USC’s Caleb Williams brings ‘king vibes’ into potential crowning game vs Notre Dame in South Bend…
Williams made a Heisman Trophy-winning statement against the Fighting Irish last year, and he has a similar chance Saturday night in South Bend
Caleb Williams crowns himself in celebration with WR Kyron Hudson after Williams scored on a two-point conversion run late in their triple-OT win over ARIZ at the Coliseum on Saturday. (AP/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Luca Evans (OC Register) — LOS ANGELES — The familiar shouts came back in July, the budding king of Los Angeles obliging a slew of Dodgers fans for autographs on the day he tossed out a ceremonial first pitch, center Justin Dedich describing the scene after practice Wednesday.
Ca-leb! Ca-leb! Ca-leb!
And this had, of course, become commonplace for Caleb Williams, a public-savvy superstar who needs no reminder about humility. But Dedich (who himself is listed on the 2023 Outland Trophy Watch List) his affable fellow captain at USC, still chimed in anyway.
“I wouldn’t want that signature,” Dedich recalled joking to fans.
The two have built a close bond, quarterback and center, close enough that Dedich can accidentally snap a ball directly into Williams’ groin and joke that it was on purpose. Close enough that he assumed the public address microphone at Dodger Stadium that day in July to fire off digs at his QB.
“I try to be the guy in his life that’s a little bit of a (jerk) to him,” Dedich said Wednesday, a grin beaming underneath his mustache. “Everyone praises him, and stuff, and I just try to make little side remarks to keep him humble.”
In the past couple of weeks, adding a flourish to his touchdown celebrations, Williams has shed just a hint of that public humility. In a new custom, endorsed by Lakers star LeBron James himself, Williams has placed hands over his head in a king-me gesture after scores against both Colorado and Arizona.
“It’s just kind of an energy thing for me, kind of a persona that I’m taking on, I guess you could say,” Williams said of the celebration, after practice Wednesday. “Just kind of feeling that way.”
“Just, king vibes.”
The world first saw a sneak preview of King Vibes at this same inflection point almost a year ago, with USC taking down Notre Dame, 38-27, at a key place in the schedule. Williams completed 18 of 22 passes for 232 yards and a touchdown, adding 35 yards and three more scores on the ground. Wide receiver Jordan Addison placed an invisible crown on his quarterback’s head in the midst of a runaway Heisman Trophy race.
And with 10th-ranked USC (6-0, 4-0 Pac-12) not publicly favored for the first time all season amid a trip to South Bend, with his back-to-back Heisman odds slipping ever-so-slightly behind Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr., Williams has the chance to make another emphatic statement against the Fighting Irish.
But oh, will it not be easy.
For a full first quarter against Arizona last week, Williams looked off. He overthrew a streaking Tahj Washington, smacking his hands together repeatedly in frustration afterward. He overthrew Brenden Rice, then fired too wide, on a later drive, to Washington again.
He rebounded in dramatic fashion, realizing Arizona’s defense was packing coverage and beating the Wildcats with his legs. But Williams’ final numbers through the air were tempered, if not efficient – 14 of 25 for 219 yards and a score. And a look at his final line against blitzes reveals why: just 6 of 14 for 84 yards, per Pro Football Focus.
It’s a major point of emphasis against Notre Dame, an elite and versatile defensive unit that features five players who have generated more than 10 pressures thus far this year (by comparison, no Pac-12 team has more than four).
“Their linebackers are super aggressive … those guys are so good, they like to blitz ’em,” offensive line coach Josh Henson said Wednesday. “We gotta be ready to pick up those blitzes.”
Williams, in turn, will need to be ready for them, operating with more early-game assertiveness against pressure.
“Not taking sacks on first and second down is huge, and that’s something I didn’t do as well last game,” Williams said Wednesday. “In our last game, I had three first and second-down sacks, and in the first couple games, I think I had zero total, something like that.”
