USC LB Tackett Curtis showing signs of leadership as freshman

As bullish as the coaching staff was on Curtis before spring camp, he’s only reinforced that notion over the last 14 practices with his physicality, toughness and eye for the ball

Adam Grosbard (OC Register)  —  LOS ANGELES — When Shane Lee came to USC last winter, he was immediately heralded by his new teammates for his leadership. He was an important piece of Lincoln Riley’s efforts to change the culture at USC, and he was rewarded by being elected team captain in his first year in L.A.

Given Lee’s standing in the Trojans’ locker room, he paid the ultimate compliment to freshman linebacker Tackett Curtis after Thursday’s spring practice.

“He’s definitely a leader, man,” Lee said. “He’ll be an emerging guy that people look to for encouragement, for leadership, for everything. He’s going to be one of those guys for sure.”

When Curtis signed with USC in December out of Louisiana, Riley could not have been more effusive in his praise. The head coach declared Curtis the top linebacker prospect in the 2023 class, saying he would not have taken any graduating senior over him.

A four-star 6-2, 220-pounder, Curtis had 112 tackles and 16 for losses as a senior at Many High, which he led to a state championship while winning MVP honors. At USC, he joined a position group that needed depth, but also talented young players who would stay with the program for several years after a run of restocking the position through the transfer portal.

As bullish as USC was on Curtis when he arrived for spring camp, he’s only reinforced that notion for linebackers coach Brian Odom over the last 14 practices with his physicality, toughness and eye for the ball.

“The thing that you learn about Tackett that’s pretty unique is, you had a pretty good idea of what his best was; but how consistently he’s close to his best, that’s the one thing that separates him from a lot of other people,” Odom said. “He doesn’t have a lot of bad days. And his bad days aren’t very far off from all of his good days.”

It’s this level of consistent performance and consistent effort that has caught the attention of veterans like Lee.

“He’s a hard worker, man. He doesn’t say too much, he just gets to work,” Lee said. “He just works. He doesn’t say anything, he just does what he’s supposed to do, that’s it.”

Back in December, Riley spoke about the possibility of Tackett being a Day 1 contributor at USC. Since then, USC has added Oklahoma State transfer Mason Cobb to the inside linebackers room. Junior Raesjon Davis has stood out this spring, and the Trojans will add Eric Gentry, a starter from last season, to the mix as soon as he recovers from ankle surgery.

Riley has praised the inside linebacker room as one of the deepest position groups on the USC roster this spring. So Curtis will have a lot of work to do to contribute as a true freshman.

But no one’s ruling out the possibility.

“If he continues to make plays, you’re gonna see a lot of him,” Odom said. “He’s gotta absorb the playbook. With any freshman that comes in, that’s gonna be something they’ve got to do. … But as long as he’s as physical as he’s been showing in these practices, and as fast as he is on the field – his game speed’s really, really fast, he’s got great closing speed – he cares about it, he plays hard, there’s a great chance you’re gonna see him on the field.”

ocregister.com

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