TrojanNYC.com

Top Rated WR Kyle Prater Commits to USC

From Rivals.com:

"The coaching staff (was the reason) more than anything, and, after taking all my other visits, the trip to USC was the nail in the coffin," Prater, 6-foot-4, 215-pounds, said. "I felt that because of my relationship with the coaches and the players, it's a place that I had to be.

"When I sat down with Coach Carroll, Coach Morton and Coach Norton the day I was leaving, we were just talking about the visit and the practice, it was just right."

Big-time commitment, but not one that will shock anyone.  After Kyle made an unofficial visit to SC last month, it was clear that he was leaning heavily to SC. His pending commitment was later confirmed when SC backed off Kenny Stills telling him they only wanted to take two receivers in this class; the 1st being Robert Woods and the 2nd being Prater.

Kyle is currently rated the #1 WR on the Rivals100, #2 WR on Scout.com, and the #8 WR on ESPNU150; at this point I have to lean towards the ESPNU ranking in terms of assessment.  Based on what I've seen, Kyle is a bit raw in terms of route-running and doesn't necessarily have the speed to get separation on defensive backs.  Where he will be expected to excel is in the short-to-intermediate routes and the red-zone using his 6'5 height and long arms to beat defenders on jump balls.  Even in that area, I've seen much better body control and jump-ball ability from receivers like Dez Bryant in HS (4" shorter than Prater). It might sound like I'm being overly harsh, but it comes with the territory of being a top-rated player at a position.  Kyle reminds me of a less-polished Patrick Turner coming out of HS, which makes me hesitant to jump on the elite WR bandwagon; in fact I think they have the exact same ranking and their measurables are almost identical.

In terms of Kyle's potential fit in SC's system (different from his individual assessment), I really like the potential combination of Prater, Robert Woods, and possibly George Farmer in 2011.  That is an excellent set of receivers that fit the X, Y, and Z spots perfectly.  With Woods out wide and Farmer in the slot (or a guy like Flournoy), Kyle will have a lot of opportunity to hit his spots on the field and use his frame to shield off guys.

Video: Great VERSUS Sports Montage With Clips of Patrick Turner, Rey Maualuga, Joe McKnight and the Dreaded Mozique McCurtis Misplay

Very inspirational.

USC Dominates 2009 NFL Draft with 11 Players Taken

Final list of players drafted:

1st Round, 5th:  Mark Sanchez, QB - NY Jets

1st Round, 15th:  Brian Cushing, OLB - Houston Texans

1st Round, 26th:  Clay Matthews, OLB - Green Bay Packers

2nd Round, 6th:  Rey Maualuga, ILB - Cincinnati Bengals

2nd Round, 24th:  Fili Moala, DT - Indianapolis Colts

3rd Round, 23rd:  Patrick Turner, WR - Miami Dolphins

4th Round, 4th:  Kaluka Maiava, OLB - Cleveland Browns

4th Round, 17th:  Kyle Moore, DE - Tampa Bay Buccaneers

5th Round, 36th:  David Buehler, K - Dallas Cowboys

6th Round, 10th:  Cary Harris, CB - Buffalo Bills

6th Round, 16th:  Kevin Ellison, SS - San Diego Chargers

USC led the way with 11 players taken; Ohio State had the 2nd most with 7 players.  Coach Herm Edwards had this to say about SC:

"If you want to play pro football and you're a young high school athlete, you know going to USC is going to give you the best opportunity system-wise and competitive-wise on the field."

"That's what USC brings to the table. That's why historically, year-after-year you see all these players coming into the league. Do they all make it? No, but you have an opportunity."

Take note recruits ;-).

USC Pro Day: Rey Makes Up for Combine Performance

photo from uscripsit.com

From USCRipsIt.com:

- LB Brian Cushing: 4.67 and 4.73
- S Kevin Ellison: 4.75
- CB Cary Harris: 4.68
- LB Kaluka Maiava: 4.66 and 4.68
- LB Clay Matthews: 4.58
- LB Rey Maualuga: 4.69
- DE Kyle Moore: 4.77
- WR Patrick Turner: 4.59

Biggest gain today was from Rey who ran a 40-time that was clocked between high 4.5's to low 4.7's. This was a big improvement over his disappointing showing at the NFL combine where he tweaked his hamstring during the run.

