It seemed odd when Sam Darnold got inserted into the Stanford game with only 4:20 left. But I heard from a sideline observer Clay Helton was upset with Max Browne on the previous possession, when he yelled something like “go with two hands” after an incomplete pass in the end zone for JuJu Smith-Schuster. Darnold went in on the next possession.
I’ve seen pictures of the play in question and it looked like a Stanford player was grabbing Smith-Schuster’s hand.
They did and they are taught to do that until the refs call it. Shaw teams have always held, and will continue to do so until called on it. This is not a new development when playing Stanford.
So what a competent opposing coach does is prepare the team for that. You tell JuJu he will he held and you teach/command him to fight through it.
Exactly.
Also, if Clay is made at JuJu, why is he pulling Max. Browne didn’t try to use one hand, and Browne wasn’t holding JuJu.
It doesn’t make sense.
The reason JuJU used only one hand to miss the TD catch was because JuJu pushed off the defender with the other. If JuJu doesn’t push, TD. Browne should have x-fered years ago.
So judging by the outcome Sam was a better passer and quicker decision maker. Maybe Helton should get mad at Max earlier in the game? Also the post game presser Max looked a little stressed I wondered what that was all about.
Browne gets blamed for JuJu’s mediocrity.
Exactly. Yet another dump on Max Browne by Wolfie. it seems endless.
Browne’s a stiff, let him hold the clipboard while a real QB plays from here on out
Punt On !
it was Max Browne’s offense that beat the way out of USU. How does it feel, Bubba, to have a Shoe Factory Openned Up Your A@@ ??? That’s one of the most often used expressions in the Texas Oil Patch when someone, anyone, can’t get it right.
Cody Kessler looks to be starting for the Browns on Sunday. Can’t wait for SW’s Hue Jackson “Trust Me on this One” shot…
If true, Hue Jackson should be fired ASAP.
Injury to 2nd Stringer apparently, not an elective coaches choice is what I heard.
Kessler is a raw rookie that had mobility problems at the CFB level. That Jackson has no QB Plan C is evidence he is unprepared and a loser Head FB Coach.
Get her done, Cody !!!
The damn WR’s need to catch the ball. I’m so tried of WR’s trying to be sexy with a catch.. There were 2 passes where Juju attempted to catch the ball with one hand, both were catch able from Browne
Given that receivers drop the clutch passes, perhaps they need to sit and let someone else have a stab at it. Mitchell caught everything catchable, not so much for JuJu or Rogers.
I completely agree. they have a TON of talent at skill positions. TON! Give the young guys who are hungry a chance.
BM returns! That means the Dr. Rachel Maddow of Inside USC and Miss Vickie can’t be far behind.
Shut up with your Dr. Rachel Maddow reference. It was old last month.
Actually I’ve used the nickname Dr. Rachel Maddow of Inside USC for your beloved Helen for years now. Does it offend your lib sensiblities, Arturo? Perhaps you can retreat to a safe place and recover from that microaggression. Or here’s an idea…don’t read my posts, you brainless control freak rah rah.
So you’re obsessed with Helen. You’re creepier than I thought.
gotroy22 works for InsideSC, so a lot of his material is just reused.. He has to get Wolfs comment numbers up or Daily News will cancel Wolfs Blog.
Helton said he would punt again in 4th quarter if he could do it over.
Punt On ! and Lose On !
I have watched Browne for 3 games, I now understand the decision that was made to start Kessler. Kessler was better, not great, but better.
Respect, but I think if there was a REAL OC in charge of the offense, you would probably not feel that way.
Say what you want, but Kiffin, Sark and even Clay (with input from Kiff and Sark) were above average offensive coordinators. Hell, Kiffin is putting up 40+ points with a freshman QB at Alabama…Kessler benefited from Sarkiffian..We’ll see how Kessler does next Sunday when he gets the start in Cleveland…
Kessler had the same uncoached O line (but younger) and had a very good first season as a starter. I don’t think Browne will ever get comfortable behind that line, it seems they have gotten worse with each season. Don’t give Kiffen all the credit at Alabama, it appears Sabin has a pretty tight leash on him. As a good head coach should have. Kessler will do okay if he has blocking. Sark is a good qb coach, Kiff is okay but not that great.
Stanford always gets away with murder up in Palo Alto. Remember the game when Kiffin was coach where SC went up 35-34 with just a minute left. Stanford had one minute to get the kickoff and drive down the field close enough to kick a field goal. Then they wasted 20 seconds trying to run back the kickoff. The problem is that the clock keeper was a Stanford grad wearing a Stanford baseball cap and a Stanford jersey who was in control of the clock. He didn’t run the clock during the kickoff. That gave Stanford 20 extra seconds. They drove down and kicked a field goal and won. After the game Kiffin filed a complaint with the Pac-12. The Pac-12 told him “we’ll take care of it after the season”. They did. They passed a rule saying that every Pac-12 game must have a Pac-12 official(in uniform) running the clock. But SC still lost the game.
I do remember this and the clock management just before the kick-off. They also stopped the clock when USC ran a running play to the one yard line. USC could have milked the clock down more before they scored on the next play. One of the toughest losses ever.
