Trojans Begin Pursuit of BCS Title Saturday

With their first game is some five months away, the USC Trojans officially begin the pursuit of their third national title under Pete Carroll and their record eighth consecutive Pac-10 title tomorrow at 10:30 a.m.

Although the team has been going through conditioning workouts and drills for several weeks now on their own, tomorrow marks the first of 15 on-field practices under the supervision of the entire coaching staff. All the practices at Howard Jones Field are open to the public. The April 11 practice at the Coliseum is closed.

Spring practice will conclude with the annual Trojan Huddle at the Coliseum on Saturday, April 25.

The main attraction at this year’s spring practice for the media and fans is the quarterback competition. Senior Garrett Green, Junior Mitch Mustain, Sophomore Aaron Corp and freshman Matt Barkley are causing quite a stir on campus as everyone tries to guess who will come out the winner.

For me, however, there are other competitions that are just as important if not more so.

With Patrick Turner moving on to the NFL Draft, that leave the #1 receiver spot open. Most expect Damian Williams to take that spot followed closely at #2 by Ronald (Rojo) Johnson. But the thrid spot is up for grabs.

The Trojans have more than enough talent in the mix with Travon Patterson, David Ausberry, Brandon Carswell, Brice Butler and Jordan Cameron, who rejoins the football team after playing on USC’s Pac-10 championship basketball squad.

How all of these receivers perform has a lot to do with who will be selected as the starting quarterback. The communication between the quarterback and his receivers is critical. It is not just a matter of who has the strongest arm or who is the most accurate.

Running crisp routes, getting separation on the defensive backs, coming back for the ball when the quarterback is being rushed, and picking up an audible, these are all facets of a wide receiver’s game that can make or break a quarterback.

It is spot-on communication that counts as much and even more than the long ball or a fast release. A fast release to a receiver who has just cut the wrong way can lead to an interception and even a touchdown.

The tight end is another area of competition that will have much to do with who is selected to lead the offense. Blake Ayles, Rhett Ellison and Anthony McCoy will be joined by defensive end Michael Reardon, who has just switched to offense. Reardon most likely will be used as a blocker in short yardage situations.

Of course, how a quarterback communicates and adjusts to his center is critical as well. Unfortunately, the Trojans’ starting center, Kris O’Dowd, will not practice with the team this spring. He is recuperating from shoulder surgery.

All-American candidate at left guard, Jeff Byers, will replace O’Dowd at center for spring practice. Khaled Holmes will battle with Zack Heberer for Byers’ spot. Heberer will also be competing with right guard, Alex Parsons and possibly Thomas Herring and Martin Coleman, both recovering from injuries.

Butch Lewis, Nick Howell, and Matt Kalil will all go head-to-head for that right tackle spot. On the other side, Charles Brown and Tyron Smith will compete to see who will start at left tackle.

How well these front five protect a quarterback during spring drills and scrimages should have much to do with Pete Carroll’s selection of an offensive leader. If there seems as though the offensive line is having two many breakdowns, then Carroll may select a scrambler like Corp or Green.

On the other hand, if the offensive line looks strong, Carroll may go with a pro-style quarterback like Mustain or Barkley.

Ultimately, the coaches need to feel comfortable with their selection. They need to feel that they can communicate best with player more than the other three. That could be the real key in the final selection process.

There is a new quarterback coach and play caller, Jeremy Bates, who has been in the news lately for coaching Jay Cutler with the Denver Broncos. It seems Cutler is rather disappointed now that Bates is gone among other things.

It is Bates who needs to feel most comfortable with the quarterback selection. In addition, Bates and the starting QB need to feel they can work right along with John Morton, the wide receivers coach and first-year offensive coordinator, replacing Steve Sarkisian, now the head coach of the Washington Huskies.

And, as has been the case the past couple of years, the corps of running backs is always good for some heated competition. Joining Stafon Johnson and C.J. Gable will be underclassmen, Marc Tyler and Curtis McNeal. All four will try to impress running backs coach Todd McNair while Joe McKnight and Allen Bradford watch from the sidelines nursing injuries.

Both McKnight (turf toe) and Bradford (hip) should be ready for fall camp.

Not only the offense has a new coordinator but so does the defense. Rocky Seto, defensive backfield coach, will be trying to fill quite a few holes as most members of last year’s defense are showcasing their talents for the NFL Draft.

There will be a wide open competition right across the entire defense from the front four to the three linebackers to the defensive cornerbacks. Right now the only spot that looks secure is strong safety with All-American Taylor Mays moving over from free safety. Josh Pinkard will compete with Will Harris for playing time at that spot.

Kevin Thomas most likely will start at one corner with Shareece Wright likely to take the other side. No doubt T.J. Bryant and Marshall Jones will also be in the mix.

The stiffest competition on defense will be among the front four. Christian Tupou and Jurrell Casey will fight over the nose tackle spot. Averell Spicer and Derek Simmons will compete for the three-technique spot.

At strongside defensive end is Armand Armstead going up against Wes Horton. On the other side it will be Everson Griffen taking on Malik Jackson. Hopefully, both of them will cut down on those unsportsman-like conduct penalties they ran up last year.

If Chris Galippo stays healthy, he could lock down the middle linebacker’s slot. But Uona Kavienga might have something to say about that. Look for Malcolm Smith and Jordan Campbell to go at it on the weak side while Michael Morgan tries to hold down the strong side with pressure from Nick Garratt and Luther Brown, who can play all three linebacking spots.

Although most of these players were not starters last year, they still saw a good deal of action. Their experience coupled with the need to compete should guarantee another strong defensive performance this season.

Pro-Day for all USC Players in the NFL Draft will be held this Sunday.