Cary Harris once again struggled with the 40, but Todd McShay said it was due to a knee injury.  I agree with Todd, and most SC fans, that Cary and Kevin Ellison are two picks that will go late due to their less-than-spectacular results at the work-outs, but prove to be ballers at the next level.

Looks like Mark, Cush, Rey, and Clay have solidified themselves as 1st round picks, which will make 2009 the 2nd year in a row that SC will produce 4 players in the 1st round.  That streak could possibly continue next year with Taylor Mays, Shareece Wright, Damian Williams, and a guy like Charles Brown if he can put together a great year.

USC Leads the Way With 12 Invitees to NFL Combine

Here's the list of invitees:

Mark Sanchez - QB
Brian Cushing - OLB
Rey Maualuga - ILB/MLB
Clay Matthews Jr. - WDE/OLB
Kevin Ellison - SS
Cary Harris - CB
Kaluka Maiava - OLB
Fili Moala - DT
Kyle Moore - DE
Josh Pinkard - CB/FS
Patrick Turner - WR
David Buehler - Kicker

The list above is just ridiculous.  Every player on there (minus David Buehler) has a shot at being a 1st day pick.  Digging deeper, you have 5 potential 1st rounders in Mark, Cush, Rey, Clay, and Fili plus three legitimate sleeper picks in Kevin Ellison, Kaluka Maiava, and Cary Harris.  Both PT and Kyle Moore can be solid contributors if placed in the right situations; Kyle was actually a surprise performer at the Senior Bowl.

As for Josh Pinkard, he's made his intentions clear that he'll return for his 6th year if he is granted eligilibity by the NCAA.  If Josh comes back, he'll likely start in the FS role alongside Taylor Mays who is looking to play closer to the line.  In Nickle packages, we'd see Josh slide over and Will Harris step in.  Considering Josh was once one of our more talented players on defense, he can definitely boost his draft stock with a solid injury-free season.

Senior Bowl Notes

From SportingNews.com:

Best first impression: LB Brian Cushing, an All-American from Southern Cal, showed up to the weigh-in cutting an imposing 6-3, 243-pound frame. However, he failed to impress in the same manner at practice.

Strongest man: DT Fili Moala, a 6-4 and 303-pounder from Southern Cal, stood out from the rest with his strength, at one point scooping up an offensive lineman and tossing him aside in a pass-rush drill.

Best catch: After struggling for much of the afternoon, WR Patrick Turner of Southern Cal laid out to haul in a badly overthrown pass.

Based on reports I've read, Clay Matthews and Brian Cushing's stock are rising; Rey has struggled in individual drills.  Fili seems to be a player that has something to prove during this week.  The knock on him is consistency and discipline.  He's a 1st day lock, but ranging anywhere between late 1st-mid 3rd.

One non-SC player that is getting a lot of praise is Alphonso Smith, the CB out of Wake Forest.  In almost every game I watched him in this past season, he flat out dominated.  Very good looking player that doesn't get enough credit. 

TNYC Oregon State Review

Gotta love our defense, here's the review:

Positive - Defensive Pressure

• The defense brought the pressure and Sean Canfield ended up being sacked 9 times.  The game-plan was an easy call to make considering the questionable status of OSU's star all-purpose back, Yvenson Bernard, and the immobility and poor decision-making skills of Sean Canfield, but that doesn't take away from the execution of the defense itself.
  

Negative - Non-Existent 2nd Half Offense

• Our drives in the 2nd half:

1st Drive - 4 and out
2nd Drive - 3 and out
3rd Drive - 3 and out
4th Drive - 3 and out
5th Drive - 7 and out
6th Drive - 5 and end of the game

Simply pathetic.  The inconsistency of our offense continues to be the bane of this team. 

Player of the Game - The Entire Defense

• Tempting to give it to a player like Everson Griffen, but the defense played solid as a unit.  For example, after Everson's 1st sack, it was Thomas Williams who had a nice pass break-up across the middle which helped set up 3rd and long giving Everson the green light to blow outside and get to Sean Canfield once again.  Sequences of plays like the one just mentioned happened throughout the game and therefore the entire defense should be awarded. 
  

