USC’s unexpected quarterback competition might have to wait.
Ryan Kartje (LA Times) After hobbling through his dynamic debut Saturday following a shot to the knee, freshman quarterback Jaxson Dart is still dealing with soreness and will be “day to day” this week, USC interim coach Donte Williams revealed Monday night on USC’s Trojans Live radio show.
Williams said Sunday there would be a competition this week between Dart and junior Kedon Slovis to see who would lead the offense on Saturday against Oregon State. But on Monday night, he explained USC plans to “hold [Dart] out a little bit for precautionary reasons.”
“We’re going to save Jaxson from himself a little bit,” Williams said, adding the quarterback competition would still continue this week.
Dart didn’t seem concerned about his knee after Saturday’s victory at Washington State, while Williams added he never considered taking the freshman out of the game.
“You have little bumps and bruises throughout the game and that kinda just comes with playing the game, so I’ll be good,” Dart said.
Dart also appeared on Trojans Live on Monday night, but he was not asked about his knee injury.
Slovis is dealing with his own injury after he was forced to exit Saturday’s game following a helmet-to-helmet collision. The two-time all-conference quarterback spent the rest of the game on the sideline with a sore neck while Dart took his place, lighting up Washington State’s defense for 391 yards and four touchdowns during an unexpectedly stellar debut.
Williams said during Sunday night media access he expected Slovis to be ready to practice this week after X-rays and an MRI on his neck came back negative.
If Dart is forced to miss time this week, it’s unlikely he’d be able to unseat Slovis, who has kept his job as USC’s starting quarterback since the 2019 season opener. If neither is ready to go this week, USC would be forced to turn to another true freshman, Miller Moss, to lead the offense.
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Well, we all thought this scheme combined with this OL was going to get QBs hurt. Against probably our weakest PAC opponent, this OL got two QBs hurt. And our best rusher was the QB, who got hurt. GH may set a record for injured QBs this season.
There is only one left if Kedon and Dart can’t go. From all reporting it looks like Kedon is ready. I won’t dismiss him, I bet he plays really well this week. It’s good to be pushed.
From what I heard, Kedon needed to be pushed–because he knew that Huggs the Cat would never bench him, no matter how underwhelming some of his performances have been since his freshman year….
QB is a dangerous position nowadays at USC, and frankly has been over the years.
One of my most disappointing moments watching USC football was seeing sophomore Carson Palmer break his right collarbone in 1999 against ORE right before half while heading out of bounds. He foolishly took on the Duck defender Michael Fletcher right at the sidelines, and paid the price.
To add insult to injury, USC lost the game in triple OT 33-30, with JR Mike Van Raaphorst almost, but not quite, leading the Trojans to victory. Paul Hackett was mercifully fired immed after the 2000 season.
But in reality, I just picked up my first copy (’74) and am looking forward to getting into it, listening to McKay, and figuring out ways to incorporate anything I learn into this blog.
Wish me luck, and if you’ve read it, tell me (honestly), what I’m in store for? I never heard great stuff about it. Maybe I’ve heard many of these stories already because McKay’s been so published and combed over?
Brewer was a grad transfer from Baylor and needed to leave now to keep eligible for another season. It sound similar to SC. A porous O Line, a less mobile veteran in Brewer is out played by a younger more mobile QB, Rising, who also ignited the team. But in our case Slovis will likely play Saturday to let Dart heal up.
He has had two bad years in a row now, first at Baylor and now three games with the Utes. He is running out of places to go to. He has not used his redshirt year though.
Start Slovis and let Dart heal. If something happens to Slovis put in the other guy and lets see what he has. There is no sense compounding whatever ails Dart, we may need him down the road and if he is on crutches he cannot help the team. I thought CH brought in a back up qb from the portal. If so I wonder where he stands in the depth chart. If CH brought him and he is behind the two freshmen, that would have to be another dumb move we can attribute to CH.
