill one of the three available early enrollee slots, as well. His commitment ends an interesting recruiting saga that saw the Trojans begin well out in front as the hometown favorite but then fall behind when an offer wasn't extended during February's junior day. But when an offer was extended in the following weeks, Lane Kiffin and staff quickly established themselves as the frontrunner for Fitts' services.
"All glory to God, and with that said, I did commit to the University of Southern California today," Fitts said. "It's a dream come true. That has always been a dream school for me. Growing up I always wanted to go there. I'm really happy right now."
The 6-foot-4, 245-pound Fitts fills a need for the Trojans as they look to continue to build up the defensive line, and Fitts will fill one of the three available early enrollee slots, as well. His commitment ends an interesting recruiting saga that saw the Trojans begin well out in front as the hometown favorite but then fall behind when an offer wasn't extended during February's junior day. But when an offer was extended in the following weeks, Lane Kiffin and staff quickly established themselves as the frontrunner for Fitts' services.
Spring game statistical leaders
Rushing
D.J. Morgan: 6 rushes, 53 yards, 1 TD
Passing
Matt Barkley: 23 of 39, 212 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Cody Kessler: 3 of 6, 68 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Max Wittek: 3 of 7, 27 yards
Receiving
De'Von Flournoy: 7 rec., 69 yards
Marqise Lee: 7 rec., 57 yards, 1 TD
Xavier Grimble: 4 rec., 73 yards
Soma Vainuku: 4 rec., 66 yards, 1 TD
Defense
Hayes Pullard: 6 tackles
Anthony Brown: 6 tackles
Dion Bailey: 5 tackles
Isiah Wiley: 4 tackles, 5 pass breakups
Devon Kennard: 2 tackles for loss, 1 sack
Drew McAllister: 1 INT
Brian Baucham :1 INT
Scoring plays
Morgan: 47-yard run (Heidari kick)
Andre Heidari: 28-yard field goal
Heidari: 47-yard FG
Lee: 1-yard pass from Barkley (Heidari kick)
Vainuku: 44-pass from Kessler (Heidari kick)
Defense steals the show in the 2012 spring game
By MICHAEL KATZ · Daily Trojan
Though senior quarterback Matt Barkley got the majority of the applause from the 15,515 fans at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum at the annual spring game Saturday, it was the defense that made the biggest plays of the day.
The defense, wearing white jerseys, beat the cardinal clad offense 34-27 in the annual contest that marks the end of spring practice.
Playmaker · Senior cornerback Isiah Wiley made several big plays during Saturday’s scrimmage, including a pair of interceptions off the cardinal team’s quarterbacks. He is slated to start opposite junior cornerback Nickell Robey. - Luciano Nunez | Daily Trojan
Barkley started the contest and went 23-39 with one touchdown and one interception. Redshirt sophomore running back D.J. Morgan had a 47-yard touchdown in the first quarter, but the offense was stagnant after that.
Instead, it was senior cornerback Isiah Wiley and the defense who ended up being the stars, forcing several turnovers and making play after play while constantly blanketing the receivers.
“He came out today. He came out big time today,” junior cornerback Nickell Robey said of Wiley.
Robey said the reason the defense shined Saturday was because of veteran leadership and experience.
“We have a lot of older guys that take leadership [and] that have stepped up a lot,” Robey said. “The young guys … are following along, and that’s the biggest thing. That’s the key. As long as we keep that going, the sky’s the limit.”
Though this was the last official practice until August, Robey acknowledged he has a lot of work to do before summer practice opens in August.
“It’s going to be a big offseason for me,” Robey said. “I’m going to … just have everything down to a ‘T’ … game in, game out, even on my bad day, I want to have the greatest day.”
The defense scored 34 points Saturday, with each stop worth three points and each turnover worth five points.
Barkley, along with redshirt freshmen Max Wittek and Cody Kessler, took the majority of the snaps at quarterback during the game.
Though it was a game dominated by defense, a few stars shined on the offensive end.
Redshirt junior receiver De’Von Flournoy had seven catches for 69 yards and redshirt sophomore tight end Xavier Grimble led all receivers with 73 yards.
“When coach calls my number, just be ready to go pretty much,” Grimble said. “When the opportunity comes, you got to be ready to make them.”
Grimble said that one of the reasons the offense has been out of sync the past few weeks is because of injuries.
“We got a lot of guys hurt. We haven’t really got everybody together yet,” Grimble said. “But this spring was good. We got some good reps, and as long as we keep working hard, stay humble, stay focused and just look to the end of the tunnel, and just keep moving forward, things are going to be just fine.”
