Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
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BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2016 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ✦ 129 BY BRYAN DRISKELL Notre Dame is not the only storied program that will go through a quarterback battle dur- ing fall camp. Archrival USC has its own competition at signal-caller, and the eventual starter might not be who most expected when spring practice began. Junior quarterback Max Browne was the anticipated starter, but head coach Clay Helton said nobody had separated himself enough to become the lead man at the conclu- sion of the spring. "From what I watched, I think Max Browne is ahead," said Chris Swanson, publisher of TrojanSports.com. "It seems obvious that he would be the choice, but that hasn't happened yet." From the moment he signed, Browne was expected to be the next great USC quarter- back. Rivals ranked him as the top passer and No. 7 overall player in the 2013 recruiting class. After serving as Cody Kessler's backup for the past two seasons, Browne was ex- pected to slide into the starting role in 2016. "Everyone expected Max Browne to win the job because he's the older guy, he's been there," Swanson noted. "Going through spring, it seemed he got more first-team reps. He was the guy that seemed to be in charge of the offense most of the time. It seemed he was the guy." Standing in his way is redshirt freshman Sam Darnold, who was a highly ranked re- cruit in his own right. Darnold was not a five- star like Browne, but Rivals did list him as a four-star talent and the No. 179 overall pros- pect in the class of 2015. Whereas Browne is a traditional drop-back thrower, Darnold is an athletic playmaker that can do as much damage with his legs as he can with his arm. A factor in Helton's reluctance to name Browne the starter could be the direction he wants to go with his offense. USC offensive coordinator Tee Martin and pass game coor- dinator Tyson Helton — the younger brother of USC's head coach — have backgrounds in the spread offense, and the Trojans could be pondering a move in that direction, away from the pro-style system that has been so effective for so long. "There are a lot of different things at play here," Swanson explained. "I don't know if USC is trying to switch their offense and head in a different direction and that's weighing into it. "They describe their offense as a hybrid that can kind of do everything. It's a spread pro-style." ✦ 2016 SCHEDULE Date Opponent 2015 Result Sept. 3 vs. Alabama* — Sept. 10 Utah State — Sept. 17 at Stanford L, 41-31 Sept. 23 at Utah W, 42-24 Oct. 1 Arizona State W, 42-14 Oct. 8 Colorado W, 27-24 Oct. 15 at Arizona W, 38-30 Oct. 27 California W, 27-24 Nov. 5 Oregon L, 48-28 Nov. 12 at Washington L, 17-12 Nov. 19 at UCLA W, 40-21 Nov. 26 Notre Dame L, 41-31 * at Arlington, Texas QUICK FACTS All-Time Series: Notre Dame leads 46-36-5 Last Meeting: Notre Dame 41, USC 31 (Oct. 17, 2015; South Bend) Head Coach: Clay Helton, 6-4 (1st year) 2015 Results: 8-6 overall, 6-3 Pac-12 (T-1st South); lost to Stanford 41-22 in the Pac-12 championship; lost to Wiscon- sin 23-21 in the National Funding Holiday Bowl Returning Starters: 14 (9 offense, 5 defense) 2016 Preseason Rankings: No. 8 by ESPN's Football Performance Index, No. 15 by Sporting News, No. 17 by Lindy's, No. 19 by CollegeFootballNews.com, No. 23 by Athlon and No. 25 by Phil Steele's Did You Know?: USC defeated Notre Dame 49-14 in the last matchup at the Coliseum … Freshman Jack Jones was ranked as the No. 2 corner and No. 12 overall player in the country by Rivals … Defensive coordinator Clancy Pend- ergast has returned to USC for his third stint on the staff; he served as a defensive assistant in 1992 and defensive coordinator in 2013. Prediction: USC 31, Notre Dame 30 STRENGTH: Offensive Line USC is loaded at a number of positions on offense. Running backs Ronald Jones and Justin Davis combined for 1,889 yards and 15 touchdowns a season ago, and junior wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster (2,178 career receiving yards) leads a deep group of pass catchers. Even at tight end — where USC has been thin in recent seasons — the presence of senior Taylor McNamara and sophomore Tyler Petite gives the Trojans a com - petent duo. However, no position is as experienced as the Tro- jan offensive line, which returns all five starters from a season ago. Right tackle Zach Banner is the ring- leader, entering the season with 27 career starts. The 6-9, 360-pound senior was a consensus first-team All-Pac-12 performer last fall and is a trendy pick for All-America honors this season. He will be flanked by fellow senior Chad Wheeler, who has 33 career starts despite missing much of the 2014 season with a knee injury. USC has a trio of veterans in the interior — led by junior Toa Lobendahn, who has finally found a home at center after starting at both guard spots and even left tackle during his career. Lobendahn has just two career starts at center, but he should transition well. USC's guards average a hefty 337.5 pounds and should consistently help open run lanes for the proven backs. WEAKNESS: Defensive Line This was a major question mark even before former five-star recruit Kenny Bigelow was lost for the season after suffering a torn ACL i during spring practice. An already thin and inexperienced unit is going to have a difficult time overcoming that loss. With Bigelow out, a trio of true sophomores — Noah Jefferson, Rasheem Green and Jacob Daniel — will fill out the rotation along with redshirt sophomore Malik Dorton. Another sophomore, end Porter Gustin, originally a linebacker, had 5.5 sacks last year. It is a highly talented group, with Jefferson, Green, Daniel and Gustin all being ranked in the Rivals100, but it lacks the depth and experience needed to survive the grueling schedule the Trojans face in 2016. USC also returns very little production from the line. Jefferson and Green were essential parts of the defen - sive line rotation last season, combining for 42 tackles, but there was just one tackle for loss. Daniel had only three tackles and Dorton had just two stops last fall. The Trojans face defending national champion Ala- bama in the season opener, and then have to travel to Stanford and Utah before the month of September comes to a close. Between the Utah matchup and its season-ending game against Notre Dame, the Trojans have to face six opponents who played in a bowl last season, which is not an ideal schedule for a defense that lacks depth and experience up front. SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA TROJANS NOV. 26 • L.A. MEMORIAL COLISEUM • LOS ANGELES RETURNING LEADERS Rushing: RB Ronald Jones (987 yards, 8 TD) Passing: QB Max Browne (113 yards, 0 TD) Receiving: WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (1,454 yards, 10 TD) Tackles: LB Cameron Smith (78) Sacks: DE Porter Gustin (5.5) Interceptions: CB Iman Marshall (3) and LB Cameron Smith (3) X-FACTOR: Sophomore Ronald Jones II is poised to emerge as one of the top running backs in the Pac- 12 after rushing for 987 yards (6.5 per carry) and eight touchdowns as a rookie last season. PHOTO BY JOHN TUELL