Since the SEC Media is bordeline “Bragging” that Peyton’s and Eli Mannings nephew is SEC bound (A headline presently on internet ) >>>>> “Peyton Manning knows the accolades and attention will only grow for his nephew Arch, who is considered the top-ranked high school quarterback from the Class of 2023.”……….The SEC Media is acting like they allready own this kid (as in no way he goes to a college outside the SEC ) …..DO WE END UP WITH A HEAD COACH that convinces this Manning kid to come to SC ? ……………FIGHT ON !!!!!
On Peyton and Eli’s show last night I believe they said he was going to West Virginia University, Peyton said Arch wanted to be a Mountaineer, and their guest commented on the reception he will receive in Morgantown. WVU is still in the Big10 last I checked.
How did I not hear about this? COACH WHO EARNED HIS COMP CAR THIS WEEKBruce “Barney” Barnum (38), Portland State. If the FCS school doesn’t give Barnum a comp car, it should now. Or the fans should pitch in and get him one, after the solid he did them. Last week on a Portland radio show, Barnum promised to buy beer for all fans that came to the home opener against Western Oregon—and not just a beer, but all the beer. More than 2,000 free beers later at what came to be called Barney’s Beer Garden, the Vikings had a 21–7 victory. A great… Read more »
Dart’s performance was amazing and I suppose it’s a good problem to have with two star quarterbacks. But it’s like a restaurant for me. I like the steak, I tried the prime rib and it’s good too.
The knee hit looked way worse than they are saying it is (trust me I’m not a doctor) I hope it IS just a bruise. Slovis didn’t look like he took that much of a hit (with my total lack of medical knowledge) so hopefully he’ll answer the bell this week. I also hope the line prevents any more bell ringing for him.
I was wondering about the health of our quarterbacks. It could not have helped Dart’s knee that he continued to play 3-hours through the injury. And fortunately Slovis had no concussion, and will undoubtedly start against Oregon St, but after the beatings he has sustained it would not be surprising if he is a bit gun-shy today.
Exactly. His first season he was the gun-slinger that we saw with Dart on Saturday. Since Slovis’s first season, he is a very different guy – reluctant to throw, holds the ball too long, seems to be overthinking. Too much of the gun-slinger mentality has its own problems (int), but Slovis could benefit from being so risk averse.
Injury to Slovis neck Sat. left him unable to swivel his head. A USC QB unable
to scan what’s around him is a disaster waiting to happen. Something you can’t
play through. Serious until it is healed. Both Slovis & Dart should take the time to heal.
If we go with Miller & transfer as back up, ill be excited to watch. I certainly think Miller
will get a lot of reps this week in practice. Donte is a sharp coach, won’t show his hand early in practice.
Four-star RB De’Anthony Gatson decommits from USC “With midseason coaching change often comes recruiting fallout, and on Monday four-star Rivals250 RB De’Anthony Gatson became the first prospect to decommit from USC since HC Clay Helton was fired a week ago. Gatson announced his decision on Twitter. “After careful consideration with my family and countless hours of prayer, I have decided that it is in my best interest to reopen my recruitment and de-commit from the University of Southern California,” Gatson wrote. “USC now ranks 34th in the Rivals rankings with 10 commitments — only four on the offensive side…” Ryan… Read more »
I don’t think it’s the loss of Helton as much as the lack of a running game that put this guy off. Running backs seem to run into a wall in our offense. I don’t know if the linemen are overmatched or undercoached, but they aren’t holding up well. I expected more with a new coach.
It’s the system.everything from wider splits to no misdirection. Never a counter, bootleg, jet sweep, etc. defense knows exactly where we are running every time. If back is on the left side of QB, he’s going right and vise verse. Dart will help, he might keep it on read option. Kedon doesnt even pretend to keep after he hands it off. Ends never have to worry about containing backside, so they pin their ears back and go. Our backs get tackled from behind while looking to cut upfield more than any other team. It’s surprising we ever make a yard.… Read more »
Less than 50 yards rushing from our RBs, and no sign of Christon…and this was against Wazzu. O-line REALLY needs to figure this out, because the team can’t succeed against good competition with a one-dimensional offense.
