USC Spring Camp Notes & Observations: Day No. 14 Report

That’s it spring camp practices are done. There is one more day of spring camp left when the Trojan Family visits the Coliseum to see what the team learned over the last month. Once the spring game is over, fall camp will be here before we know it.

**It was a perfect way to end the last day of spring camp practices. The thermometer read 73 degrees and the team enjoyed a day in shorts and shells before things heat up on Saturday when the pads are put on.

**With at least one-half of a football game left to played on Saturday inside the Coliseum, it looks like the team is getting a walk-thru day to keep their bodies fresh.

**Trojans defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn is still a young guy but as I passed him by on his way to McKay, I noticed how gray his beard looked.

**There is a lot of pressure on USC’s defense this season after they finished ranked 116th in the country. Eric Gentry who was wearing Raesjon Davis’s No. 9 jersey said after practice, “We do something called 116 after every workout.—116 reps of everything. I guess that’s where we were ranked last year. I won’t ever forget that number just because we’re doing 116 after…But we’re holding everybody accountable.”

**With the transfer portal on everybody’s minds many of the players chose to swap out jerseys for the day. Anthony Beavers was wearing No. 34, and Akili Arnold slipped on the No. 21 white jersey. The offense was wearing its customary cardinal.

**Just because the transfer portal is front and center for the next couple of weeks, it doesn’t mean that the staff isn’t hosting recruits and summer enrollees.

**Class of 2025 5-star offensive lineman Andrew Babalola was watching practice and hanging with Coach Henson. Babalola is the highest-rated Olineman according to ON3. There were quite a few recruits in attendance.

**I have my doubts that Class of 2024 offensive line recruit Hayden Treter will be able to contribute this season, but he has to be on the same workout routine as his Trojan teammates.–The Dude is HUGE!!!!!!!! He was heading into watch practice with Kilian O’Connor and Josh Henson.

**The real power couple of the program, Lincoln Riley and Annie Hanson are on their way to Howard Jones Field. You already know that the spring game is on Saturday but there will be a lot of recruits on hand too.

**Someone else spotted Bear Alexander not in uniform again. I just think it’s part of his new renegotiated NIL deal, but he better be ready when fall camp opens because people are noticing his limited participation.

**The refs were on hand to help the team improve. Following the practice session, Scott Schrader asked one of them if it was a penalty-free practice. “Almost,” was the response.

**It looks like Calen Bullock added some upper-body weight. I had no idea Calen wore reading glasses, but he looks like a professional.

**Cooper Lovelace has some shiny new Cardinal knee braces. Jonah Monheim’s braces looked like they’d been used a few times.–And by a few times I mean they’re not Cardinal in color anymore and look old. Gino Quinones only has one brace on his right knee.

**Some of the action the media watches during practice includes running backs coach Anthony Jones trying to distract the returner specialists by hucking tennis balls at the receivers while they’re locating the ball in the air. My dexterity skills are on display and point when I’m forced to help Coach Jones.–While holding the camera in one hand I stopped an out-of-control tennis ball with my foot without looking down so Coach doesn’t have to run another 20 yards to retrieve it. “Everybody is putting in dexterity work today!” said Coach.

**Mea culpa so hopefully I don’t get in trouble. When the media was excused from practice I went back to my car to grab a bottle of water. However, I noticed that I have a partial and very limited view of the practice field. But I can see quarterbacks Miller Moss, Jayden Maiava, Jake Jensen, and Gage Roy going through one QB drill where they’re dropping back and rolling out.

**Special Walk-On Note! Did you know that backup QB Roy had 10 division 1 scholarship offers coming out of high school? But none of those offers meant as much as the chance to be a Preferred walk-On at his Dream School, USC.

**During the drill, instead of Coach Luke Huard throwing tennis balls at the QBs trying to distract the guys, I see large red blocking pads and oversized dodgeballs flying through the air at the QBs.

**I have no idea if the defensive backs do their repetitions 116 times, but they’re working on backpedaling, and then when the whistle is blown they turn and burn before receiving a pass to complete the drill.

**Another defensive secondary drill has the cornerbacks and safeties working in concert when one defender hands the route off to the other, while the other attacks ball carrier out of the backfield. Prophet Brown talks about how Lynn’s scheme likes to disguise coverages, and this is one of those types of drills to the untrained eyes.

**One final note from the last spring practice.– I’m curious to see the player helmets on Saturday because as far I can tell, no one was gold-plated during spring camp.

The post USC Spring Camp Notes & Observations: Day No. 14 Report appeared first on On3.