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USC Morning Buzz: Maybe Things Went Too Fast For JT Daniels

Amon St. Brown and JT Daniels entered USC in 2018. St. Brown is about to enter his third NFL season. Meanwhile, Daniels is going to start Saturday at quarterback for Rice against Texas.

In case you somehow forgot, Daniels is on his fourth college with stops at USC, Georgia, West Virginia and Rice.

“There are so many things you can look back on and say, ‘If we just slowed it down a little bit instead of us and (Clay) Helton pressing the pedal to the metal, maybe it would have been a little easier to get in and go,” Steve Daniels, JT’s father, told the Athletic. “I think all the talent was there; he just wasn’t ready for that kind of experience.”

Hindsight is 20/20, they say. Also, Helton might have wanted Daniels to graduate early from Mater Dei but I would hardly describe him as a co-pilot in this mad scenario. Remember, the story about how some USC players asked Helton to make a change at QB and Helton told them his hands were tied?

Maybe “the talent was there” but at USC, Daniels didn’t like getting hit in games.

It didn’t help that some in the media glorified the whole Daniels master plan, including how $1,500 was spent for blood tests to determine he needed more lycene and beta-carotene. And that his body rejected milk. And that he also had a life coach. It was endless. Helton wasn’t pushing all that.

The Athletic seems to predict Daniels will have a big season at Rice. We’ll see. How is Rice’s offensive line? That’s always been extremely important for Daniels. He’s not exactly Caleb Williams in the pocket.

42 thoughts on “USC Morning Buzz: Maybe Things Went Too Fast For JT Daniels”

  2. And JT started his ‘U.S. tour’ prior to the opening of the Portal
    But this sort of thing, 4 teams in a career, may become the normal

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  3. The “Other” has the “betting” on college football contest which I am a part of through Wolf’s blog because of being banned by the “Other”–
    Start with 20,000 “betting” Units
    Week 0– 5000 Units on San Jose St. 25,000
    Week 1– 3000 Units on Nevada

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    1. I bought into the defense hype and bet 10k on USC. It worked last season. Even though the odds were skewed a bit I couldn’t bet against USC. There’s a lesson here somewhere

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      1. I invited the Wolf Posters to partake, Michael, but no takers
        and besides, most everybody got wiped out by the San Jose bet

        Liked by 2 people

      2. When it comes to gambling acumen, John vs. Gabby could be Battle of the Titans…
        #PoliticsIsAnotherMatter[ForGabbyNotJohn]

        Liked by 2 people

  4. JT Daniels is the unfortunate byproduct of Helton’s desperate quest to succeed as a coach. They plucked him out high school, where he was guarded by a line better than the one he was behind at USC. Then left him out there to manhandled by opposing teams. He was a good high school quarterback behind a sieve line and a clueless coach. He got hurt, and that put an end to his football career. Now he’s like a little league kid who gets hit by the pitching every time he’s at bat. He’s gun shy and it shows. Just plow him over early and he’s done for the game. It’s a wonder he doesn’t sue USC for giving him PTSD.
    (Post Trojan Stress Disorder)

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      1. He started at Georgia, and he was in the top 5 for QBR that season. Scottie nailed it about the O-line. At Georgia he had all the time in the world to throw. He has been snakebit by injuries, hopefully he will do well at Rice.

        Liked by 1 person

  5. Football has “evolved” into a ‘Kill the quarteback’ affair
    because of the importance of the position. Take out ‘Celeb’
    in Utah 2 and see what happens.

    There are now certain defensive positions that are designed solely to get the quarterback. It takes courage to be a sitting duck while standing in the pocket as maniacal head-hunters close in on you

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    1. The tactic you describe is supposed to be illegal….but, yeah, with Pac 12 officiating Caleb is at risk….. luckily he’s incredibly tough & bounces up from any hit…. remember he got hurt by trying to out run safeties and corners into the endzone, not as a result of a hit….