Grimble did not appear alarmed by the lack of firepower at the spring game and said the offense looks better than it did a year ago.
“We’re more ahead of where we were last spring,” Grimble said. “You got to focus on the small things, like little details on routes or blocking and stuff like that, and just master the small part, and the big part comes.“
The Trojans are expected to be ranked in the preseason top five when the college football polls are released in the summer, and expectations are very high for the group.
Grimble said that the pressure has not gotten to the team, and that they haven’t bought into the hype.
“Our coaches do a great job of keeping us grounded,” Grimble said. “That’s the good thing about this team, even within the team — we keep ourselves grounded … it’s not about the hype, it’s about the prep. Coach Kiffin preaches that every day. And as long as we follow that … we’ll be just fine.”
The Trojans will resume organized practice at the beginning of August.
By that time, the team will likely be able to take advantage of the new John McKay Center, which will house football offices, locker rooms and treatment facilities for the team
.
Friday, April 13, 2012
USC Quarterback U
Deciding which school leads all FBS programs in sending quarterbacks to the NFL left us with a dilemma: Do we reward quantity or quality?
In this case, we went with quantity.
USC's active pro quarterbacks haven't found stardom in the NFL. With one notable exception, they've enjoyed much more success in college than the pro ranks thus far.
QUARTERBACK U. 2012
Our choice: USC. Who they've sent: Matt Cassel (Kansas City Chiefs), Matt Leinart (free agent), Carson Palmer (Oakland Raiders), Mark Sanchez (New York Jets).
Who's next: Matt Barkley is the likely No. 1 overall pick in next year's draft.
Why we picked them: While none of the former USC quarterbacks on NFL rosters can be considered a current star, all of them started at least one game last year and all but Leinart is a likely starter in 2012. Cassel and Palmer are former Pro Bowl picks.
Other finalists: Boston College(Tennessee's Matt Hasselbeck and Atlanta's Matt Ryan), Michigan (New England's Tom Brady and Jacksonville's Chad Henne), Purdue (New Orleans' Drew Brees and Dallas' Kyle Orton).
Candidate you might not have considered: Fresno StateBut the fact remains that four former USC quarterbacks started at least one game in the 2012 NFL season.
Carson Palmer, the 2002 winner of the Heisman Trophy, has thrown for 25,447 yards and 167 touchdowns in a 10-year pro career that included back-to-back Pro Bowl invitations in 2005 and 2006. Palmer, now the starter for the Oakland Raiders, was named the AFC player of the year in 2005 when he was with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Mark Sanchez has been entrenched as the New York Jets' starter ever since he started his pro career in 2009. Although Sanchez is coming off a disappointing year in which the Jets missed the postseason, he helped his team reach the AFC championship game in each of his first two years.
Matt Cassel wasn't even a starter at USC - he spent his college career backing up Palmer and 2004 Heisman winner Matt Leinart - yet he has spent the last four seasons as the Kansas City Chiefs' first-string quarterback. Cassel made the Pro Bowl in 2010, though an injury to his throwing hand limited him to nine games last season.
Leinart admittedly hasn't come close to living up to the expectations that accompanied his arrival in the NFL as the No. 10 overall pick in the 2006 draft, but he did start one game in place of an injured Matt Schaub for the Houston Texans last season before a fractured collarbone knocked him out for the remainder of the season. Leinart, a former starting quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals, got released by the Texans last month and currently is a free agent.
The fact that four of its former quarterbacks started at least one NFL game last season made USC the pick over a few other schools that had more star power.
When we last did this Position U. series in 2006, Michigan was our pick at quarterback. At the time, former Michigan quarterbacks Todd Collins, Brian Griese, Drew Henson and John Navarre were still on NFL rosters.
All four of those quarterbacks have since ended their NFL careers, but the Wolverines were considered again this time. Tom Brady is a future Hall of Famer and remains of the league's top overall players - as he was in 2006 - while Chad Henne started four games for the Miami Dolphins last season before getting placed on injured reserve.
WHAT'S POSITION U.?
The Position U. series is our attempt to determine which schools provide the most NFL talent at each position. We will analyze a different position just about every day up until the April 26 start of the NFL Draft. For the purpose of this series, we only took into consideration players who were still active as of last season.
