FOOTBALL

USC Morning Buzz: It Might Be A Circus But At Least It’s Our Circus

I wrote a note in Monday’s USC newsletter about an assistant coach calling out the obsequious way Clay Helton acts toward Graham Harrell.

The funny part is two USC coaches contacted me afterward asking if I was referring to them as the anonymous coach in the story who gave Helton a piece of their mind and I wasn’t referring to either of them! I was referring a different coach. So it’s something pretty obvious to everyone in the McKay Center.

  • The Titans released Adoree Jackson on Tuesday. Jackson, a first-round pick in 2017, played in 46 games for the Titans the past four seasons and made 41 starts. 

Jackson might be the top free-agent corner in the NFL based on this:

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  • Washington fired women’s basketball coach Jody Wynn, the former USC player/assistant coach.

What’s ironic is Wynn got fired after four seasons at Washington but USC seems to be very patient with Mark Trakh, who was rehired four years ago and has yet to make an NCAA Tournament appearance.

It’s easier to be the women’s basketball coach at USC than Washington.

45 thoughts on “USC Morning Buzz: It Might Be A Circus But At Least It’s Our Circus”

  1. So great to see all of the coaches calling Scott for advice and comments. I feel so inside USC. Think of all of those white board meetings breaking down plays in Scott’s basement while sharing a cold glass of Yoohoo. #livingthedream

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    2. Enough.
      #LetScottBeScott
      P. S.
      Calling Scott to say “we are living in hell” is not the same thing as calling for advice.
      #LetTheAssistantsContact”OutsideWorld”
      #[ItMaySaveLives]

      Liked by 3 people

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    1. You might think that a Trojan doing something that hasn’t happened in 19 yrs might garner mention at “insideUSC”, but sadly no. Rather toot my own horn and say that two coaches called to see if I was talking about them…Really?

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      1. Wow Pisley, EM, the Pac-12 all everything, is just a second team AP All-America. Ouch!

        He’s hardly a top 10 NBA draftee. More likely a late, really late 1st rounder or early 2nd round draft choice. The latter choice makes more sense ’cause Mobley won’t improve the drafting team’s record or chance for the playoffs.

        Thing about EM Pisley, he has legs like Andyain’twinning’s Auld Lady; two sticks looking for broom heads with bristles.

        BTW Pisley, the Titans CUT, I repeat, CUT Adorable Jackson. LOL, just another ex-bozo NFL bust. I guess the Titans agreed with me that Jackson was the slowest NFL CB to initiate a tackle.

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      2. I’m sorry, I was still laughing about te one’s son in law letting a drunk work him over while on duty… hahahahaha

        Oh, back to the question I had, who was your last AA on any team? Of course I’m talking post season awards, not preseason. Was there any this century?

        Liked by 1 person

    3. My sense of justice would be satisfied if (1) this year’s basketball team –which has worked hard and played better basketball than I’ve seen come out of Troy for a few years —- won at least a couple of big games in this tournament. Andy’s had to deal with a truckload of shit and early departures and he keeps narrowly missing the boat at the end of each year. It would be sweet to see things fall into place for him right about NOW….AND… (2) Helton weren’t allowed to hide for another moment. He is a fraud and his assistants know it. I’m glad that Scott stays on this cuz players suffer when there’s a lack of leadership at the top [and, boy, is there]!

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      1. scottie has NO credibility anywhere except here until he names names. Period. Which coaches called? When and why?
        The rest is about as real as a disney movie.

        Liked by 2 people

      2. For liability reasons Scott asked me to name the coaches who are snitching on Helton— they are: both coordinators, all the position coaches and… surprisingly…. Coach Folt [what a traitor! after also being named most valuable player!].
        [Point of Information: There were many real moments in Mary Poppins — like when the penguins who were were waiting on Julie Andrews’ table started dancing with Dick Van Dyke. That was SO tight]!
        [Note To Pudly: Do you agree with me regarding yesterday’s link to Pulp Fiction? I’m of the opinion Bret coulda talked his way outta getting Jules’ handgun emptied into him if he just kept his cool and stopped saying “what?”]…..

        Liked by 4 people

      3. Come, come MG, excuses are inadmissible. Like Andyain’twinning is the only Div. 1, BB HC with the problems you mention.

        For $3.5 million annually, it’s Andyain’twinning’s job to make sure SUCC’s BB program is hitting on all eight cylinders. So far, the bozo BB program is been running on 5 or 6 cylinders at best. It would be much worse w/o Ta-Ta Mobley’s contributions.

