USC Pro Day: Alijah Vera-Tucker shows off strength…Jay Tufele returns…St. Brown jumps best
Offensive lineman benches 225 pounds 36 times, while the defensive tackle who opted out in 2020 shows off his speed
Adam Grosbard (OC Register) — All 32 NFL teams were present at USC’s pro day Wednesday, with six Trojans to evaluate ahead of next month’s draft.
The headliner of the group was offensive lineman Alijah Vera-Tucker, projected by most analysts to go among the first 20 picks this spring.
Vera-Tucker impressed during the testing section of the day, running a 5.1-second 40-yard dash and benching 225 pounds 36 times, per NFL Network. While Vera-Tucker played left tackle for USC as a junior, his arm measurements at 32 1/8 inches likely have him evaluated as a guard.
Tufele Returns
It’s been more than a year since we saw defensive tackle Jay Tufele on the field at USC. He was the lone player to opt-out of the 2020 season to prepare for the NFL draft, a decision motivated by concerns over COVID-19, especially after his sister, Noreen, went to the ICU with a severe case of the virus.
With his sister now on the mend, Tufele expressed no regrets over his decision to opt out of the season during a Zoom press conference Monday, though he admitted it was difficult to watch the team from afar during the season.
“The weirdest part is realizing that you’re no longer on the field. You’re no longer part of the team but now you’re a fan,” said Tufele, adding it was fun to see underclassmen step up in his place. “I love what I do, and seeing these younger guys and seeing how passionate they are about the game, it makes me so happy because I know USC is in good hands.”
Tufele has been working out at Proactive Sports Performance in Santa Ana, focusing on improving his core strength with the hopes of increasing his stamina and speed.
He showed that Wednesday, running a 4.97-second 40-yard dash in addition to 30 reps on the bench press.
Defensive tackle Marlon Tuipulotu also benched 30 times, but was limited to just a 10-yard dash due to a hamstring strain he suffered during training a few weeks ago.
Other Notes from Pro Day
Wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown set goals for himself prior to Pro Day, wanting to bench 25 reps and run the 40-yard dash in the 4.4 range. He fell short of both marks, with a 4.51 40-yard dash and 20 bench reps. But he showed off his athleticism with a 38.5-inch vertical leap and 10-foot-7 broad jump.
St. Brown and fellow receiver Tyler Vaughns caught passes from USC quarterback Kedon Slovis during the field drills.
Safety Talanoa Hufanga ran a 4.61 40-yard dash and verticaled 35.5-inches.
Cornerback Olaijah Griffin was absent from pro day after testing positive for COVID-19, writing on Twitter that he believed it to be a false positive due to several negative tests following the initial positive. He still was not allowed to participate due to local health regulations, and instead will have his own pro day at USC on April 5 or 6.
__________
TrojanDailyBlog members — Always feel free to add information or topics to the TDB which don’t necessarily pertain to any particular moderator post or member comment.
I can see the thinking behind keeping Helton until his contract is up, being what it is and the University now starring at a $1 billion dollar payout in settlements. But it is also how Helton does his job….. minimally. He doesn’t aggressively-boldly do anything and that gives those opportunistic seekers out there who are looking to point fingers instantly, less chance to target Helton. For some executives, that can be comforting to know.
Jamaica, I have learned over the years that the “safest” thing that one can do is usually the most risky. I think keeping Clay, for “safety” reasons, is extraordinarily risky. At this time, SC needs to rally support from its fan and alumni base, not drive it away. Yet in the Folt/Caruso agenda that it exactly what they are doing. My guess is they have halved the support of the school. And, if Clay bombs again (and he probably will) and Madame Chairman keeps up her social justice crusade (and she probably will), then look for it to be halved… Read more »
To move to the topic of the article, I am the only one to wonder just how bad Drevno (and candidly GH) were? How is it possible to have two first round OL on your line (and in 2019, SC had both Austin Jackson and Vera-Tucker on the OL) and stink it up? That is simply amazing incompetence.
One good O-lineman on your team just won’t cut it. Even Ron Yary would tell you that.
USC’s OLs have been astoundingly bad (laughable, actually), notwithstanding the NFL potential of Jackson and Vera-Tucker.
When you have people like Toa starting, you have no shot.
I was never really sure which teams jersey Toa should have been wearing. Aside from his consistently bad snaps, he generally acted like a turnstile for the opponent
Perfectly stated.
I believe it’s all CH and their culture. They have had talent, might not in the future, but they did the last few years. Even train wrecks like Toa were 4 star guys and top 10 for their position in the country coming out of high school. I think it’s all CH, GH, and really soft practices. That culture just can’t be overcome.
I don’t think ALA, and Nick Saban, and all his men, could have done diddly squat with the very untalented Toa.
