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| | Monday, September 6 | |||||
| 1998 Record: 8-5 (5-3) | 1998 statistics | 1999 schedule Head coach: Paul Hackett Returning starters: 16 (offense 9, defense 6) Outlook The Trojans should continue their push into the upper echelon of the Pac-10 in Paul Hackett's second year at the helm. A young, strong-armed quarterback and a deep offensive backfield will make the offense the envy of many in the conference. Replacing linebacker Chris Claiborne and three starters in the secondary from the conference's top defense will be the envy of no one on the Trojan coaching staff. However, the Trojans have some time to answer their defensive questions. A trip to Hawaii to open the season, home games against San Diego State and Oregon State and a game at Oregon will allow the team to round into shape before hitting the road for Arizona and Notre Dame in back-to-back weeks. Offense Nine starters return, meaning Hackett should be able to build on last year's foundation. Carson Palmer took over for Mike Van Raaphorst as a true freshman last season, starting the last five games. Palmer finished his first season with very respectable numbers: 130-235 for 1,755 yards and seven touchdowns. With a full offseason under his belt, look for him to be more comfortable in all aspects of the offense (the team was last in the conference in passing yards in '98). If his arm fails him, he'll have plenty of hands reaching for the ball in of the backfield. Senior Chad Morton, who led the team with 985 yards last season, isn't a bruising tailback (5-8, 185) but he is the team's most complete runner. Speedy Saladin McCullough (10.17 in 100 meters) offes adifferent look as a backup, but the Trojans lost short-yardage specialist Petros Papadakis for at least half the season to a broken right foot. Frank Strong and Malaefou MacKenzie might see more action than previously expected. Senior receiver R. Jay Soward has had his share of big plays in his career (one TD every 6.9 times he touches the ball), but now he says he wants to do more than catch bombs. Unfortunately, Soward hasn't shown the type of dedication to warrant such additional responsibility (by his own admission, he attended just three non-mandatory workouts in three months). After not leaving early for the NFL draft because he didn't feel like he would be picked in the top 10, he wants to gain 3,000 all-purpose yards this year (he had 1,375 last year), with his top goal to be picked No. 1 overall in April. He'll get his chance to prove his worth -- Hackett wants him returning kicks and punts along with his receiving duties -- but his erratic behavior cost him any chance the school had of trumpeting him as an early Heisman candidate. The other receiver could have been Troy Garner until he had major knee surgery in the spring. One sure thing the Trojans have is experience on the offensive line. All five starters are back, led by All-America candidate Travis Claridge at guard. He might move to right tackle depending on how well returning starter Matt Welch has recovered from shoulder surgery. Should Claridge end up at tackle, Zach Wilson would move into the guard hole. Combining the Trojans' depth at running back with a well-seasoned line and you get a potentially overpowering running attack. What the line needs to improve on is the 44 sacks allowed last season. It's a good sign if: Soward is serious enough to work hard in practice and have it pay off in games. It's a bad sign if: Opponents continue to force Palmer or whoever at quarterback to run for their lives very often. Defense The Pac-10's top-rated defense from last year must find a big-play guy to make up for the loss of Butkus Award-winner Claiborne. The Trojans will look to their line; more specifically, tackles Ennis Davis (a team-leading 13 tackles for loss) and Aaron Williams. Davis should be at 100 percent after missing spring drills due to a knee injury suffered in the Sun Bowl. End Sultan Abdul-Malik (6-3, 240) has been moved to linebacker to give that unit some punch. Abdul-Malik hadn't gained the weight he had expected to since high school and asked Hackett if he could move off the line. Zeke Moreno slides over from outside linebacker to replace Claiborne in the middle. Junior college transfer Markus Steele could be a comer at linebacker -- he earned the starting nod due to an injury to Jason Steen and a one-game suspension of Darryl Knight. Losing Daylon McCutcheon, Grant Pearsall and Rashard Cook will hurt the secondary. Second-team all-conference pick Antuan Simmons returns at cornerback and the Trojans regain the services of David Gibson, USC's top returning tackler (85 stops), who moves back to his more natural strong safety post after starting at outside 'backer last year. Kris Richard is slated to start at the other corner with Ifeanyi Ohalete (started four games in '98) at free safety. Don't expect the Trojans to approach the stinginess they showed on pass defense last season when they were second in the nation. It's a good sign if: Somebody steps up to become the kind of lead-by-example player Claiborne was. It's a bad sign if: The Trojans don't get things settled in the secondary by the time they hit the Notre Dame/Arizona stretch. Special Teams Adam Abrams is gone, leaving the placekicking chores up for grabs. David Bell and David Newbury will compete for the job. Bell handled kickoff duties last season. Punter Mike MacGillvray, who averaged 37.7 yards and stuck 39 percent of his kicks inside the 20, is back. Hopefully he won't have to challenge the school record he set with his 87 punts last season. Expect to see Soward used in every return situation. The flashy receiver brought two punts back for scores and averaged 28.9 yards on seven returns along with a solid 21.5 yards per kickoff return. If Soward isn't up to the work, Morton, Richard and McCullough could see some return action. -- Greg Collins |
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