        Liked by 1 person

      4. Okay, Owns —but what about Mary Poppins and Pulp Fiction?
        #There’sMoreToLifeThanBasketball….
        #[AsTheBruinsAreAboutToProveForUmpteenthTime]…..

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      1. Hey Pudley! This is Scott’s house….you are a disrespectful plagiarist who gets an “F”……I’ve noticed a few times lately when you try and write without someone else’s hand, it’s void and empty, like your soul……

        Liked by 1 person

  4. When does this Gomer nightmare finally end … covid saved this hack from being gone, after HH incompetency saved him the year before. Just a miserable time for USC football. Worse than Kiffin/Snark years, you knew they were going to get canned, in time. That’s what they do.

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  5. Graham Harrell is the biggest problem at USC. He thinks he is alot better than he really is. A good OC could quickly take the talented players at USC and generate an offense that dominates the Pac-12 opponents. GH has created a one-trick pony in the USC offense. It all depends on a QB to execute at a level that is impossible to consistently achieve and there is no effective run offense.

    Of course, compared to Helton, Harrell is a savant. I think that TO is probably only going to be at USC for one or two more seasons – just long enough to produce a top 10 or at least top 20 defense, and then get a HC job somewhere else, or a top DC position under someone like Saban, where he can then polish his resume for a top HC job.

    Donte will obviously replace TO as DC. But how does the offense get better under Harrell? Seems like even if there are improvements this year, we will continually be limited by GH and the air raid.

    The football program at USC simply doesnt run the way it should. Helton has no power. Will Bohn keep this situation until Helton’s contract runs out? I wonder if Bohn is actually thinking of trying to promote Donte to DC in a year or two and then replace Helton with Donte when Helton’s contract runs out, is that even possible?

    SC football is a three-headed monster at the moment, with Harrell, TO and Donte as the three centers of power. I think TO and Donte can co-exist, but think there is going to be alot of tension this year between defensive staff and offensive staff regarding practices.

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    1. Helton has made it clear he wants his skill players rested and ready to run full speed on Saturdays. Period. He doesn’t even use up all his practices before bowl games just so his guys can show up relaxed. Orlando, on the other hand, is gonna push for physical practices. Something’s gotta give. Will Bohn act like a man & back Orlando up?
      #IfHeDoesn’tWe’reFucked
      #[IHaveAHunchWe’reFucked]

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  6. I just looked up the offensive line grade for USC in 2020 according to PFF. So USC actually shows up at the #20 spot in the grades. Right behind Clemson.

    And Drevno gets canned for this? And we replace Drevno with a coach from where?

    The problem wasnt Drevno. It is Harrell’s offensive plan. Drevno and Harrell did not see eye to eye, so one of them had to go, but the problem is Harrell and this air raid offense.

    The new S&C coach was a big improvement. He understands athletic conditioning. Ausmus was a weight lifting instructor who didnt understand football conditioning. That will have an impact across the whole team. But does McGuire have the chops to be a top o-line coach?

    The problem at USC has been offensive coordinators. First Helton, then Tee then Harrell. None of them are qualified for the job. When do we get a real offensive coordinator?

    Orlando needs to have physical practices and he needs to practice against an offense that uses ALL of the types of plays they will see in games. But Harrell’s air raid offense runs the same few plays over and over again. How does that prepare the defense? Do they get prepared against the second team offense?

    This is the core problem at USC – Harrell needs to be let go! If Harrell doesnt perform have a stellar offense this year, he is booted.

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    1. Whomever is o-line coach at USC has to take orders from Harrell…..
      #TheHeadCoachNeedsHarrell’sPermissionToPee
      #FoltNeedsHarrell’sOkayToGoForHikesInTheMountains….
      #MikeCarusoHasToGetHarrell’sApprovalToRunForMayor
      #…[AndLet’sNotEvenGetStartedOnBiden&Filibuster]

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      1. Something is SO screwy about Helton not getting fired. It shoulda happened after the Cotton Bowl. It shoulda happened after the Holiday Bowl. It shoulda happened after the Pac 12 Championship game with Oregon.
        #WhatDoesHeltonHaveOnUSC?

        Liked by 3 people

      2. MG, check out the smile Clay has on the B-B-Q photo that Scottie posts occasionally. Looks like the cat that swallowed the canary. The paychecks just keep coming in.

        Liked by 2 people

      3. You and me almost always think alike on this stuff —but in that particular photo I see Helton about 2 hours into a tab of ecstasy.