Some players are just flat-out misevaluated coming out of HS (for various reasons, including outright bias as well as the sheep mentality) and Toa would never have started, or even played much, for a large number of colleges. He was never that good and any prep evaluator who hangs his hat on Toa’s so-called 4-star prep ranking would have been much better-suited washing cars for a living.
And Toa is now on staff! Talk about a statement of Clay’s leadership.
I know one thing for sure, Saban wouldn’t have let Toa touch the ball at center.
Imagine Toa showing up for fall practice, as a fifth-year SR no less, and still not knowing how to even hike the ball in the shotgun. Talk about unprepared.
I would have loved to see Saban address the issue with him. But I would have hated to be poor JT Daniels, who never knew where Toa’s lame hikes would be sailing to before he eventually moved on to GA, where he’s now winning Peach Bowls.
RJJ, you are again on top of it. It wasn’t just Drevno’s coaching the OL that produced embarrassing results, it was the lack of adjustments on the OC’s part in knowing how to execute with the inabilities of an OL. The AR is supposed to work using fewer parts and talent of an offense to succeed. That’s why Helton brought it in, to make things easier for himself and the lower rated recruits he brought in. But GH didn’t alter his offense the last two years that I saw. Did we see Slovis in roll-outs of the pocket making it… Read more »
Insight into Caruso vs Nikias (LAT):
Asked if the university was reexamining Nikias’ status in light of the settlement, Caruso said the terms of Nikias’ original contract limited what USC could do.
“I think this is a time where Max really has to reflect on what’s best for the university, what’s best for the students, and make a decision himself,” Caruso said. “I think there’s clarity to the answer to that, but I think that’s for him to answer.”
Make Nikias an outcast, ignore him on every occasion to force him to resign.
Right GT, if he doesn’t have the decency to realize that he is responsible for what happened under his watch, then he should be encouraged to resign by every State, public & University official he comes into contact with. .
Nikias should no longer be allowed to associate with USC in any capacity whatsoever regarding its governance or policy. I’m slam dunk in favor of that.
And we’ve only been saying that for 4-5 years now. What drives me crazy Allen is that it’s so fundamental when a top executive leaves for the reasons he did. 😠
The fact that Nikias has been kept around by USC so long after all the horrible, shameful and financially ruinous turmoil he presided over is just ridiculous, and speaks very poorly of the school.
Now, we’ve even got all-powerful Caruso chiming in publicly and complaining, yet he blames contractual reasons for Nikias’ current on-campus status. USC politics at the fore. Even Caruso finds himself frustrated.
You’re the expert on this stuff TT. Why is this happening?
It makes me wonder if Max has something on USC that could be very negative if it got out in the press — but what bothers me with this frame-of-reference is that having Max still around is very bad for the USC Image anyway. IMO, it makes our top management style appear incompetent. (And furthermore, Marshall being such a great business school gets tainted because of our inaction — and I know for a fact that we don’t teach such a weak management style to our students.)
The whole thing makes USC look even more smarmy, if that’s possible. Good luck with the fundraising Caruso and Folt.
USC’s $1.1 billion dollar settlement info per LAT. The USC settlement dwarfs recent payouts in other university scandals. Michigan State University paid $500 million in connection with Larry Nasser’s sexual abuse of gymnasts and others, while Penn State settled claims related to Jerry Sandusky’s sexual abuse for more than $109 million. Two mediators, Jeffrey Krivis and Superior Court Judge Daniel Buckley, who reviewed the evidence recommended the $852-million figure. USC’s Board of Trustees unanimously approved the amount, according to chair Rick Caruso. The total $1.1-billion price tag reflected several factors. A 2019 state law, backed by former patients and their lawyers, temporarily lifted… Read more »
Don’t know what happened but this brings shame to the USC community.
All those in power during that period should be investigated.
Closing your eyes to wrong is not a thing that should be encouraged.
It is a shameful offense and things like this needs to be cleaned up.
It brings down a lot of great things that are good about USC.
Whoever hired and/or appointed the offenders to positions within the university who are responsible, should resign immediately and then possibly be called to public hearings to explain themselves. The whole BODs should resign period and anything less is a travesty! Let’s see how powerful the political forces here really are.
Rightly the university is being punished for allowing this monster to continue to abuse young women. How will USC pay this? It will come from “from insurance proceeds as well as financial reserves, the deferment of capital projects, the sale of some `non-essential assets’ and belt tightening.” All of Nikias’ fund raising money, the presidential mansion and a 2% tuition hike. As I have said before, no wonder there is no action in the Athletic Department, USC has much bigger problems to fix. No coincidence SC raised tuition 2 days ago.