Indeed: Williams didn’t take a first- or second-down sack, actually, until USC’s fourth game of the season at Arizona State. He’s faced considerably more pressure against Colorado and Arizona, leading to full quarters when he’s looked out of rhythm, and USC was well aware – as Williams said Wednesday – that opposing teams would look to copy any successful schemes.
The Fighting Irish might mix together the best version of a blitz- and defensive back-heavy coverage Williams has seen all year. And thus, a potential second crowning moment awaits.
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I like Dedich. He is a fighter & a tough guy. But it doesn’t appear that the line has been “settled at times this year. As the Center he is responsible for making the line calls. Too often the line appears unsettled & out of sync. Dedich isn’t as effective as Neilon was and the uneven play of the line is reflective of the drop off.
Justin Dedich has been a mainstay on the line for a long time. Good to see him get some recognition for his play. As will all Trojan players, I hope he lands with a good NFL team that can use his talents. Fight On Justin!
I’ve always liked Justin Dedich a lot as well. He’s a terrific Trojan and has always been a real and versatile trooper at USC even though I doubt he’s NFL material based on what I’ve seen. JMHO.
Food For Thought Dan Weber (USCFootball.com) — “And as media like The Athletic have pointed out, the No. 3 “stop-rate” defense in the nation – behind only the Big Ten’s Michigan and Penn State – is a soon-to-be-Big Tenner, your UCLA Bruins. And how the Bruins, who gave up 48 points to USC last season and who held a quality Washington State offense and quarterback to 10 points last weekend, have taken just this season to get there with a new coordinator and a new attitude. “They’re getting stops on an amazing 84.6 percent of opponents’ drives and allowing just 0.77 points… Read more »
Question posed to USC beat reporter Luca Evans by NBC Sports Q — What do you expect Saturday night? Notre Dame looks like a 2.5-point favorite. Evans — I hate to rely so heavily off ~vibes~ here, and on paper Notre Dame frankly comes in with better prospects, but USC — led by Lincoln Riley and Caleb Williams — have carried a noticeable public edge about them since the Arizona game. Hence, Riley’s comments defending the defense on Tuesday. It just feels like USC has the opportunity for a statement game in South Bend, and I think if the defense… Read more »
Hopefully soggy weather will help minimize the amount of destruction our defense faces out on the perimeter. I think this is going to be a big game for pass-catching tight ends on both sides, and the key will be for our lines to command the middle of the field. Hopefully, our game plan will reflect these realities. If we have a bunch of deep posts and hooks in the plan, there will be receivers slipping downfield and that means INTs. The game could quickly turn into a disaster (especially since they compound – if you get behind, you have to… Read more »
I am going to be looking at how many DBs ND puts out on defense. If they put 7 then plan on Riley running the ball, They will blitz one or two out of that. It is what Colorado and Arizona did. The weather will affect both teams, receivers will slip but so will DBs. We could see CW run a lot also.
Wet fields favor the offense, backs and receivers. They know where they are going, the defense doesn’t. I played in a few snow games in high school about a million years ago, defense wasn’t easy on those slippery field days.
No repeat of that miserable 1995 game … rain, sleet, snow and a real butt kicking from Granny Holtz.
Long rainy drive back to Chicago that night.
Let’s Go ! no repeat of that debacle
The only thing I worry about for Saturday’s game is which Mass the referees want to attend. They usually have to stop at the confessional booth before attending. Many of the games in the infamous string were slanted toward Touchdown Jesus and I’m expecting more of the same in order to prop up the Iwish new coach.
Perfect. Caleb and MarShawn are “mudder” type players. The Irish are gonna run on us anyway. At least they’re sure as heck gonna try. Nobody is that worried by their wide-outs, and the “Bearded Messiah” will be hurt by the weather more than a guy like King Caleb.
And this had, of course, become commonplace for Caleb Williams, a public-savvy superstar who needs no reminder about humility. But Dedich (who himself is listed on the 2023 Outland Trophy Watch List) his affable fellow captain at USC, still chimed in anyway.