        Liked by 2 people

      4. Ecstasy…could well be…or perhaps Clay met up with the big Redhead Walton after a Pac 12 game telecast and picked up Bill’s hallucinogen of the day…

        Liked by 2 people

  7. Liked by 2 people

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      1. Their top rebounder shows up in time to play against us would probably be the bad part for us…oh, he’s second in assists and third in scoring too.

        Liked by 2 people

      3. Pudley
        He was once a little slab of clay………..Pudley!
        You should see what Pudley can do today…….Pudley!
        He can copy and paste
        Even though we know he’s two faced…….Pudley!

        Liked by 1 person

  8. Wizard of Oz/USC Comparison:
    Carol Folt= Wicked Witch of the West. A true threat to the Athletic Department and entire University. A lack of booster money, and donars will melt down the witch.

    Clay Helton= “ScareCrow” It is hard to make the right decision if you don’t have a brain, and your entire body is built out of staw.

    Mike Bone= “Tin Man” A true car salesman without a heart who sells tin cans, and hopes to take USC to the Land of Oz even if one does not even exist. Are we really on our way to a National Championship Mr. Bone, or are we really off to see the “Wizard”

    Graham Harrell= “The Cowardly Lion”- Let’s throw the ball rather than running straight at the defense to prevent industries, and make it look like we can defeat a team in the 4th qtr by mentally breaking down the defense rather than physically. Stats are more important than winning games.

    USC Offensive Line= “The Midget Munchkins”…. Our offensive line looks like midgets when compared to Notre Dame, Alabama, and other national powers. Thank you Clay Helton for expanding the “the small people population” when clearly you need monsters on the offensive line.

    Traveler= “Toto”. In the Pete Carroll era Traveler stood taller and prouder than ever when representing USC at the Coliseum. Today, as the USC image and reputation nationally has been tarnished due to poor leadership, a once proud white horse now looks like a small dog running around the Coliseum. Perhaps, it is time to bring back George Tirebiter who probably would be more entertaining and affordable for a shrinking empire empire, and his main claim to glory was biting and chewing on rubber tires.

    Max Nikias = “The Wizard of Oz”. Just like the Wizard Max liked Power and Money, and loved to manipulate the alumni, students, and faculty for his own self interest. When key decisions turned out to be the wrong decisions he went into seclusion, and hid behind the curtain until the storm was over. We can thank the Wizard for Kevin O’Neil, Pat Haden, and Lynn Swann, and it makes you wonder “What’s in that man’s wallet”.

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  9. Forgot about the Flying Monkeys they were vicious, and then changed once the Wicked Witch melted away. The same thing will happen at USC once Folt, and Bone are gone. the evil people will leave the dark side, and become positive contributors to USC. In the meantime I hope Folt’s Flying Monkeys including Caruso remove every straw out of the Scarecrow’s Clay Helton’s body. That’s correct we are paying a head coach millions of dollars who is made out of straw. At this moment I am wondering if Tim Tesselone is a Flying Monkey or a true sports information director as he himself can be quite political and vicious at times.

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    1. Yes, I’m sure Tim can be ruthless….& I know a bunch of people don’t like him— but I think he’s the only guy in the whole fucking school who knows how to do his job……
      #[&I’llBetYaAnythingFolt&BohnAren’tSmartEnoughToSeeIt]…

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  10. Michael: What is your prediction for the UCLA -Michigan State game tomorrow night in the NCAA tournament.

    My prediction: Michigan State 68 – Stimulus Check UCLA 62. Low scoring defensive game. Dick Enberg used to say “Oh My” when he broadcast UCLA games on Channel 5. If he were alive tomorrow he would say “Oh Well”—-Maybe next year but it appears we have hired A Lizard from Westwood, rather than a Wizard. If all the 99 Cents Stores are open late tomorrow night they will be filled with sad Bruin fans who will investing their stimulus checks for a better tomorrow.

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    1. tommyd —It would be just like UCLA to rise to the occasion against Michigan State…
      #…ButISureHOPEYourPredictedScoreMaterializes….
      #ImagineImpoverishedBruinAlumsWeeping…
      #..WhileMunchingCornDogs….
      #…AndDrinkingDietPepsiAtTheStudentUnion…
      #..WithTheirWoke,UnhappyChildren…
      #..Ah!

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  11. UCLA has come to an agreement with 99CentsOnly Stores to honors all students and alumni today with a 10% discount on all merchandise, and a free viewing of today’s NCAAA basketball game with Michigan State on big screen TV’s.
    The stores will be packed win or lose. What a great gathering location for Bruin proud alumni, and a great way to spend thier Government stimulus checks while watching the Bruins re- appear in the NCAA tournament. If it is only 99Cently Only -think UCLA.

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