Folt needs to realize that she can/must stay focused on this entire issue and all of the other problems it is/will continue to generate. But somebody needs to educate her re: what a packed coliseum means in revenue and as a result, fund raising in a wealthy area the size of southern California, where a high percentage of our Alumni stay, work and retire. Damn, it is so freaking fundamental — but apparently not obvious to somebody from North Cakalacky. If you read this Carol, let Bohn put in place a coaching staff capable of restoring what has been a… Read more »
Terrific Tommy, I doubt any can tell Madame Chairman Mao anything; that is a bit like telling Nancy Pelosi anything. She tells you and that is that. Personally, as I believe our Madame Chairman is both a political and an ideological creature, she will react to political pressure, which can only be exercised by most of us simply refusing to support SC. How she and Caruso can think they can declare most alumni deplorables and then have them support them is beyond me. Personally, I think she has lost control of the athletic department by having Donte Williams in it;… Read more »
Donte has one big advantage that Folt cannot do anything about, he is black, and with liberals that is huge these days.
I’m afraid we’re totally stuck with Clay until the end of his contract TT. People closer to the BOTs than I suggest so. One said to me that Caruso is now “running roughshod” in his role as Chairman of the BOTs. He’s got two daughters, so this USC problem hit him right between the eyes. Caruso also knows USC is still not financially out of the woods yet, and that other lawsuits (one involving Art Bartner and some “hazing issues”, etc), will need to be reckoned with. I’m with you. I think making the football program stronger with a respected,… Read more »
I fear it goes much deeper. From what I can see, Folt (and perhaps Caruso) is projecting her belief system (very much social justice ala the Ivy League ethos) and is convinced that the SC culture expressed in elite football is toxic and somehow responsible for this disaster. If my view of her is correct, she will view her task as to “reeducate” the SC alums and remove that culture “branch and root”. Nikias gave her both an rationale to support her ideology and the perfect weapon to destroy SC football in Clay. But I am now in your camp,… Read more »
Let’s not forget what Lynn Swann did to USC football while the incompetent AD that he was. What an idiot that Super Bowl MVP turned out to be
I haven’t been on the campus in several years–do they still have those shitty WW2 era Quonset huts that used to contain the Cinema School? Maybe we can put Nick the Greek in there for his on-campus office?
B/R — NCAA Men’s Tournament 2021: Power Ranking the Sweet 16 Teams, by Kerry Miller6. USC Trojans11 OF 16 How They’ve Looked: Stellar. Outside Gonzaga, no team was more impressive during the tournament’s first weekend than USC. The Trojans shut down Drake in the first round and then suffocated Kansas in an 85-51 blowout. That’s quite the far cry from the USC team that couldn’t do much of anything on defense late in the season in losses to Arizona, Utah and Colorado (two). Bread and Butter: Protecting the paint. After holding Drake and Kansas to a combined 25-of-82, USC leads the nation… Read more »
700 women who opted out of the class action lawsuit get an average of tax-free, over $1,000,000 each? There would be no medical bills, or a very small amount I would presume, and less attorneys’ fees of $333,000 to $400,00, these still Under-30 years old women will have about $600,000 to invest. If invested properly, they might never have to get a job. OK, I get it– the woman was violated. It was not right. Some weirdo doctor got his jollies by playing with a woman’s “secret spot.” But One Million gross? Come on! Is this a great country, or… Read more »
Ouch, USC has agreed to an 852 million dollar settlement with more than 700 women who accused the college’s longtime campus gynecologist of sexual abuse. This is in addition to an earlier class action settlement of 215 million thus making the payout of more than 1 billion dollars for claims against Dr. George Tyndall. Some heads better roll for this………… Just received this email from Ricky Caruso: Dear USC Community, On behalf of the Board of Trustees, I am writing to underscore the significance of today’s settlement agreement for the victims of George Tyndall and to assure you that critical… Read more »
Has Max Nikias been given a brand new couch for his USC campus office?
I also couldn’t help but notice this little gem from Caruso — “As the revelations about George Tyndall surfaced…”
What Caruso meant to say was, “As the LA Times reporters doggedly pursued Max Nikias for many months, seeking comment on long-standing brutally heinous sexual wrongdoings at USC’s campus health center, and just why pervert doctor George Tyndall was being wrongly protected and paid off by USC, Nikias continued to pretend the massive problem would somehow just go away…”
And it was just reported live on CBSN, with campus video and live interviews with impacted females. What wonderful PR, wouldn’t you say? Just not good at all.
George Tyndall and Max Nikias should be proud. It’s totally amazing that two simple-minded individuals could do so much damage to USC over such a long period of time.
I received both Ricky Caruso’s and Mao Foltie’s letters via email yesterday. As this happened under Nikias’ and Caruso’s watch, they should be booted. I’m going to pen up a letter to Ricky stating how disappointed I am with Folt. She has done nothing but destroy USC traditions and history, all in the name of social justice. Also, she and a group from the Alumni Association disbanded the Alumni Club structure in favor of a regional model. When I lived in So Cal, I was initially in the San Gabriel, then the San Fernando Valley and finally the Santa Barbara… Read more »