April 13: Quarterbacks
April 14: Running backs
April 16: Wide receivers and tight ends
April 17: Offensive tackles
April 18: Guards/Centers
April 19: Defensive tackles and DE/OLB
April 21: Linebackers
April 23: Cornerbacks
April 24: Safeties
April 25: Kickers and puntersUSC and Michigan weren't the only possibilities.
Boston College had a pair of quarterbacks who were full-time NFL starters last year in Tennessee's Matt Hasselbeck and Atlanta's Matt Ryan. Hasselbeck has been selected to three career Pro Bowls, and Ryan earned a Pro Bowl invitation in 2010.
Purdue also would have been a reasonable pick. Drew Brees set an NFL single-season record by accumulating 5,476 passing yards for the New Orleans Saints. Kyle Orton made a combined eight starts for the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs last season.
And the 2012 season opened with two former Auburnquarterbacks holding down starting jobs in the NFL. Carolina's Cam Newton made the Pro Bowl last year after having one of the most productive rookie seasons of any quarterback in NFL history. Jason Campbell began the year as Oakland's first-team quarterback before breaking his collarbone and eventually losing his starting job to Palmer. Campbell has since moved on to the Chicago Bears to serve as Jay Cutler's backup.
Brady and Brees undoubtedly are much better NFL players than any of the USC guys we've mentioned. You could make a pretty strong argument that Hasselbeck and Ryan have both done more than Palmer, the most accomplished of the former USC quarterbacks. Newton certainly has a brighter future than the former USC quarterbacks.
If Michigan, Boston College, Purdue or even Auburn had a third NFL quarterback earning significant playing time last season, perhaps we would have gone with one of those schools instead. But it's tough to ignore the fact that USC had three starting quarterbacks in the NFL last season as well as a former starter performing backup duty.
USC's quarterback presence in the NFL should grow even stronger in future seasons.
Matt Barkley would have been drafted early in the first round this year, but he chose instead to return to school for one more season. He heads into his senior year as a Heisman Trophy front-runner and the likely No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 draft.
The Trojans also just received a verbal commitment from Sammamish (Wash.) Skyline junior Max Browne, the No. 1 quarterback and No. 8 overall prospect in the 2013 recruiting class. Browne had a lunch conversation with Barkley before making his college choice.
"That's one of the things Matt said - one of the reasons he picked SC was the pro-style offense, it gives you a great opportunity to go to the next level," Browne told USCfootball.com. "That's always [been] a dream of mine.''
USC was a tough pick as Quarterback U. this time around. If we're doing this project again five or six years from now, the Trojans could be a much easier choice.
Steve Megargee is the national college columnist for Rivals.com. He can be reached atsmegargee@rivals.com, and you can click here to follow him on Twitter.
No Spring Attached
One of the most notable absences of the USC spring ball session has been wide receiver Robert Woods, who has not practiced as he continues to rehab from offseason surgery on his right ankle.
It hasn’t been a pleasant experience for Woods, who is spotted every day in his No. 2 jersey pacing the sidelines and following every move of the receiver group.
Stephen Dunn/Getty ImagesRobert Woods likes what he has seen out of his fellow receivers this spring in his absence.“I’m very restless,” Woods said. “I just want to hop out there at practice and take a rep sometimes, especially during the one-on-ones. I miss practicing with the guys. Practice is fun, especially when the offense is doing well, making big plays and talking trash to T.J. (McDonald) and Nickell (Robey). I miss that the most.”
The news that Woods is a trash talker might come as a surprise to those who have dealt with the mild-mannered Woods off the field. To his teammates, however, the other side of Woods comes out on the field.
“Rob doesn’t talk much around other people but he does when he’s around his teammates,” wide receiver Marqise Lee said. “He definitely does some trash talking on the field, oh yeah (laughing). He’s a beast when it comes to intensity.”
Unfortunately for Woods, that trash talk is limited to spectator status these days as the coaches and trainers made the decision to sit him out of spring ball in the hope of having his ankle ready for the start of the season.
Woods -- who celebrated his 20th birthday earlier this week -- originally hurt the ankle in April 2011 while taking part in a pickup basketball game. The injury lingered throughout the 2011 season, although he persevered enough to set a USC school record in receptions and be named an ESPN All-American.
“The ankle is doing pretty well right now,” Woods said. “It’s getting better. I think I could practice, I’m trying to beg the trainers to let me out there, but they just tell me to take it safe and just be ready for Sept. 1.”
Instead of practicing, Woods must be content with supporting his fellow receivers, a group that has been depleted at times but still has shown some pleasant production.