The world first saw a sneak preview of King Vibes at this same inflection point almost a year ago, with USC taking down Notre Dame, 38-27, at a key place in the schedule. Williams completed 18 of 22 passes for 232 yards and a touchdown, adding 35 yards and three more scores on the ground. Wide receiver Jordan Addison placed an invisible crown on his quarterback’s head in the midst of a runaway Heisman Trophy race.
“Their linebackers are super aggressive … those guys are so good, they like to blitz ’em,” offensive line coach Josh Henson said Wednesday. “We gotta be ready to pick up those blitzes.”
I like Dedich. He is a fighter & a tough guy. But it doesn’t appear that the line has been “settled at times this year. As the Center he is responsible for making the line calls. Too often the line appears unsettled & out of sync. Dedich isn’t as effective as Neilon was and the uneven play of the line is reflective of the drop off.
Justin Dedich has been a mainstay on the line for a long time. Good to see him get some recognition for his play. As will all Trojan players, I hope he lands with a good NFL team that can use his talents. Fight On Justin!
I’ve always liked Justin Dedich a lot as well. He’s a terrific Trojan and has always been a real and versatile trooper at USC even though I doubt he’s NFL material based on what I’ve seen. JMHO.
Food For Thought Dan Weber (USCFootball.com) — “And as media like The Athletic have pointed out, the No. 3 “stop-rate” defense in the nation – behind only the Big Ten’s Michigan and Penn State – is a soon-to-be-Big Tenner, your UCLA Bruins. And how the Bruins, who gave up 48 points to USC last season and who held a quality Washington State offense and quarterback to 10 points last weekend, have taken just this season to get there with a new coordinator and a new attitude. “They’re getting stops on an amazing 84.6 percent of opponents’ drives and allowing just 0.77 points… Read more »
Question posed to USC beat reporter Luca Evans by NBC Sports Q — What do you expect Saturday night? Notre Dame looks like a 2.5-point favorite. Evans — I hate to rely so heavily off ~vibes~ here, and on paper Notre Dame frankly comes in with better prospects, but USC — led by Lincoln Riley and Caleb Williams — have carried a noticeable public edge about them since the Arizona game. Hence, Riley’s comments defending the defense on Tuesday. It just feels like USC has the opportunity for a statement game in South Bend, and I think if the defense… Read more »
Hopefully soggy weather will help minimize the amount of destruction our defense faces out on the perimeter. I think this is going to be a big game for pass-catching tight ends on both sides, and the key will be for our lines to command the middle of the field. Hopefully, our game plan will reflect these realities. If we have a bunch of deep posts and hooks in the plan, there will be receivers slipping downfield and that means INTs. The game could quickly turn into a disaster (especially since they compound – if you get behind, you have to… Read more »
I am going to be looking at how many DBs ND puts out on defense. If they put 7 then plan on Riley running the ball, They will blitz one or two out of that. It is what Colorado and Arizona did. The weather will affect both teams, receivers will slip but so will DBs. We could see CW run a lot also.
Wet fields favor the offense, backs and receivers. They know where they are going, the defense doesn’t. I played in a few snow games in high school about a million years ago, defense wasn’t easy on those slippery field days.
onefootdown.com — While most of the day will likely be a rainy mess, there is some hope that the game itself will be a relatively dry affair.
With a 7:37 kickoff time, a lot of the forecasts say that the rain will take a break during the game and pick back up again after midnight.
No repeat of that miserable 1995 game … rain, sleet, snow and a real butt kicking from Granny Holtz.
Long rainy drive back to Chicago that night.
Let’s Go ! no repeat of that debacle
The only thing I worry about for Saturday’s game is which Mass the referees want to attend. They usually have to stop at the confessional booth before attending. Many of the games in the infamous string were slanted toward Touchdown Jesus and I’m expecting more of the same in order to prop up the Iwish new coach.
still looks like a wet environment for Saturday….
Perfect. Caleb and MarShawn are “mudder” type players. The Irish are gonna run on us anyway. At least they’re sure as heck gonna try. Nobody is that worried by their wide-outs, and the “Bearded Messiah” will be hurt by the weather more than a guy like King Caleb.