The Wrap: Saturday was a step forward for USC’s coaching staff

Alright, I’ll admit it: I’m sold.

I must caution you, that’s really not saying much. When it comes to USC football, I tend to sell faster than useless Christmas gifts from your local Macy’s on Black Friday. (‘Tis the season, after all.) 

But I’m sold. I saw mostly (but not quite entirely) everything I needed to see but didn’t in the Trojans’ first two games against Arizona State and Arizona: an improved offensive line, a competent linebacker corps, a new and improved sophomore quarterback Kedon Slov- oops, OK, maybe not that. 

There’s one aspect of the game, though, that USC improved upon mightily from those first two atrocities that I don’t think all Trojan fans are quite prepared to admit.

So please, indulge me as I knock you off your high horse a bit and implore you to reckon with your unwavering biases by spending 1,300 words partaking in the sole activity USC fans hate more than losing to UCLA: praising the coaching staff. 

And yes, that includes the main guy.

Let’s start with the coach who has been the most prominent contributor to Trojan fans’ agony this season, offensive coordinator Graham Harrell. 

I start with Harrell in part because I prefer to save the best for last, and Harrell’s was the most marginal improvement in Week 3. The run game still needs work, and USC needs to figure out how to more effectively beat drop-eight coverage. (Note: Stop using opposing teams’ offseason coaching overhauls or early-season idleness as an excuse in advance for not knowing what coverage you’ll see. It’s literally drop-eight. Figure it out.) 

Still, the few times Harrell’s unit saw man coverage, the Trojans ran wild, as they should. They managed to put 33 points on the board without their two best running backs and with a Slovis who continues to puzzle USC fans everywhere with his enigmatic, inconsistent and inaccurate play. 

Sophomore running back Usain Bolt — I mean, Kenan Christon — has been perhaps the most unutilized weapon for a Trojan offense that seriously lacks speed. His increased role in Week 3 was a positive sign, even though Harrell’s hand was forced by the aforementioned injuries to redshirt sophomore Markese Stepp and senior Stephen Carr. Even though I’d still like to see Christon get more than five carries a game, hey, progress is progress. 

Redshirt senior running back Vavae Malepeai’s workload of 20 carries, the most by a USC back all season, inched USC’s run-pass attack to a more balanced 40-26 split (five of the rushes were Slovis scrambles on pass plays), which at first seems lopsided. But with Stepp and Carr out, and given how many screens, drag routes and checkdowns USC ran, I’ll take it.

In addition, the increased usage of redshirt freshman receiver Bru McCoy (team-highs of eight targets and 66 yards) particularly on screen plays and the elevated role of senior tight end Erik Krommenhoek in the red zone were good signs for the offense and roles that USC should look to utilize more moving forward. 

Finally, the red zone struggles that plagued USC all season plagued it slightly less Saturday, with the Trojans scoring in five of their six red zone opportunities — and it would’ve been six-for-six were it not for a route miscommunication between Slovis and Krommenhoek that led to an interception.

Harrell and his offense have work to do; zero touchdowns in the second half is inexcusable even though the Trojans were basically in clock-draining mode by the fourth quarter. 

Still, this is a team that didn’t score a third-quarter touchdown in either of the first two weeks and twice had to come back late partially because the offense had been bad all game. There’s a lot to clean up, but Saturday was a baby step in the right direction. 

Part of that moderate red zone improvement was due to head coach Clay Helton, who seemed to have reigned in his over-aggressive approach on fourth-and-short in lieu of taking sure points — courtesy of freshman Parker Lewis, probably the most swole kicker in college football.

One drive stood out in particular. In the first quarter, USC had the ball at Utah’s 18-yard line on fourth-and-3. As had been his approach all season, I expected Helton would go for it, especially because USC was only down 3, the ball was on the left hash for a righty kicker and Lewis had missed a chip shot from seven yards closer in Week 2. 

But getting the hint that USC is about as effective on fourth-and-short as my high school football team (which doesn’t exist), Helton took the points instead, maybe — and I’m aware I’m wading into deep speculation here — boosting Lewis’ confidence and helping him nail three field goals (including two from more than 40 yards) in the second half. 

It was a theme that continued throughout the night, as USC didn’t go for it on fourth down all game. And while that number doesn’t have to stay there forever — I don’t mind a little gambling — the only Clay Helton worse than under-aggressive Clay Helton is over-aggressive Clay Helton when USC lacks the short-yardage chops to come through.

Helton also managed the clock effectively down the stretch, drawing out drives and leaving Utah with little time to pull off a miracle. And after the Utes took momentum into halftime by drawing within one possession less than a minute before the break, the Trojans seemed like an invigorated bunch in the final 30 minutes, which can be partially attributed to Helton as well. 

Look, I get it. Should Helton have even still been around to coach that game or any this season in the first place? Probably not. 

But hey, he’s here. So while we can and should continue to hold Helton’s feet to the fire when necessary, we can still give credit where credit’s due the other 5% of the time. It was due Saturday.

Alright, defensive coordinator Todd Orlando, now’s your time. 

During the game I saw a tweet from Pac-12 insider Jon Wilner, also known as “The Hotline,” that Saturday was the best play-calling from a USC defensive coordinator in years. While that statement is somewhat similar to calling this the worst coronavirus pandemic of the 21st century, Orlando’s job in Salt Lake City is still worthy of praise.

USC’s defense was the star of the show. The unit allowed only 10 points all game. Its linebackers, namely junior Kana’i Mauga and sophomore Ralen Goforth, stepped up big time in the absence of injured but also underperforming junior Palaie Gaoteote IV. Together they compiled 23 total tackles and closed up the lanes through which each opposing quarterback in the first two weeks ran rampant. 

There was not a slow start for this USC defense, only an especially dominant finish. Mauga, my Week 3 MVP, set the tone early with two tackles on Utah’s game-opening three-and-out and kept the heat on all game. The Trojans stifled the Utes’ rushing attack and laid a couple goose eggs on the scoreboard in the second half. The defensive line was the best it’s been all season, certainly aided by the return of senior Brandon Pili. The secondary was great and capitalized on myriad quarterback miscues.

Perhaps the most impressive part of Orlando’s game was that he went into it blind. The Utes, in head coach Kyle Whittingham’s typical and infuriating yet smart fashion, didn’t name their starting quarterback until about half an hour before kickoff.

Nonetheless, Orlando seemed more prepared than he’s been all season, and USC quickly made sophomore starter Cameron Rising look more like Cameron Falling (sorry, that was really bad). When Rising went down with an injury in the second quarter after a sack inside Utah’s own 10-yard line, one of many plays that made USC’s defensive line look like the reincarnation of the Wild Bunch, senior Jake Bentley came in and played even worse.

USC’s D-line was finally finishing plays at and behind the line of scrimmage, the middle of the field was hardly ever left open like it was the first couple weeks, the group gave Utah no life toward the end of the game and it managed to pry the ball away a staggering five times. Though Utah looked horrendous, Orlando was behind much of USC’s success. 

I’ve been hard on him. At risk of sounding too pretentious, I’ve been right to be hard on him, as the first two weeks were abysmal. But this week was magnificent. 

And on the whole, Week 3’s win over Utah was a step forward for all three of USC’s most influential coaches when it comes to game time. It was an overdue step for one, a step the size of Bigfoot’s for another and a baby step for another, but nonetheless, all were steps in the right direction for a USC team that might be starting to put it together. 

Nathan Ackerman is a junior writing about USC football. He is also an associate managing editor of the Daily Trojan. His column, “The Wrap,” runs every Monday during football season.