Play of the Game - JDB to Patrick Turner for 13 Yard TD

• PT threw some nice stutter steps off the line gaining a step on Brandon Hughes up the sideline; JDB then threw a nice pass over the top of Brandon and into the fully extended arms of PT.  Nice throw and catch.
  

Final Thoughts - Defense Against Cal

• Watching how this defense responded to the more free and loose defensive game-plan on Saturday gives me hope that the same type of pressure will be brought against Cal and Nate Longshore.  Of course it will need to be tightened against Cal's explosive players, but the key to this game will be making Nate feel uncomfortable in the pocket and forcing him to try and make plays on the run.  Our safeties need to come up big this week not only in support against Hawkins/Jackson, but also in being active and waiting to capitalize on errant throws.   

Should be a tough game this Saturday.  It doesn't matter that Cal has been playing mediocre the past few weeks, they will wake up for this game and our defense will need to step up big to help out, once again, our struggling offense.  Hopefully JDB can get in-sync with the receivers this week...

TNYC Nebraska Review

Here are my thoughts on last night's game:

• Positive - O-Line Play
  

• I think there's a consensus agreement that the biggest positive from last night's game was the play of the O-Line.  They were in sync the entire night and opened up giant holes.  I, like many, am wowed by Kristofer O'Dowd's play. 

• Negative - Special Teams
  

• As I mentioned back in my Fall Scrimmage report, I don't feel comfortable with Vincent Joseph returning kicks.  I'm not basing this entirely on his fumble, I personally think he makes bad decisions and always tries to break it instead of going with his blockers. 

Also, not having enough players on the extra point was flat out embarrassing and Joe McKnight nearly had the ball bounce off his leg after misjudging a punt.  Also, how in the world do you kick-off to start both halves?

• Player of the Game - Stafon Johnson

• For two games in a row, I'm giving the POG to Stafon.  Again, he showed great vision in picking the right holes and ran hard - plain and simple running.  The spin move off the broken play was outstanding.  If there's any knock against Stafon it's his lack of breakaway speed, but you really can't complain about his performance at this point. 
  

• Play of the Game - Sedrick Ellis Knocking Brett Byford on His Butt

• Watching Big Sed explode off the snap and knock Byford on his rear-end was easily the play of the game for me.  Sedrick was absolutely unstoppable and was held blatantly on a couple plays.  He's easily been the star of the defense IMO. 

• Game-ball - Steve Sarkisian

• The offensive calls last night were beautiful.  All the misdirection plays and decoys had Nebraska confused the entire night.  I think I remember letting out a nice sigh at the relief of knowing that Lane Kiffin is all but a distant memory. 
  

• Final Thoughts... - Gaining Momentum/Patrick Turner's Lackluster Game

• You can feel the momentum building.  With the first big test out of the way, I think the team will hit their stride this coming Saturday against Washington State at the Coliseum.  I fully expect a big win this week. 

• Don't give up on PT just yet; let's remember that this is his 1st game of the season.  With that said, my expectations for him this season aren't as high as some.  He's talented, but I don't think he'll ever live up to the hype he received as the #1 HS receiver in the nation.  You might say it's ludicrous to say such a thing based on scant proof, but there's just something missing in his game... 

So a very impressive game overall.  I'm looking forward to reading humorous pre-game/post-game quotes from Bill Doba this week...

TNYC Fall Scrimmage Report

Watched the scrimmage today and these are the things that jumped out at me:

• Best Player:  Stafon Johnson
  
  • I was going to say a tie between Stafon and Chauncey, but I really liked the way Stafon hit the holes.  When Stafon scored his 2nd TD, you saw a little bit of everything:  setting up a block, nice cut/burst, and great vision.  Credit to C.J. Gable for his performance last season, but in my mind, Stafon is clearly the #2 tailback. 

• Biggest Surprise:  Brandon Carswell
  
  • Ran very nice routes and showed great hands on a few catches. 

