USC redshirt freshman safety Isaiah Pola-Mao to undergo season-ending shoulder surgery

After suffering a disappointing 37-14 loss to Texas Saturday night, more bad news came to the USC Trojans way on Monday.

During his daily press conference, coach Clay Helton announced that redshirt freshman safety Isaiah Pola-Mao will undergo shoulder surgery on Thursday for his shoulder that he dislocated against Stanford in Week 2, which held him out against the Texas Longhorns. The surgery will sideline the Phoenix native for the remainder of the year, striking another blow to a Trojan secondary that is already lacking depth at the safety position.

Pola-Mao, who’s uncle is Trojan legend and future Pro Football Hall of Fame safety Troy Polamalu, was quickly promoted to a starter after Ykili Ross decided to transfer out before the beginning of the season and Bubba Bolden being sidelined for the first three games of the season.

The 6-foot-4 Pola-Mao was tied for a team-high seven tackles in the season opener against UNLV. There’s no question that Pola-Mao’s size and presence in the secondary will be missed, especially since there is no sign that Bolden will be ready to go for Friday night’s contest against Washington State, according to the OC Register’s Joey Kauffman.