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Yesterday, the USC Trojans returned to the practice field for the first time since their 31-28 victory over Stanford in the PAC-12 championship over a week ago.
Helton began his post practice press conference detailing the matchup against Ohio State, highlighting QB JT Barrett as a 3000 yard passer and 700 yard rusher as well as pass rusher Joey Bosa as a “tackle-for-loss nightmare”.
Moving onto the practice, Helton noted both defensive back Jack Jones and running back Ronald Jones II were kept out of practice for precautionary reasons with their ankle injuries. Offensive lineman Andrew Voorhies was held out today as he finishes concussion protocol, wide receiver Velus Jones was pulled from practice for an ankle injury, and finally Tyler Vaughns sat out with an injured shoulder (AC joint).
It was recently announced Tyson Helton, quarterback coach for the Trojans, would be leaving to the University of Tennessee to become the new offensive coordinator. When asked about the news of Tyson Helton, his younger brother, Clay said this, “[I’m] really proud of what Tysons accomplished here, helping us win a Rose Bowl as well as a PAC-12 Championship,” stating he believes USC has some of the best coaches in college football on staff, while finishing with, “I’m proud of him and thankful for him for the job he’s done.”
Offensive assistant Bryan Ellis will be filling in Tysons role until the bowl game, working one-on-one with Sam Darnold in preparation for one of the best defenses in the country in Ohio State. Offensive coordinator Tee Martin will also being worker closely with Darnold, as he works on preparing a solid game plan against a strictly man-coverage Buckeyes secondary.
These extra practices between the regular season and bowl game cannot be overlooked, as it serves as a great opportunity for players who saw limited action this season to showcase their skill in front of the coaching staff. This helps build their case to play during not only in the bowl game, but down the road in the 2018 season.
USC has a little over two weeks to prepare until they kickoff against Ohio State, December 29th at 8:30 pm ET.