USC Trojans Practice No. 10 Notes And Observations

For those of you who prefer to read instead of watching video, here are all my notes from today’s 10th practice of USC Trojans fall camp.

USC Trojans Quick Snapshot

• Almost halfway through fall camp (Practice 10 / Day 11)
• Scrimmage tomorrow evening at the Coliseum (50/50 thud + full contact, player-specific)
• Team remains very healthy overall
• Two standouts getting big love: Alex VanSumeren (underrated strength) and Desmond Stephens (looks like a different player)

Injury Report (from Lincoln Riley)

• No new serious injuries
• No one newly at risk of missing the opener
• Known absences:
  • Killian O’Connor – out for season (leg)
  • Tanook Hines – still out, but nearing return
  • True freshman Roderick Tezano – procedure before summer, expected to miss camp, progressing well
• Some nicks/bruises and soft-tissue stuff → limited reps for a few guys
• Bottom line: Outside of those three, full complement of the roster is healthy

Offensive Line Notes

Current first-team look (individual/warm-up drills – keep in pencil):

• LT: Elijah Paige
• LG: Hayden Treter
• C: Tobias Raymond
• RG: Alani Noa
• RT: Justin Tauanuu (still holding the spot; Elijah Vikona still a battle to to win it)

Riley said he feels comfortable starting any of four centers:

1. Tobias Raymond (expected starter)
2. Kaylon Miller (moving more to center)
3. Freshman Kannon Smith
4. Redshirt freshman Willie Wascher

Second-team tackle work: Aaron Dunn, Elijah Vaikona, Keenyi Pepe, Vlad Dyakanov getting reps.

Secondary / Safety-Nickel

• Christian Pierce locked into his safety spot
• Alex Graham with him in the two-deep
• Nickel reps: Kennedy Urlacher & Isaiah Rubin
  • Graham will be hard to keep off the field — likely plays somewhere in the safety/nickel rotation

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Standout Players

Alex VanSumeren (DL – most underrated strength)

• Threw the weighted sled/dummy with ease in low-pad explosion drill
• Big Ten body, experience from Michigan State, leadership + football IQ
• Originally viewed as a solid rotational piece… now looks hard to take off the field
• Complements the deep interior group (Jahkeem Stewart, Floyd Boucard, Jide Abasiri, etc.)

Desmond Stephens (LB – the breakout candidate)

• Looks like a completely different player every day
• Up to ~250 lbs without losing lateral quickness or fluidity
• Extremely confident, taking on a big leadership role (coaching up teammates, picking guys up)
• Clearly the best linebacker in these drills right now
• Jayden Walker, Devin Bryant, Talanoa Ili, and others have looked good too — but Stephens is the clear dude heading into the season

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Tomorrow’s Scrimmage Plan

• Mix of thud and full contact
• Not strict 50/50 by play count — more package/player specific
• Younger / less experienced guys get more full-contact work
• Proven veterans (Elijah Paige, Jahkeem Stewart, etc.) lean more thud
• Still some full-contact for everyone who’s healthy
• Should be a strong barometer of where the team stands

Final Wrap

Healthy team. OL looking settled. VanSumeren’s power is eye-opening. Desmond Stephens is making the jump everyone hoped for. Scrimmage tomorrow should tell us a lot more.

Fight On.