Why second game under Donte Williams is real test of USC’s growth

Adam Grosbard (OC Register)  —  Saturday will mark the first home game of the Donte Williams era at USC. The interim head coach and Los Angeles native is expecting two dozen friends and family members in the Coliseum stands as he leads the Trojans onto the field.

“It means a lot but most importantly it means a lot to this team,” Williams said Thursday. “Just for us to come back home, the last time we was at home didn’t go so well. So it’s about going out there and showing our fans and showing our community just who we really are.”

And just who this USC team really is, is anyone’s guess, really.

The internal dichotomy of USC could not have been more pronounced the past two weeks. How could you predict that the same team that, by former head Clay Helton’s admission, folded at the first sign of adversity against Stanford would a week later overcome a 14-point deficit and an injury to starting quarterback Kedon Slovis to beat Washington State?

But that’s kind of been the story of USC the past several seasons, hasn’t it? The team has looked capable of living up to the talent level and the fan base’s expectations one week, and then like a shadow of itself the next.

Sometimes it can even happen within a game, as it did in the win over Washington State. On Washington State’s first three possessions, USC allowed the Cougars to move 192 yards. Sandwiched around a gutsy goal-line stop, the Trojans surrendered two touchdowns.

But the next seven drives, USC held Washington State to net-zero yards and did not allow another point.

To a man, USC defensive players say no in-game adjustments were needed to make the shift; it simply came down to execution and the loosening of some tight nerves.

“This system’s about players. I think that any coordinator will tell you that. There’s no magical calls,” defensive coordinator Todd Orlando said. “So it’s all about the players. The players stepped up and the guys who can make plays who have done it consistently in practice did it in the game.”

The drop-off in the run game from Week 2 to Week 3 was another stark reminder of the Trojans’ consistent inconsistencies.

In the first two games of the season, USC averaged 172.5 rushing yards per game, providing much-needed balance to a USC offense that hasn’t had a reliable running game since the days of Ronald Jones II.

But the running game only earned 48 yards on 25 carries against Washington State, with backup quarterback Jaxson Dart providing a game-high 32 yards.

Malepeai and Ingram combined for just 25 yards on 16 carries.

Offensive line coach Clay McGuire put much of the blame on his unit for the lack of production, and players noted that Washington State’s twists and stunts up front confused USC’s blocking efforts.

“It just wasn’t us. Nothing that we were doing was us,” McGuire said. “Nothing that we tried to build or become as far as that group, as far as that culture. We weren’t playing hard, we weren’t competing. We were making stupid mistakes.”

McGuire was able to make some adjustments; senior Jalen McKenzie replaced redshirt freshman Jonah Monheim at right tackle to start the second half. The move seemed to settle the line and provide more pass protection for Dart, and McGuire decided to ride that unit for the rest of the game.

After the game, Williams said he had spoken with the line and running backs and received promises that that kind of performance won’t happen again.

“They’ll hold each other accountable. They’ll be ready to go,” Williams said. “It won’t happen again. It’ll be a big change on Saturday.”

That’s why Saturday night’s game against Oregon State will be such a litmus test for USC. It’s one thing to rally for one week under Williams, to embrace the us-against-the-world mentality that comes after your head coach is fired two games into the season. But can the Trojans string that into sustained success?

Take the 2020 win over Washington State, a 38-13 win when it felt like all the pieces for USC had clicked into place. The following week the defense was a mess and the Trojans needed a last-minute rally to beat UCLA.

Typically, things cool down the second week after a mid-season coaching change. The talk about the former coach dies down, and players and coaches settle into the season and look forward to the next chapter for the program.

But this week has been inundated with talk about a quarterback competition. After his neck injury last weekend, third-year starter Kedon Slovis was replaced by Dart, who threw for more passing yards than Slovis has in any game since his freshman season.

Following the game, Williams said that there’s always a competition for any starting job, and declined to say Slovis would be the starting quarterback again when healthy. But now USC is in a situation where Slovis has practiced the last two days, and Dart hasn’t practiced due to a knee injury.

Asked about the situation on Thursday, Williams said everyone will find out who the starter is on Saturday before kickoff. Later on Thursday, there were multiple reports that Dart underwent surgery on a torn meniscus and will be out indefinitely.

Williams did praise how Slovis has practiced this week.

“He came out to practice and he was throwing that ball around, taking shots downfield. He already has command of the offense, and a lot of guys in this locker room including myself believe in him,” Williams said. “I saw somebody who’s coming back that’s just resumed their role where they normally are, which is the starting quarterback.”

It’s another potential distraction in a season full of them. Williams is putting the impetus on himself to set the right example for the team and try to encourage a more consistent week-to-week showing.

“You can’t let one little thing get by all of a sudden,” Williams said. “One day, one thing is really big to me and then the next it’s not such a big deal, then that’s the same with the players, they’ll be inconsistent. I have to be the same person every day.”

ocregister.com

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