I can’t believe anybody has actually committed to USC solely due to CH. everyone has known he would eventually be fired unless they have complete blinders on.
my guess is the kid was probably already wavering. Hope he feels the right fit for him.
Ryan Kartje (LA Times) After hobbling through his dynamic debut Saturday following a shot to the knee, freshman quarterback Jaxson Dart is still dealing with soreness and will be “day to day” this week, USC interim coach Donte Williams revealed Monday night on USC’s Trojans Live radio show.
“You have little bumps and bruises throughout the game and that kinda just comes with playing the game, so I’ll be good,” Dart said.
Well, we all thought this scheme combined with this OL was going to get QBs hurt. Against probably our weakest PAC opponent, this OL got two QBs hurt. And our best rusher was the QB, who got hurt. GH may set a record for injured QBs this season.
There is only one left if Kedon and Dart can’t go. From all reporting it looks like Kedon is ready. I won’t dismiss him, I bet he plays really well this week. It’s good to be pushed.
I am hoping everyone steps up there game now that starters know their spot is not secure. The substitute teacher is gone, no more teacher’s pets.
From what I heard, Kedon needed to be pushed–because he knew that Huggs the Cat would never bench him, no matter how underwhelming some of his performances have been since his freshman year….
QB is a dangerous position nowadays at USC, and frankly has been over the years.
One of my most disappointing moments watching USC football was seeing sophomore Carson Palmer break his right collarbone in 1999 against ORE right before half while heading out of bounds. He foolishly took on the Duck defender Michael Fletcher right at the sidelines, and paid the price.
To add insult to injury, USC lost the game in triple OT 33-30, with JR Mike Van Raaphorst almost, but not quite, leading the Trojans to victory. Paul Hackett was mercifully fired immed after the 2000 season.
“A desire to be liked can kill a coach.” — John McKay
“I like the idea of killing my coaches and whole team” (paraphrasing) – same guy
never had to guess what he was thinking, no generic coach speak coming from McKay.
You probably think I’ve already read this.
But in reality, I just picked up my first copy (’74) and am looking forward to getting into it, listening to McKay, and figuring out ways to incorporate anything I learn into this blog.
Wish me luck, and if you’ve read it, tell me (honestly), what I’m in store for? I never heard great stuff about it. Maybe I’ve heard many of these stories already because McKay’s been so published and combed over?
Utah is a mess. They just had starting QB leave program.
Wow, that has to be a big blow to Utah. I think he was a transfer from Texas or somewhere in Texas.
Brewer was a grad transfer from Baylor and needed to leave now to keep eligible for another season. It sound similar to SC. A porous O Line, a less mobile veteran in Brewer is out played by a younger more mobile QB, Rising, who also ignited the team. But in our case Slovis will likely play Saturday to let Dart heal up.
He has had two bad years in a row now, first at Baylor and now three games with the Utes. He is running out of places to go to. He has not used his redshirt year though.
He is starting to become another Tate Martell.
Yes he is. But I guess in his defense there are very few qb’s that have done well at Utah. Especially under Whittingham.
Start Slovis and let Dart heal. If something happens to Slovis put in the other guy and lets see what he has. There is no sense compounding whatever ails Dart, we may need him down the road and if he is on crutches he cannot help the team. I thought CH brought in a back up qb from the portal. If so I wonder where he stands in the depth chart. If CH brought him and he is behind the two freshmen, that would have to be another dumb move we can attribute to CH.
There was a graduate tranfer QB (Mo Hasan) brought in bought but in spring camp he sustained a season ending injury.
They also brought in Brendan Costello. He was a scholarship guy at Oklahoma State.
Since the SEC Media is bordeline “Bragging” that Peyton’s and Eli Mannings nephew is SEC bound (A headline presently on internet ) >>>>> “Peyton Manning knows the accolades and attention will only grow for his nephew Arch, who is considered the top-ranked high school quarterback from the Class of 2023.”……….The SEC Media is acting like they allready own this kid (as in no way he goes to a college outside the SEC ) …..DO WE END UP WITH A HEAD COACH that convinces this Manning kid to come to SC ? ……………FIGHT ON !!!!!