• Biggest Disappointment:  Patrick Turner, Fred Davis, and JDB
  
  • Patrick Turner was nonexistent the entire scrimmage.  I saw him suited up and on the field, but I don't recall him being in any play. 
  • Fred Davis dropped a few balls that hit him square in the chest.  To me that's disappointing considering he's an All-American candidate and starting senior. 
  • I know Coach Carroll praised JDB's performance and his stats look good on paper, but his incompletions were all balls that could have been intercepted.  He had one pass where he nearly the WR/TE in the back.  He rushed another pass to Anthony McCoy.  He forced a throw on a post route to David Ausberry that would have been intercepted by an above-average CB.  Am I saying JDB is a bad QB?  No, but I still think he's an average QB when pass protection is anything less than par.

• Play of the Game:  Allen Bradford's 30 Yard Run
  • Yeah, I know Stafon's run where he sped down the sideline and cutback to the middle was exciting, and I also know Vidal's TD catch where he had to readjust and make a leaping grab was great as well, but none of them came against the 1st team defense.  The way Allen made Rey miss in the backfield and then turned it up a gear and sped past Kevin Ellison for a 30 yard gain was outstanding. 

• Overlooked Play of the Game:  Taylor Mays closing the gap on Allen Bradford
  
  • I've seen no mention of this play.  Allen took the handoff going left and made a great cut in the opposite direction that literally opened up an entire side of the field.  As he sped past the outside DE/LB, Taylor Mays came racing in, cut the angle, and took Allen down.  I think Allen gained less than 10 yards on that play, but it should have been a 15+ yard run.

• Most Embarrassing Play of the Game:  Ronald Johnson's Kick Return
  • So RoJo hesitates and drops the ball but luckily it doesn't get away from him.  He then runs laterally and shows nice burst up the middle and towards the sideline.  All that stood before RoJo and the end zone was Joe Houston and Thomas Williams (same team).  Instead of racing away from Joe by continuing up the sideline, he decides to cut back towards the middle of the field, which confuses Thomas Williams causing him to run right by Joe and he ends up being tackled.  If you didn't know already, Joe Houston is a KICKER. 

• Straight Beastin':  Sedrick Ellis
  
  • Did his usual job of clogging the middle, but what really impressed me was his ability to run down Allen Bradford and prevent him from turning up field.  You could see the two jawing at each other from the several run-ins.

• Other Random Thoughts:
  • Desmond Reed should be the punt returner.
  • I'm not sold on Vincent Joseph being the kick returner.  Yes, he averaged 20+ yards on his returns, but he also made several bad decisions (e.g. choosing to try and leap frog Cary Harris and nearly coughing up the ball in the process). 
  • Shareece Wright would have had the hit of the day, if he was allowed to hit the QB. 
  • At the moment, I think Josh Pinkard deserves to start over Taylor Mays.  He showed great coverage one-on-one. 

Overall, I came away impressed with the team.  I don't think we'll be as dominant as some people are claiming, but we are definitely NC caliber. 

Tuesday Top 3

• Is Patrick Turner the next big thing?

“It’s my junior year, so I just have to accept it,” he said. “My goal is to catch anything that comes near me, really, and just be productive in any way I can help the team get a championship.”

Turner, who caught 164 passes in three seasons as a starter at Goodpasture, has no regrets about choosing to chase a dream 2,000 miles from home.

“It’s been a great experience,” he said. “L.A. is way different from Tennessee, but I’ve learned a lot out here and have grown. It’s been a fun ride.”

It’s a ride that might be just getting started.

From Nashville City Paper.

• USC leads for New Jersey LB and Brian Cushing clone, Brendan Beal:

"USC is one of the top programs in the country," he said. "I love coach Ken Norton (linebackers) and his style of defense. He has NFL experience and I like coach Pete Carroll too. He uses what he has and lets guys play early. They develop their players well and they play in one of the of best stages in college football. Also most people don't know that they have a top-10 ranked business school too. It's really a total package there…with the weather, the location, the academics and the football."

In addition, Beal says he has family in California as well. "I have family in Orange County and two cousins who go to Chapman University, which isn't too far from USC.  The distance won't be a big deal."

The kid has a 4.3 core GPA.

• CBS Sportsline has USC at #20 with the departure of Nick Young and Gabe Pruitt.  UCLA comes in at #2, Wazzu #7, Oregon #14, Stanford #15, Washington #17, and Arizona #23.  Seven Pac-10 teams in the top 25 huh?  I can't say I agree with those picks, but it does show the strength of the Pac-10.