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      2. You could see the wheels turning inside Caleb’s head on that run: “Well, this clinches the Heisman!”
        Caleb’s best bet re this year’s Heisman: Don’t push it. By the time the Notre Dame game rolls around you’ll be so far into the groove you’ll be kicking ass again….
        #….ThenKickWashington&Oregon’sAssAndThePrizeIsYours

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  6. JT Daniels was coached by Helton and Graham Harrell. He is now on his 4th team and the only team that wanted him was lowly Rice. Bryce Dixon was coached by Saban and Steve Sarkissian. He won a National Champion, a Heisman, and was drafted No. 1. He was behind Daniels at Mater Dei when Daniels left for USC.

    Coaching matters. Glad we have Lincoln Reilly.

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      1. Don’t you get a kick out of fans saying Wiley does not care for ‘defense’
        Offense is his favorite toy but what football coach has not heard of “D”

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Lincoln wants a great defense…. but he WANTS a great offense more…
        I honestly believe Lincoln would LOVE to win the NC with a mediocre defense so sports blogs would be forced to say “Riley proves it’s all about offense now!”

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    2. Bryce Young, but yes!

      Looking forward to seeing what to expect from Utah today 5 pm.

      ASU at 7 pm, but don’t think they will present the same challenge. (Those are usually the ones that bite us on the ass.)

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  7. I feel bad for J.T. because the supposed adults in the room did not do what was best for him. Why was there a rush to get him to USC? The father should’ve known that his son was going from an all-star team at Mater Dei to a run of the mill program at USC, and he was assuredly going to get his ass handed to him because of all the hype and preferential treatment surrounding him. The fact of the matter is that the kid was not all that great in college, because if he was he wouldn’t be at his fourth school. Whenever a coach pulls out all the stops to get that “Special Player” 95% of the time it blows up in his face. Recruit the player as hard as you can and let him earn their stripes on the field. Don’t bend over backwards to anoit the player.
    Lastly, I’ve never heard of a QB who likes to get hit by a charging defensive player. You have to learn to deal with it and hang tough in the pocket. So when Wolf says, “He doesn’t like to get hit”, tell me who does.

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    1. I think what Scott was referring to is J.T.’s dangerous habit of freezing when he sees the blitz coming at him —he is a REALLY talented thrower but —if he sees somebody’s gotten through —he just clutches the ball and stands there….
      Remember how Clay sabotaged him further by leaving Toa at center? Toa was in such a hurry to block he just dribbled the ball to J. T —causing J. T. to scoop it up off the grass and lose a half second before he surveyed the field… after one game [in which J. T. got smeared repeatedly] Toa told Dan Weber “wow, ha ha, sorry J.T….ha ha.”
      #….ThenHeltonSaidHe”Loved”Toa

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      1. The dark days of SC football you dredge up, MG.
        My wish is that George Tirebiter will live so long that one day he will say, “Helton– I don’t recall the name”

        Liked by 2 people

  8. anquon fegans decommits. a sign that his brother is not happy in the program. this might be bad blood that he is not playing, or maybe he doesnt think the coaches know how to coach.

    it is time for riley to realize he will need to clean house on the coaches after this season.
    – donte, grinch, odom need to go
    – not sure about nua or manning
    – not sure if hensen also needs to go
    – kiel and simmons are great
    – wylie is probably good

    any coach that doesnt contribute to a national championship this year should be fired. if their players dont perform, it is on them.

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  9. I wuz hopin for some mor lady huskers updates, they get more paid customurs at one match than chip’s baby bruin pigskinners do for an entyre season.

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    1. I just did the numbers —over 6 home games the bruins come in at 94, 001 fans —beating out that Nebraska single game women’s volleyball match by 17 fans….
      #…OfCourseTheNebraskaFansAreCheering

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    2. What a great picture of the Nebraska women’s volleyball team coming out to a raucous 92,000 screaming fans. And they all had smiles that you would never see on any men’s teams.

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      1. USC was always having a blue chip basketball recruit stricken with a heart attack and we just didn’t notice it in the 1970s?

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