FOOTBALL

Morning Buzz: USC’s Got A Familiar Problem

It’s not a great sign when Lincoln Riley isn’t really naming anyone other than Elijah Paige or Mason Murphy at offensive tackle after the first spring practice and says depth is an issue.

Paige has a lot of potential but at this point remains unproven. Murphy has been up-and-down. But they are the starters. Jonah Monheim leaves a void by moving to center, even if you think that is a great move.

USC’s had mixed results in the transfer portal with offensive linemen so there’s no guarantee that will fix the issue.

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper said Tuesday that USC had a poor offensive line last season. That’s what I said for the past 2 years. But where was the evaluation of offensive line coach Josh Henson after the season? All we heard about were the defensive shortcomings. Keep an eye on the offensive line. Again.

  • Today is USC’s Pro Day. Caleb Williams is drawing all the attention because he is on track to be the No. 1 pick. But it’s actually a bigger day for players like cornerback Christian Roland-Wallace.

If Roland-Wallace tests well, NFL scouts say he will get drafted.

Wide receiver Brenden Rice will also be watched by a lot of scouts and he gets the luxury of catching passes from Williams today.

51 thoughts on “Morning Buzz: USC’s Got A Familiar Problem”

    2. Baseball, huh?– I recall after one exciting SC basketball season (pre-Andy) I took in a Dodgers game and it was so slow comparatively I left in the 3rd inning and haven’t been back since. But I always loved to play the game

      Glad to hear Wolfie beat out Kiper with the offensive line analysis however leaving out the part that Celeb may have been part of the problem

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      2. I had a cannon from CF, George, and shot down many runners at the plate from the age of 8-16. I could throw strikes all day long from CF!

        Coaches always figured I’d be great at the mound. But I was all over the place from that close. They’d bring me in once in a while, to close an inning or two. But never more than that and only when necessary.

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      3. I told some guys one week ago I could throw a golf ball into a big, open trash bin about 70 feet away from where we were standing — yeah, I threw it in …and I immediately grabbed my side [which STILL hurts]. You’re gonna be “disappointed” in me again , So Cal, but my first thought was ‘Gabby would be laughing his ass off if he saw this.’

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    2. Ha! [Except Italian girls and Sicilian girls are 2 different animals]…

      #DoYouEverWonderWhatDroveDearCarraRandFromThis Site?

      #WasItGrabby?

      #WasItMe?

      #WasItAHorse?OrAnElephant?

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  4. Yeah, George, that refreshes my memory of back in little league I developed a curveball and had to cover my face with my mitt so no one would see me laughing as the batters looked silly swinging at it

    SC needs help you say. Could be another 8-5 season with the possibility of 9-3 getting them in the playoffs

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    1. Riley can SAY whatever he wants about his O-Line coach —“Full confidence!” But the portal TELLS you what’s real. We’re not getting the guys we need cuz they KNOW they aren’t gonna get the quality coaching at USC they can get elsewhere.

      #ANewO-LineCoachWouldaAttractedBigTimeTalent…

      #….ButRileyDoesn’tGetIt

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      1. They have to be careful who they bring in after spring practice. Many times that portal acquisition coming after spring practice doesn’t work out. It turns out to be a player who just went through spring practice himself and he leaves because he is convinced he’s not going to start and he has probably less of a chance starting at SC.

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      1. We have had some talented players —but we lose people we should be getting to Clemson, Georgia, Alabama, Ohio State, Michigan and even Oregon. 

        #And,Then,ThereAreUnwantedMemoriesOfNotreDameGame

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  7. grabbbyy get’s it … the correct way to refer to the true demi-god is;

    “ye olde Vin-dawg” just a waggin’ it’s tail and mumbling “….hi there eberbuddy….it’s time for draftdodger ball….eberbuddy loves ne except that stinking bolshevik %##%^&!”

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  9. What we witnessed Notre Dame’s defensive line do to USC’s offensive line last season is something we’ll see more often than not next season in the Big Ten. The line of scrimmage has always been ignored in the Mike Leach/Lincoln Riley/Sonny Dykes system. Remember the results of the TCU vs Georgia National Championship Game? 😂

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      1. No, John –it’ll be fun to watch all the cool receptions and hero plays…

        #WeJustWon’tLikeTheWon/LossRecord

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    2. isn’t that the same ‘mantra’ we were served every New Year’s Day prior to the Rise Bowl of how ‘….USC has never faced the speed ‘blah blah blah’ of the: PA St OH St, MI, MI St…..’ idiocy? Funny how that nevet seems to pan out.

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      2. Man, do I hope you’re right about our future prospects, Alv…

        [Remember, though, in recent years we REALLY couldn’t match the power of Wisconsin, Iowa, Ohio State ….or even Tulane]…..

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      4. Sparrow you’re citing games played +/-70 yrs ago….reminds one of ‘the princess’ prowess …. 36 yrs and counting…..this is a great opportunity for USC with all the coaching changes throughout the Big 10 and Riley knowing his entire career is squarely ‘on-the-line’

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    3. LR has got to get back to the offense he ran at Oklahoma. When he was OC at East Carolina he ran an air raid offense. He will still too close to Mike Leach. He changed his offense when he went to Oklahoma and that offense was explosive. He went more to an offense that was much like Chip Kellys offense or even last years Oregon offense. It was a sort of spread offense with short yardage packages that had 2 tight ends and an H-Back. For 7 years at Oklahoma he ran the ball 55% of the time and threw it 45%. No air raid offense runs the ball 55% of the time. Since he’s come to SC he’s started to drift back. In 2022 he only ran the ball 47% of the time and in 2023(when KK was there) he ran it 43% of the time. He needs to get back to the Oklahoma offense.

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      1. agreed…..and to do that he needs one of the 10 best O-LIne coaches in the country…..

        #ReachOut,Lincoln

        #[btw,”Lincoln”IsAMan’sName,PresidentBiden]…

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  10. I like this O-Line coach that they have. He’s had 15 solid years coaching the O-Line at big schools and he’s only 48 years old. But I’m sorry they weren’t able to bring over the O-Line coach he had at OIklahoma(Beidenbaum). That guy was really a great O-Line coach. But I do like this guy.

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    1. Bill Bedenbaugh woulda been perfect. He coached O-Line for Leach! He was Riley’s Offensive Coordinator at Oklahoma! We didn’t get him cuz we wouldn’t pay what he was asking. Dumb, dumb mistake…. that has cost us big time.

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      1. Well then we missed out on a really good O-Line coach. In 2022, Oklahoma averaged 219 YPG rushing and in 2023 182 YPG. But I still do like Josh Henson

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  11. I recall the excitement of the “foreign crowds” when Carrot’s SC teams went marching into Auburn, Nebraska, Ohio St and Oregon, and I would imagine the Michigan crowd will be worked up when the Trojans come a-calling.

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