“I’m excited for all of them and I’m actually learning through them this spring,” Woods said. “I’m proud to see what Marqise Lee is doing out here. As a freshman Marqise was running the routes but now he’s reading the defenses, too. He understands things a lot better and that allows him to play faster.
“Victor (Blackwell) is doing well. And De’Von Flournoy is making some big-time plays. De’Von is an explosive player and I knew he could do this if he got an opportunity. I just want to get back out there with them as soon as I can.”
Woods has also had a chance to form an impression of the USC defense and he likes what he sees.
“We’ve got a lot of speed on defense,” Woods said. “These guys really fly around to the ball. Of course, Nickell stands out. Isiah (Wiley), he’s always going to play well. Anthony Brown has been consistent. And Josh Shaw looked good when he was out in throwing sessions. I’m kind of looking forward to seeing Josh out here competing.”
As of right now the plan is for Woods to return to action in July to get some work in summer throwing sessions before fall camp begins in August. He knows what is possible for the USC team this year and he thinks the Trojans will be ready.
“I’m definitely excited to get back,” Woods said. “If fall camp starts and the ankle isn’t ready I’m still going to practice anyways, I have to. I know what this team has and our potential.
“We don’t need any outside motivation this year. This team is going to get better because of this team. The defense is going to motivate the offense and the offense is going to motivate the defense. That’s what I like about this program.”
Full Speed Ahead
LOS ANGELES -- If you're in attendance at Saturday afternoon's USC spring game at the Coliseum, you might want to pay close attention to redshirt freshman Soma Vainuku, the 6-foot-1, 250-pound beast of a running fullback.
It has been quite a journey for Vainuku to get to being the Trojans' apparent starting fullback for 2012. Originally signing with the Trojans in 2010 and planning to enroll at USC after graduating a semester early from Eureka (Calif.) High School, Vainuku returned to Eureka after being denied admission.
He eventually gained admission to Troy in the spring of 2011 and resumed his Trojans football career by redshirting last season. It has been a learning process for Vainuku, but there was never any doubt he could run the football. As a senior at Eureka, he rushed for 2,202 yards, averaging 8.7 yards per carry, with 38 touchdowns as his high school team won the 2009 CIF-North Coast Division ll title.
It has been quite a journey for Vainuku to get to being the Trojans' apparent starting fullback for 2012. Originally signing with the Trojans in 2010 and planning to enroll at USC after graduating a semester early from Eureka (Calif.) High School, Vainuku returned to Eureka after being denied admission.
He eventually gained admission to Troy in the spring of 2011 and resumed his Trojans football career by redshirting last season. It has been a learning process for Vainuku, but there was never any doubt he could run the football. As a senior at Eureka, he rushed for 2,202 yards, averaging 8.7 yards per carry, with 38 touchdowns as his high school team won the 2009 CIF-North Coast Division ll title.
Locking It Down
LOS ANGELES -- The USC Trojans finished last season ranked No. 102 in the nation in pass defense. At the conclusion of the 2010 season, they sat at No. 109. Safe to say, it has been a few years since anybody has thrown the term “great” around when discussing the USC secondary. But that didn’t stop senior safety T.J. McDonald from hinting at the possibility as the Trojans prepare for Saturday’s spring game.
“Defensively, we’re playing fast,” McDonald said. “Coaches can throw adjustments at us and we can pick it up and play it right away. That’s something that all great defenses can do and I think we’re taking a step in that direction. We have a lot of work to do, but we’re moving in the right direction.”
The defense has benefitted from not having to go against wide receiver Robert Woods at all this spring. Wide receiver George Farmer has been limited by a hamstring injury, and outside of the first week, the Trojans have been working with one or less tight ends. But the experience in the secondary, led by three-year starters in McDonald, safety Jawanza Starling and cornerback Nickell Robey, makes this group formidable, and head coach Lane Kiffin has taken notice.
“Defensively, we’re playing fast,” McDonald said. “Coaches can throw adjustments at us and we can pick it up and play it right away. That’s something that all great defenses can do and I think we’re taking a step in that direction. We have a lot of work to do, but we’re moving in the right direction.”
The defense has benefitted from not having to go against wide receiver Robert Woods at all this spring. Wide receiver George Farmer has been limited by a hamstring injury, and outside of the first week, the Trojans have been working with one or less tight ends. But the experience in the secondary, led by three-year starters in McDonald, safety Jawanza Starling and cornerback Nickell Robey, makes this group formidable, and head coach Lane Kiffin has taken notice.
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