On Peyton and Eli’s show last night I believe they said he was going to West Virginia University, Peyton said Arch wanted to be a Mountaineer, and their guest commented on the reception he will receive in Morgantown. WVU is still in the Big10 last I checked.
How did I not hear about this? COACH WHO EARNED HIS COMP CAR THIS WEEKBruce “Barney” Barnum (38), Portland State. If the FCS school doesn’t give Barnum a comp car, it should now. Or the fans should pitch in and get him one, after the solid he did them. Last week on a Portland radio show, Barnum promised to buy beer for all fans that came to the home opener against Western Oregon—and not just a beer, but all the beer. More than 2,000 free beers later at what came to be called Barney’s Beer Garden, the Vikings had a 21–7 victory. A great… Read more »
Dart’s performance was amazing and I suppose it’s a good problem to have with two star quarterbacks. But it’s like a restaurant for me. I like the steak, I tried the prime rib and it’s good too.
The knee hit looked way worse than they are saying it is (trust me I’m not a doctor) I hope it IS just a bruise. Slovis didn’t look like he took that much of a hit (with my total lack of medical knowledge) so hopefully he’ll answer the bell this week. I also hope the line prevents any more bell ringing for him.
I was wondering about the health of our quarterbacks. It could not have helped Dart’s knee that he continued to play 3-hours through the injury. And fortunately Slovis had no concussion, and will undoubtedly start against Oregon St, but after the beatings he has sustained it would not be surprising if he is a bit gun-shy today.
Unfortunately I think it is the gun-shy part that has been holding Slovis back. I hope to see him back to looking like his Freshman self soon.
Exactly. His first season he was the gun-slinger that we saw with Dart on Saturday. Since Slovis’s first season, he is a very different guy – reluctant to throw, holds the ball too long, seems to be overthinking. Too much of the gun-slinger mentality has its own problems (int), but Slovis could benefit from being so risk averse.
Injury to Slovis neck Sat. left him unable to swivel his head. A USC QB unable
to scan what’s around him is a disaster waiting to happen. Something you can’t
play through. Serious until it is healed. Both Slovis & Dart should take the time to heal.
If we go with Miller & transfer as back up, ill be excited to watch. I certainly think Miller
will get a lot of reps this week in practice. Donte is a sharp coach, won’t show his hand early in practice.
Four-star RB De’Anthony Gatson decommits from USC “With midseason coaching change often comes recruiting fallout, and on Monday four-star Rivals250 RB De’Anthony Gatson became the first prospect to decommit from USC since HC Clay Helton was fired a week ago. Gatson announced his decision on Twitter. “After careful consideration with my family and countless hours of prayer, I have decided that it is in my best interest to reopen my recruitment and de-commit from the University of Southern California,” Gatson wrote. “USC now ranks 34th in the Rivals rankings with 10 commitments — only four on the offensive side…” Ryan… Read more »
I don’t think it’s the loss of Helton as much as the lack of a running game that put this guy off. Running backs seem to run into a wall in our offense. I don’t know if the linemen are overmatched or undercoached, but they aren’t holding up well. I expected more with a new coach.
It’s the system.everything from wider splits to no misdirection. Never a counter, bootleg, jet sweep, etc. defense knows exactly where we are running every time. If back is on the left side of QB, he’s going right and vise verse. Dart will help, he might keep it on read option. Kedon doesnt even pretend to keep after he hands it off. Ends never have to worry about containing backside, so they pin their ears back and go. Our backs get tackled from behind while looking to cut upfield more than any other team. It’s surprising we ever make a yard.… Read more »
everything You say is correct except the last four words should be removed. GH is just terrible.
Less than 50 yards rushing from our RBs, and no sign of Christon…and this was against Wazzu. O-line REALLY needs to figure this out, because the team can’t succeed against good competition with a one-dimensional offense.
I can’t believe anybody has actually committed to USC solely due to CH. everyone has known he would eventually be fired unless they have complete blinders on.
my guess is the kid was probably already wavering. Hope he feels the right fit for him.