NFL draft: Amon-ra St. Brown among four Trojans, one Bruin selected on last day
Steve Galluzo (LA Times) — The first two days of the NFL draft were unusually uneventful for USC. The Trojans had only one player taken in the first three rounds, but Saturday headlined with a Trojan.
Jacksonville kicked off the fourth round by selecting defensive tackle Jay Tufele first (106th overall), and he subsequently tweeted “Always love SC. Excited to represent the Jaguars.”
Tufele opted out of the 2020 campaign because of COVID-19 concerns and the uncertainty of the Pac-12 canceling its season but he earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors in 2019 and second-team honors in 2018. The 6-foot-3, 315-pounder from Salt Lake City was Jacksonville’s fourth defensive lineman added through free agency or the draft.
With the third pick of Round 4, Atlanta took San Diego State cornerback Darren Hall, who grew up in Pasadena and recorded 95 tackles in two seasons at Rancho Cucamonga High.
Four spots later, the second USC player of the day, wide receiver Amon-ra St. Brown (8), was taken 112th overall by Detroit. He had a team-best 41 catches for 478 yards and seven touchdowns in six games last year and ranks 11th on the Trojans’ career receptions list with 178. He was named to the 2020 All-Pac-12 first team.
Having grown up in Anaheim Hills, St. Brown was a standout at Mater Dei High in Santa Ana, where he made The Times’ All-Area team as a senior in 2017 when he caught 72 passes for 1.320 yards to lead the Monarchs to the CIF Southern Section title and state bowl Open Division crown.
California cornerback Camryn Bynum, another player with Southern California roots, was selected 20th in the fourth round (125th overall) by Minnesota. He had 136 tackles and six interceptions as a junior and senior at Corona Centennial, leading the Huskies to the Southern Section Pac-5 crown in 2015.
Taken 28th in the fifth round by San Francisco was Oregon cornerback Deommodore Lenoir, who started all seven games for the Ducks last year and finished his college career with 34 straight starts at cornerback. He was a two-way star at Salesian High in Los Angeles where he was named to The Times’ All-Area team as a senior and was the Angelus League player of the year in 2016.
USC safety Talanoa Hufanga was picked 36th in the fifth round (180th overall) by San Francisco. He had 51 tackles last year and has been training with former Trojan and Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu since January. Hufanga’s cousin, USC defensive tackle Marlon Tuipulotu, went fifth in the sixth round to Philadelphia. Their cousin Fili Moala preceded them as a defensive tackle at USC (2005-08) before going on to play in the NFL for Indianapolis from 2009 to 2014.
Just like its crosstown rival, UCLA had only one player drafted in the first three rounds (defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa was picked 75th overall by Dallas), but the Bruins got another name on the board late in the final day when wide receiver Demetric Felton was picked 27th in Round 6 by Cleveland.
Felton, who hails from Temecula and starred at Great Oak High, led the Pac-12 and ranked sixth in the nation in all-purpose yards (165.83 per game) as a senior last year.
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Most first-rounders since 2000:
Top Seven Schools
There’s no real news on the Pac-12’s search for a new Commissioner. However, you might like to know that USC now has a player in the decision-making mix. Which Pac-12 university presidents are most critically involved? OC Register (Jon Wilner) — “Which presidents are involved? The CEO Group’s executive committee has led the process from the start: Washington’s Ana Mari Cauce, Washington State’s Kirk Schulz and Oregon’s Michael Schill, who is halfway through his two-year term as chair. “According to sources, two other university leaders have been added, forming a five-person search committee: Colorado chancellor Phil DiStefano and USC president… Read more »
Oh, wonderful. Little Mao has our back. Excuse me while I jump joyously.
At least this search committee appointment should put Folt in the crosshairs, I was thinking.
She’d have to get up to speed on this giant football/sports/money matter lest she come off as a total dolt representing USC among her presidential brethren. Frankly, I have no idea how or why she was added to the committee in view of her tepid appreciation of USC athletics. Maybe it’s just an all-for-show thing, to get the southern part of the conference publicly included. Better USC than UCLA.
