Pac-12 South Preview: USC Trojans

Armed with arguably the conference's best offense and growing defense, this could be the season that USC break through and brings home its first Pac-12 South crown since 2017

As part of our Pac-12 South Preview, we will be examining each Pac-12 team. We will break down their schedule, their offense and defense and what should be considered a successful or failure of a season.

Up next is the USC Trojans — Utah's biggest competition in preventing the Utes from winning their third consecutive division title.

October 19, 2019; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Clay Helton watches game action against the Arizona Wildcats during the second half at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum / Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Underlying Theme
USC is like the Texas of the West Coast — Yes, I said it.

Each year, fans around the nation always hear how both the Longhorns and Trojans are "back." That this is the year that two of the most storied programs in college football history return to national prominence. And each year, they fail to impress and suffer some head-scratching losses that prevent them from being great.

So once again, all we are hearing is that this is the year USC returns and takes control. 

But does that actually happen? 

If nothing else, this is the year for the Trojans to do so. They return a bulk of their team, especially in their skill positions, and Pac-12 mainstays Oregon, Washington and Utah are going through rebuilding phases. With those high expectations, is this finally the offseason that fans around the nation don't have to worry about head coach Clay Helton's job security.

Dec 27, 2019; San Diego, California, USA; Southern California Trojans quarterback Kedon Slovis (9) throws the ball against the Iowa Hawkeyes in the first quarter during the Holiday Bowl at SDCCU Stadium / Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The offense is beyond potent with the return of quarterback Kedon Slovis, arguably the best young quarterback in the nation. The defense is expected to take a step forward after being very young last season, but they must adjust to new defensive coordinator Todd Orlando's system.

With no crazy non-conference games (Alabama and Notre Dame), the Trojans will be their own worst enemy moving forward. Let's see if they can actually live up to those lofty goals.

Overview
2019 Record: 8-5 overall, 7-2 Pac-12
In typical fashion, the Trojans defeated top-25 teams Stanford and Utah early in the season. But sandwiched between those victories was a puzzling overtime loss to BYU. Back-to-back losses to top-25 teams Washington and Notre Dame had the team at 3-3 at the midway point of October. But then USC rebounded by winning five of its final six games to start the hype train game — although a brutal 49-24 loss to Iowa in the Holiday Bowl did hurt.

Sep 20, 2019; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Southern California Trojans defensive lineman Drake Jackson (99) tackles Utah Utes wide receiver Britain Covey (18) resulting in a penalty during the first half at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum / Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports

Schedule = Perfect Situation / SI Prediction in Bold
*Saturday, Nov. 7 — vs. Arizona State (L)
*Saturday, Nov. 14 — @ Arizona (W)
*Saturday, Nov. 21 — @ Utah (W)
*Saturday, Nov. 28 — vs. Colorado (W)
*Friday, Dec. 4 — vs. Washington State (W)
*Friday, Dec. 11 — @ UCLA (W)

Apart from the 9 a.m. kickoff to begin the season against Arizona State, the schedule is set up extremely favorably for the Trojans. With a veteran team, they won't be nervous to go on the road. They have to travel to Salt Lake City, but it's a November game and not December, which means there's a good chance there won't be snow on the ground or freezing temps. And their three biggest competitors in the south division, the Trojans don't face any of them on back-to-back weeks while drawing rebuilding Washington State as its crossover game.

Offense = WOW, Watch Out
Probably the top offense in the conference, USC has a bevy of weapons and can beat you in so many ways with the skill players.

Obviously a lot of the talk has been about Slovis and what he did as a freshman and the expectations he now faces as a sophomore, but early indictions out of fall camp is that he's embraced that leadership role within the team.

Oct 12, 2019; South Bend, IN, USA; USC Trojans wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown (8) celebrates after a touchdown with wide receiver Tyler Vaughns (21) in the third quarter against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Notre Dame Stadium / Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

The wide receiver core did lose Michael Pittman Jr. (101 receptions for 1,275 and 11 touchdowns) to the NFL, but they return their next three top receivers. Leading the charge is Amon-Ra St. Brown (77 catches, 1,042 yards and 6 scores), the next great USC receiver. Flanking him are Tyler Vaughns and Drake London, two of the better receivers in the conference — and because the rich get richer, watch out for Bru McCoy and Kyle Ford, two freshman who could make an impact.

The running backs are led by returners Vavae Malepeai and Stephen Carr, the team's two leading rushers from a year ago who combined for 899 yards (5.1 yards per carry) and 11 touchdowns.

The only question mark is the offensive line, staying healthy and improving from last year. Utah is stockpiled at defensive line and Oregon's should be the best in the conference — so neutralizing those threats to give Slovis some time is the only thing holding this side of the ball back.

Defense = Good, Could Be Great
The positive is that USC does return a lot of starters, especially at linebacker and the secondary where they struggled last season. Drake Jackson is back as one of the best young pass rushers in the nation — would be the best in the conference if not for Oregon's Kayvon Thibodeaux. 

The negative is that Jay Tufele has opted to prepare for the NFL draft and Helton has brought in Orlando to run his defense. That means the team must adjust to its best player and leader being gone while learning the technical aspects of a new system.

The return of starting safeties Talanoa Hufanga and Isaiah Pola-Mao is huge, with Hufanga potentially garnering All-American honors.

Sep 29, 2018; Tucson, AZ, USA; Arizona Wildcats wide receiver Tony Ellison (9) is upended by Southern California Trojans safety Talanoa Hufanga (15) in the first half at Arizona Stadium / Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The defense was the team's weak spot last season, but if they can adjust to Orlando's system, they have the athletes to be successful. If not, it could put a lot more pressure on the offense and USC's dream season could go down with it.

Season Outlook
Is this the year USC gets to crown itself Pac-12 champs with a perfect 7-0 record and a potential berth in the College Football Playoff? Or is this the year the Trojans struggle again with an inexcusable loss somewhere that derails the season?

With this roster, the way the schedule is setup and Utah/Oregon going through their own issues, anything less than a 7-0 record and Pac-12 title would be a disappointment. But losing two games would be an abomination and those Helton-haters would begin to roar their heads again and demand a change.

It's a big season at The Coliseum.

Nov 2, 2019; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Oregon Ducks wide receiver Juwan Johnson (6) runs the ball before he is stoped at the 1 yard line by USC Trojans safety C.J. Pollard (28) in the first half of the game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum / Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Final Prediction
Record: 5-1
*In typical fashion, the Trojans struggle under the weight of expectations and fall to Arizona State with the nation watching. I think Utah is going through too much change and USC's pass-happy offense dominates the Utes in their matchup, although Utah keeps is close with its offensive prowess. 

This sets up a three-way tie atop the Pac-12 south division... and it's anybody's guess from there.

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