The first thing that came to mind when reviewing last night’s practice was that there’s a lot to like about USC’s trio of freshman receivers. There are a few guys on the roster you can instantly spot just based on look or running style, and Shi Smith is one of him. He’s an explosive runner and sudden in his movements, similar to Deebo Samuel in that regard. He’s a guy that can be a deep threat or an intermediate target who can make some things happen after the catch.
OrTre Smith plucked a pass seemingly out of the ground last night and also had a circus catch down the sideline during a team period in which I didn’t think there was any way he caught the ball. He’s always had that big-catch ability and if he stays consistent in his hands, he can be a really good player. Chad Terrell is sort of the forgotten man for some reason, likely because the other two guys are more household names and in-state guys. Terrell, though, is also a potential good one. He can track the ball in the air and knows how to get open.
Speaking of forgotten man, Terry Googer did some nice things in drill work. I think he’s still a reliable option for USC out wide. He can certainly help when called upon and has experience playing special teams, too.
Watching Rashad Fenton play corner and return punts last night I was reminded of Athlon’s recent piece in which the magazine quoted anonymous SEC coaches. In that feature, one SEC coach called Fenton “a millionaire walking” if he could put it all together. I can see why that was said based on the flashes he shows. He looks different out there as a return man as far as his explosiveness, and he has very good coverage ability out on an island. He had two big pass breakups on balls intended for Deebo Samuel during the team work in which he had excellent coverage.
I would not be surprised if Javon Charleston pulls down some legitimate snaps at safety this season, given that Jaylin Dickerson’s out and USC is short on depth. Even so, Charleston has done a nice job. He has some athletic tools and I saw Will Muschamp (who coaches safeties for USC) complimenting him during some of the individual drill work. Keisean Nixon moves around well but he’s still getting acclimated to things, it seems. There’s a pretty steep learning curve for the safeties who arrive as newcomers in the summer. He could certainly still help this season.
Some of the returns from preseason on the two scholarship backups, Michael Scarnecchia and Jay Urich, were a bit better than I’d anticipated. We got our first real look at both in a full practice setting on Saturday night. Urich has good size, he can run, and he does flash the ability to throw the ball. This redshirt season will be good for him to continue learning and progressing not only in the offense, but with his skills as a quarterback. Scarnecchia was up and down in the scrimmage situations, I thought, as he misfired on some deep balls and had a few in the intermediate game that were not quite on target. He does seem to do a pretty good job of getting the ball off on time, which is a point of emphasis with the offense. He could be a serviceable option if pressed into action as your “game manager” type, but the lack of depth behind Jake Bentley is still scary.
The more I see of freshman (and former four-star prospect) Aaron Sterling, the more there is to like. I cannot say I was very surprised, given what we’d heard this summer and early in preseason camp about the strides he’s made. He’s worked his way up the depth chart and is certainly going to be helping as a defensive end in year one. Sterling is such an interesting prospect because he doesn’t have the protypical size but he’s very quick and plays with outstanding leverage. He really exemplifies the “low man wins” phrase you hear regarding line play. During USC’s Oklahoma-style drill early in practice, Sterling was so low that he seemed to be scraping the ground, defeated his block, and got his hands on the ball carrier. He also had a really nice pressure during a scrimmage situation on a rollout play.
It's still hard, even if we got to see multiple open practices, to sense how much improvement USC can make in stopping the run, rushing the passer, etc. One thing Will Muschamp has pointed out is that the team is better in defeating blocks and filling gaps. That's certainly a start in that area.
Taylor Stallworth is really good at using his hands and is a strong guy. He always flashes in the drill work with that type stuff.
Javon Kinlaw is a massive guy who can fill up some space, and I think he'll eventually get to where he can be more and more impactful as his time in Columbia continues. At least at this stage, he may be more of a situational player who can pull down a certain number of snaps in a game. He'll probably play more against certain teams than others, if I had to guess.
Things could certainly change, but there were a few defensive linemen I noticed working with what appeared to be South Carolina’s defensive scout team. Redshirt freshman Aaron Thompson, true freshman MJ Webb, and redshirt sophomore Shameik Blackshear were all working with that group. I noticed true freshman linebacker Damani Staley in that group as well.
Newly enrolled offensive lineman Jordon Carty was just in a helmet and shorts as he continues to go through the acclimatization period, but he is a large individual. To give you a reference point, he looked bigger than some of the offensive linemen he was standing next to who were in full pads.
We got to watch the kickers – Alexander Woznick and Parker White – hit some field goals last night. Those guys, plus punter Joseph Charlton, all have ample leg strength. I do get the sense that there could be some worries about consistency throughout the year, however.
We’ve seen some different iterations of pass-rush packages throughout preseason camp. It seems Bryson Allen-Williams is going to be doing a good bit of pass-rushing in those packages. I also think that a guy like Sterling could step up and work his way into those situations as time goes on.
I tried to put eyes on Sherrod Greene a good bit last night, given what USC thought of him during the recruiting process and the fact that he'll play a lot this season. What I saw appeared positive; he looks like he knows what he's doing out there and seems to be around the ball a lot and in the right spots in coverage.
