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USC Football: Three keys to success for the 2019 season

By Jamaal Artis

LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 24: Head coach Clay Helton of the USC Trojans walks his team down the tunnel at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum to play against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on November 24, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 24: Head coach Clay Helton of the USC Trojans walks his team down the tunnel at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum to play against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on November 24, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images) /
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The 2019 College Football season is fast approaching and the USC Football Trojans and their coach Clay Helton are at a crossroads.

In 2018 the USC Football Trojans finished 5-7 just a year after winning 11 games and two years after winning the Rose Bowl. The downturn in fortunes automatically put Helton on the hot seat and have USC alumni asking for changes in the program.

If Helton and his Trojans want a different outcome this season there are three keys that Trojans will decide whether this season is a success or another failure.

Quarterback position

On Tuesday, Helton named incumbent quarterback J.T. Daniels as his starting quarterback to begin the season.

Daniels started as a freshman in 2018 with expectations that he would play like Sam Darnold, who left for the NFL. The problem was he was given Darnold’s expectations without being given Darnold’s talent pool.

Daniels threw for 2,672 yards with 14 touchdowns in 11 games but he also threw 10 interceptions and looked erratic at times with a 59.5 completion percentage. Daniels will have to play better more and be more consistent when running the office because freshman Kedon Slovis has surprised in the off-season moving behind.

Graham Harrell was brought in from Texas Tech to run the offense and maximize Daniels’s talent. If he falters then Slovis might snatch the job from him.

Defense

During the spring, Helton let it slip defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergrast that he had simplified the Trojans defense with a goal to stop the run. In 2018 the Trojans gave up an average of 164 yards on the ground good for ninth in the PAC-12, it’s no wonder Helton has made it the main focus to turn things around this year.

The Trojans will need big years from freshman defensive end Drake Jackson who has gotten comparisons to Leonard Williams the former Trojan and current New York Jet, and redshirt sophomore Jay Tufele, a pre-season PAC-12 first-team all-conference, to stop the run.

Shut out the noise

A high-profile program like the Trojans is always going to be surrounded by a cacophony of outside noise that can serve as a major distraction. For Helton, the high expectations after winning the Rose Bowl post-2017 season has been like a weight on his shoulders.

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For the Trojans to succeed in 2019 Helton will have to keep the noise out of his locker room and coach just as he did when he won 26 of his first 36 games with the team.

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