USC Practice Report: Notes & Observations (9/5)

During the season the media gets to attend practices each Tuesday & Wednesday. On Tuesdays, the Notes & Observations report focuses on the defense. We are also able the interview the defensive coaches and players. On Wednesdays, the script flips with the offense.

USC completed its easiest part of the schedule with a 2-0 record. Now the Trojans will step up the competition when Stanford arrives at the Coliseum this Saturday. On Tuesday the team was back on Howard Jones Field in full pads, and WeAreSC has the Notes and observations you need to know

**The Cardinal is USC’s oldest rival, dating back to 1905, but this will be the last time they face off as Pac-12 members. Calen Bullock said after practice with the understanding of the rivalry and the importance of winning for the last time, “We got to make it a good one!”

**When you arrive early for practice, you get to see some things that make you wonder what’s going on. What would you think if you saw a giant microwave oven on a cart being wheeled in the direction of the practice field? I’ll stop with the suspense; It was broken and one of the equipment managers was tasked with throwing it away.

**A little gray and a little bit of sun bouncing are bouncing off each other. The temperature is down, but the humidity is up so it’s a perfect day for the team to practice in full pads.

**The first player out for practice is “1 of 7,” freshman kicker Tyler Robles. The camera is all his and he’s got his bearded jaw squared up and smiling enjoying his 15 seconds.

**I mentioned Bullock previously, but I forgot to mention his All-American status. He was asked about it after practice and he talked about how surreal it is to his name up there with the other greats who came before him.

**In the past, I would talk about players tapping the AA plaques on the way to practice. “1 of 7” Will Rose tapped one of the accolades and right behind him S&C Coach Bennie Wylie said, “No. 36, let’s go to work!” I loved Rose’s answer, “Yessir!”

**Long snapper Jac Casasante is admiring his gold-plated helmet. It’s not new, but he’s appreciating the work he’s put in to earn those Trojans.

**Duce Robinson is “On The Loose” and he is so impressive to look at and he’s still only a freshman. I still remember how dominant Big Mike Williams was as a WR for the Trojans.

**Coach Donte Williams and Domani Jackson are walking and talking on their way to practice. Based on my observations from practice, every player is trying to get in some extra work after practice and Jackson is one of them.

**I don’t know if Braylan Shelby and David Peevy are future bookends for USC’s defensive line, but they’re walking side by side. Peevy is the thicker of the two, however, Shelby’s length and quickness are why he’s ahead of schedule.

**Shelby met the media for the first time after practice, and he said it only took him a couple of days to get used to the speed of the college game. Shelby wasn’t with the team during the spring. Coincidentally, I said, Shelby was a quick learner on the most recent episode of Locked On USC.

**Which nickname should we use, “Touchdown Stanley OR Touchdown Ta’ufo’ou?” Stanley Ta’ufo’ou is still a big man on campus as he gets high-fives from the security team of crossing guards.

**It’s Lincoln Riley’s birthday and he turned 40 which means he’s a man! I did not see anyone coming after him, although he did take a different route to practice than normal. Should Coach Riley try and grow a mullet?

**Korey Foreman is trying to decide whether to go into practice or go back and get something from the locker room. He does a quick inventory and then goes back to the locker room before reappearing.

**I know one of the biggest questions is the status of Raleek Brown since it’s been mentioned that he plans to redshirt in 2023. Brown was fully suited up and participating with the team.

**One of the Tennessee Titans team scouts is tucking it up with Gavin Morris before they separate.

**The Jugs Machine is handling the kickoff duties while Coach Kiel McDonald is showing MarShawn Lloyd, Dorian Singer, Quinten Joyner, Tahj Washington, and Zachariah Branch how to read the kick when the ball is intentionally kicked away from the return man.

**Once the team’s conditioning session ends and they break the team huddle, Coach Roy Manning yells, “Tempo All Day!” It’s to remind everyone that Stanford is not your father’s Stanford anymore because new Cardinal head coach Troy Taylor likes to spread teams out and use an uptempo offense.

**There is very little we’re allowed to talk about from the 11-on-11 stuff. But one thing I observed is that A’Marion Peterson is a load and hard to tackle. I also don’t think there will be any significant adjustments to the depth chart when it’s released later this week.

**After the number of repetitions(60) Raesjon Davis got against Nevada, I would anticipate that number to drop a little, assuming that Mason Cobb and Eric Gentry are available. Following practice I asked Shane Lee if he had any words of encouragement for Tackett Curtis following his ejection for targeting. Lee said, “I gave him a pat on the head and told him, good job for hustling!–You always want to see that type of aggression, just directed a little different, not on the head, just a little lower. I wouldn’t tell him to do anything different besides lower his target.”

**During this week’s Trojan Live radio show, Lee talked about the offensive linemen wearing wife-beater T-shirts while working out lifting weights. I told him after the interview that was one of the best descriptions ever!

**There are so many players putting in work after the practice is over. Guys working on snapping the ball both under center and from the shotgun. The DBs are working on footwork and backpedaling or simulating how to wrap up.

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