The slavery of Black-men is an American tradition. It goes back 400-years, and the White Man cannot get it out of his system, although to be charitable, this white prejudice has softened a bit the past 30-years or so. The centuries old USA slaves-markets is our reputation, and worse, our legacy. And unfortunately our sordid history is commonly known among all the world’s countries, and a reason why they don’t take the US. seriously when preaching morality and what is correct action. What has the White Man done to the top Black athletes. — They tell the impressionable Black teenagers… Read more »
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John- you have stated a lot of harmless nonsense hear before, but what you just posted could have come right from the 1619 project playbook. By your account, America is systemically racists, was the only country practicing slavery at the time, and still to this day, the white man is doing what he can to still hold the black man down. This is absolute progressive garbage. For all of its sins, America is the best country in the world to live in, no matter what your race. It is the least racist multi ethnic country in the world. It is… Read more »
John, I will keep this short. Your narrative is well worn and well known. It is also a gigantic distortion to the point of being misleading. Oppression and the desire for liberty are interwoven in human history. Were blacks oppressed because of their skin color? Of course. In fact, as of about 1920 the same academy that is pushing this false narrative was teaching blacks were genetically inferior to whites – that narrative was as false as the present one (and was uniformly believed). The horrific consequence that underlies “social justice” was exposed by Hayek (who won a Nobel prize… Read more »
john, do you believe that these men are either going to be in the NFL or failures? It seems that way. I believe that the vast majority who do not make it in the NFL will become a professional in a different field. They have not “thrown away their job potential”. Instead, they have instead chased a dream, good for them. I can assure you that if they put forth the same effort in their next profession that they did in pursuing football, that almost all will be successful.
OMG, LJ! Down for the “shtruggle,” are we now?
So those poor impressionable black teenagers get a free college education for playing a game. They know going in they may not make it and smart ones finish school, the dumb ones (whites included) stand there wondering why they didn’t go 1st round. LJ, you are quite simply full of blm bullshit.
Former USC receiver Munir McClain re-enters NCAA transfer portal Ryan Kartje (LA Times) — “Munir McClain, the USC receiver suspended last fall amid a federal inquiry into apparent unemployment fraud on campus, has re-entered the NCAA transfer portal, six months after opting to withdraw his name the first time. “His decision to leave USC marks the messy end of a relationship that swiftly soured last fall, when federal agents first arrived on USC’s campus asking questions about the sophomore receiver. “McClain was first suspended from USC’s football team last September as he emerged as one focus of a federal probe into unemployment fraud…”… Read more »
B/R — USC Lands TEXAS Transfer TE
Malcolm Epps (6-6, 244) will play for the Trojans after totaling 292 yds, 4 TDs as a WR and TE for UT in 3 seasons. He’s a redshirt JR with three seasons of eligibility for the Trojans.
The Trojans are simply loaded with TEs now. Seems like they plan to use the position much more heavily than in the last several years.
In the meantime, USC has truly become TEXAS West, via the portal. Those Longhorns seem to love switching to Cardinal & Gold!
Just what we need, another TE. If they were incorporated into the offense this might make sense but it seems that unless we go to a double TE formation we have a plethora of TE’s. It appears CH is watching the portal and the needs are not being met for the O line.
Ya, I have no idea why Helton thinks bringing in still more TEs is the key to USC’s return to greatness (as if USC ever threw to them in the first place). The mystery of Trojan football. Obviously, good OL talent is much more difficult to locate and recruit in the portal. The good ones are all playing and indispensable to their teams. Besides, Helton undoubtedly thought USC’s OL group was fantastic every day this spring.
Just read an article that suggests that if we have a poor year there might be a transfer portal stampede of players. All of it due to the now well established fact that Clay doesn’t and can’t develop players. Guys want to go to the NFL and they’re smart enough to understand that USC under Clay is not best route to get there.
That would be the last nail in the casket, not for CH, but for USC. The sign that USC football has hit rock bottom. The idiots in charge won’t blame CH.
Chris, The new transfer rules are now reality. Any kid on the team could have left by May 1. None did. I really do not think any of us know what these new rules will mean. I just read that SC got a TE out of U of Texas. To sound like a broken record, I think the 2021 Trojans will battle CO and Utah for 3rd in the Pac 12 South next year. What impact that will have the team under these new rules is anyone guess.
I look forward to watching the little gutties mess it up again in 2021. Five losing seasons in a row makes me think those fellows just don’t know how to win. An injury to DTR would set them back nicely, and since he’s a running QB, that could happen on any play. For now, any UCLA success in 2021 is all talk. They haven’t proved diddly, so why cut them any slack that you wouldn’t cut USC? The Bruins just haven’t earned any status whatsoever and there’s no reason not to think they won’t fall all over themselves again —… Read more »
Trojans, Ducks, and the Cardinal lead Pac-12 in 2021 draft picks:
USC — 5
ORE – 5
STAN – 5
UW – 4
ARIZ – 2
ORE ST – 2
UCLA – 2
ASU – 1
CAL – 1
CU – 1
UTAH – 0
WSU – 0
I was really surprised that AZ got two guys drafted. I thought AZ was just awful, even though they almost beat SC (and candidly should have).
Interestingly, they were both taken consecutively in the sixth round with picks # 195 and #196: DL Roy Lopez to the Houston Texans and RB Gary Brightwell to the New York Giants.
Kevin Sumlin’s career sure took a giant nose dive after Johnny “Football” Manziel took off.
Goes to show how a head coach can get by riding on the laurels of a few really good recruits. Doesn’t Helton mimic this same scenario?
“Mimic” is a great word for Gentleman Clay. Not a creative, courageous bone in his body.