Didn’t cover something on which you wanted more information? Just ask, I’ll be glad to answer.
OrTre Smith plucked a pass seemingly out of the ground last night and also had a circus catch down the sideline during a team period in which I didn’t think there was any way he caught the ball. He’s always had that big-catch ability and if he stays consistent in his hands, he can be a really good player. Chad Terrell is sort of the forgotten man for some reason, likely because the other two guys are more household names and in-state guys. Terrell, though, is also a potential good one. He can track the ball in the air and knows how to get open.
Speaking of forgotten man, Terry Googer did some nice things in drill work. I think he’s still a reliable option for USC out wide. He can certainly help when called upon and has experience playing special teams, too.
Watching Rashad Fenton play corner and return punts last night I was reminded of Athlon’s recent piece in which the magazine quoted anonymous SEC coaches. In that feature, one SEC coach called Fenton “a millionaire walking” if he could put it all together. I can see why that was said based on the flashes he shows. He looks different out there as a return man as far as his explosiveness, and he has very good coverage ability out on an island. He had two big pass breakups on balls intended for Deebo Samuel during the team work in which he had excellent coverage.
I would not be surprised if Javon Charleston pulls down some legitimate snaps at safety this season, given that Jaylin Dickerson’s out and USC is short on depth. Even so, Charleston has done a nice job. He has some athletic tools and I saw Will Muschamp (who coaches safeties for USC) complimenting him during some of the individual drill work. Keisean Nixon moves around well but he’s still getting acclimated to things, it seems. There’s a pretty steep learning curve for the safeties who arrive as newcomers in the summer. He could certainly still help this season.
Some of the returns from preseason on the two scholarship backups, Michael Scarnecchia and Jay Urich, were a bit better than I’d anticipated. We got our first real look at both in a full practice setting on Saturday night. Urich has good size, he can run, and he does flash the ability to throw the ball. This redshirt season will be good for him to continue learning and progressing not only in the offense, but with his skills as a quarterback. Scarnecchia was up and down in the scrimmage situations, I thought, as he misfired on some deep balls and had a few in the intermediate game that were not quite on target. He does seem to do a pretty good job of getting the ball off on time, which is a point of emphasis with the offense. He could be a serviceable option if pressed into action as your “game manager” type, but the lack of depth behind Jake Bentley is still scary.
The more I see of freshman (and former four-star prospect) Aaron Sterling, the more there is to like. I cannot say I was very surprised, given what we’d heard this summer and early in preseason camp about the strides he’s made. He’s worked his way up the depth chart and is certainly going to be helping as a defensive end in year one. Sterling is such an interesting prospect because he doesn’t have the protypical size but he’s very quick and plays with outstanding leverage. He really exemplifies the “low man wins” phrase you hear regarding line play. During USC’s Oklahoma-style drill early in practice, Sterling was so low that he seemed to be scraping the ground, defeated his block, and got his hands on the ball carrier. He also had a really nice pressure during a scrimmage situation on a rollout play.
It's still hard, even if we got to see multiple open practices, to sense how much improvement USC can make in stopping the run, rushing the passer, etc. One thing Will Muschamp has pointed out is that the team is better in defeating blocks and filling gaps. That's certainly a start in that area.
Taylor Stallworth is really good at using his hands and is a strong guy. He always flashes in the drill work with that type stuff.
Javon Kinlaw is a massive guy who can fill up some space, and I think he'll eventually get to where he can be more and more impactful as his time in Columbia continues. At least at this stage, he may be more of a situational player who can pull down a certain number of snaps in a game. He'll probably play more against certain teams than others, if I had to guess.
Things could certainly change, but there were a few defensive linemen I noticed working with what appeared to be South Carolina’s defensive scout team. Redshirt freshman Aaron Thompson, true freshman MJ Webb, and redshirt sophomore Shameik Blackshear were all working with that group. I noticed true freshman linebacker Damani Staley in that group as well.
Newly enrolled offensive lineman Jordon Carty was just in a helmet and shorts as he continues to go through the acclimatization period, but he is a large individual. To give you a reference point, he looked bigger than some of the offensive linemen he was standing next to who were in full pads.
We got to watch the kickers – Alexander Woznick and Parker White – hit some field goals last night. Those guys, plus punter Joseph Charlton, all have ample leg strength. I do get the sense that there could be some worries about consistency throughout the year, however.
We’ve seen some different iterations of pass-rush packages throughout preseason camp. It seems Bryson Allen-Williams is going to be doing a good bit of pass-rushing in those packages. I also think that a guy like Sterling could step up and work his way into those situations as time goes on.
I tried to put eyes on Sherrod Greene a good bit last night, given what USC thought of him during the recruiting process and the fact that he'll play a lot this season. What I saw appeared positive; he looks like he knows what he's doing out there and seems to be around the ball a lot and in the right spots in coverage.
Didn’t cover something on which you wanted more information? Just ask, I’ll be glad to answer.