Kenan Christon shined at the USC (114) – UCLA (only 42!) dual meet today in Westwood, winning the 200m in 21.17. The Trojan men have won three straight over the Bruins.
The USC women also belittled the Bruins 93-70 for their 7th straight dual meet victory over the little gutties.
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Thank you for sharing Allen! I knew we swept with both the men’s and women’s teams winning, but not any of the details. When I was an early teenager, my Dad would take me to the dual meets vs UCLA in the Coliseum. I saw some great performances such as the 4×110 yard relay team with Lennox Miller, Fred Kuller, OJ Simpson and Earl McCollough. Good news about Kenan Christon. He looked very promising as a freshman running back, but received very few carries last year. With the speed he has, I wish the coaches would put in some wide… Read more »
By the way, rlee, it was Dr. Lennox Miller DDS, MS (he later graduated from the USC School Of Dentistry with both a general and specialty degree) who anchored that 4 x 110 relay team.
ATL D.D.S., thank you for sharing about Dr. Miller. 38.6 seconds in the 1967 NCAA Championships still stands as a world record. Two guys from the football team on that squad was truly amazing.
Vaughns not getting drafted was a mild surprise. He clearly has talent and ability, but he also lacked football fight. He dropped balls and really didn’t go after or fight for close balls. This I believe is on the coaches. Players drop balls in practice and nothing happened
I’d say it’s actually better for Vaughns to sign as a FA with the Colts, his personal choice. Interestingly, the Colts did draft QB Sam Ehlinger from TEXAS in the sixth round. Hopefully, Vaughns hangs on and has some type of career.
OG was pretty devastated he didn’t get drafted. Now a Bills FA, OG definitely should have stayed at USC, unless he felt he was just not getting developed as he expected.
I think Bohn should consider becoming a furniture salesman. He has a couch where he needs a coach. Until that mistake is changed we will see good players going undrafted
Allen, You and I discussed OG as a pro. He is a 4.7 guy. He has great quickness (excellent shuttle) but he has safety speed and CB size. No need to be critical- young man just had a life lesson. I wish him well.
From WeAreSC.com (Greg Katz) :
Regarding the impact that first-year O-line coach Clay McGuire has had on the line, running back Stephen Carr said, “I like him as a coach, he’s amazing. I can see a huge difference in what the O-line is doing. They have a better understanding of the blocking scheme, and I have a way more better understanding of the blocking scheme. That’s helping us out a whole lot more…”
wearesc.com
Through no fault of his own, injuries notwithstanding, Carr (given his physical assets), has been a huge disappointment to me. I hope with his attitude towards McGuire and good health, he can show what I’m confident he can do. 👍
Too bad he has two better back ahead of him and a freshman about to make him #4.
From what I’ve seen of Carr last season, he seemed to me like a very hard running back. He just doesn’t have particularly good feet since his lower back injury, at least not compared to truly quick, shifty backs. Of course, Carr never seems to get any blocking upfront. He’s always under siege. I think Carr’s gonna end up trying to squeeze in limited time behind Vavae and the new kid from TEXAS, Ingram. It will be very interesting to see if USC truly holds to its pledge to stop the rotational back style of play. From USC football under… Read more »
Allen, Maybe I am wrong, but I view this talk about running the football as pure propaganda – very similar to what we were told about Clancy. I doubt GH in Year 3 will be much different that GH in Year 1 or Year 2 (except he has less talent on the OL).
Oh, I think USC would LOVE to run the ball efficiently. Every team would love to be able to do that. USC’s problem is that they just can’t seem to be able to do it, no matter how much they want to, because Trojan running backs have been pretty average for many years now, and the O-line has been noticeably inferior, except for those two first-round LTs, neither of whom seemed to be able to open holes when he was at USC.
Also Vaughns signs with Colts & OG with Bills as undrafted free agents…
I think Vaughns will be a good addition for the Colts. But if he had stayed in school one more season, he would have been worth much more dough than he’s going to receive at this time. JMHO
I probably disagree with this. I think Vaughns was probably willing to stay another year if he felt his stock would improve, but given that he has plenty of film he probably felt that another season would not have helped his stock. He’s been one of my favorite guy on the team, but I can’t see how another solid 70-catch season would have improved his position on the draft for next season. The only thing would have been if there were a dirth of quality WRs on the draft in ‘22 or he has a monster 100-catch season, but don’t… Read more »
I wish him well but do not expect a pro career. He is a finesse receiver who is slow (4.7) and slight (185). I doubt he is ever a starter, but he may make as a special situation player.
If he can get over the concept of dropped passes in critical situations he could stick around, and agree not as a starter, unless he really changes his approach to the game. It is now or never for him.
@Steveg I really have no idea if Vaughns will make it or not. The Colts are generally a good organization, so I’m happy he gets his tryout with that team, and can reunite with Pittman.