No sense blaming refs or timekeepers. IMHO. USC’s created so many problems on its own, seems we should be focusing on general weakness pervasive throughout our program, though I’m sure Gomer sees a new positive in each and every loss that gets tacked on.
Yeah then again we still got screwed in a game we had a lead and should of had an official independent of either side. They are corrupt up there and always have been.
Like I said…..The cardinal gets away with murder in Palo Alto.
The lack of O is not on Browne, it’s on the OC and the lack of imagination with the play calling. Browne will be fine once Tee learns on the job (like his head coach). When Darnold came in, the first play was a nice inside screen to the wide receiver…why didn’t that call come with Browne in the game?
Tee doesn’t know how to call plays yet, can’t find a rhythm, and is afraid to take a chance or stick with what is working. Besides that, he’s doing great…
Not calling out Wolf’s insight regarding why Browne got pulled (uh, you bet your *ss I am), but I highly doubt it was because he said the “two hands” thing to JuJu. So Helton is mad because Max wanted JuJu to catch a touchdown pass? The nerve of Max…how dare he tries to be competitive and expect results…
Browne will be a force…just like Aaron Corp! Lol…
The only people that can stop JuJu in a college game is his own coaching staff…
How’s that latest Rikki Elison rant… You’d think former SC ball players would pick a mouthpiece who had at least some grasp of basic English and grammar, but I don’t suppose there are too many of them around, lol.
That was the play that had a close up replay showing Browne with both hands in the air saying “Use Two Hands”. One thing to say it on the sidelines privately, but quite another to make a public demonstration of it.
More genius from you, Wolfman.
The SoCal faithful is about ready to explode. They could do something rash like Ol’55 and either off themselves or be institutionalized. Throwing that excuse bone to JuJu will calm them down and keep them posting until the next loss.
Brilliant, really.
You have them eating out of your benevolent hand, Master.
It won’t be long before The Swan is texting you for advice.
#Maxisonholdline2
Didn’t MeShawn pick SoCal to win this game?
What happen to Mique ?
And Darnold comes in and immediately gets the ball to Ju Ju. Enough said. Start Sam. Sit Viane Talamaivao .
Can’t wait for November 19
That and the ND games are the only things left for this season.
If we run the ball 11 straight plays we’ll destroy UCLA again. It’s that easy. Just run.
Why? Are you guys gonna actually stop our run game? We ran the ball 11 PLAYS IN A ROW……
40-21
The last thing i remember from that game (because i was hammered) was all the parents of the UCLA players huddling around each other crying (seriously) while USC just ran the ball up the butt crack of the Jaleel Wadood. Oh, i can’t wait until November 19. Me too, me too!!!!
Enjoy your one victory in a row…and I’ll enjoy each week’s PWNING of Clown College until our turn on November 19. By then you’ll feel like Osa’s victim…
Paul there’s nothing u can say that will make me feel bad about USC football when UCLA is in the conversation. Just go look into the archives and you’ll see me celebrating in the stands with two beers in my hands.
It seems to me that in todays college football, the best coaches are the good managers. The great CEO’s. It always helps if you have expertise as a position coach or a coordinator. Pete Carrol was a great defensive coordinator. Kiffin was a great offensive coordinator(but he had problems of maturity). But I don’t think that is necessary. Mack Brown was never a great position coach or a coordinator. But he was a great program manager. He hired great assistants and great recruiters and he himself was an outstanding recruiter. Hire a great offensive and defensive coordinator who has a system of their own and let them do their job. Interfere as little as possible. Hire great position coaches and let them develope the players. We have an outstanding defensive coordinator who has his own system and I think that defense will be good at the end of the year(barring a rash of injuries). What CH is learning is that you also need a great offensive coordinator and play caller. I think that he gave Tee Martin that job because he is so great a recruiter and he didn’t want to lose him. Play calling is an art. Norm Chow was a master at it. Tee Martin certainly is not…at least not at this point. The problem with this team is that you have too many coaches learning on the job(including CH). SC is not a place for on the job training. I think that CH could someday be a great coach. But it’s going to take awhile.
Why would a potentially great coach cowardly punt away any remote chance USC had of winning an away game against a powerful team and wait until 4 mins to go before inserting our double-threat QB – whom many believe should have been starting all along. If Gomer can be great some day, so can every other Pac-12 coach.
The truth is, Gomer hasn’t beat one single decent team since he became permanent coach and has been hammered several times. He’s got important players telling the press our teams’ resolve is questionable while he says they’re liars.
Bad stuff man. Gomer has been yuk, yuking his way through every press conference since he began coaching at his self-proclaimed most wonderful place on earth. Well, it may be wonderful, but they stopped playing football there a while ago. If he wins out, I’ll give him his due, but his playing possum routine is wearing thin. Most aren’t buying.
I too believe that Darnold is our best QB. As to why CH did certain things….I don’t know. He’s obviously learning on the job, as are a lot of his assistants. Udezi, Nanson(at LB coach), Martin just don’t have much experience doing what they are doing. Could he be a great coach? He could be. McKay started out 4-6 and 4-5-1 in his first two seasons. PC was 6-6 and he lost the bowl game to Utah(back when Utah was not a big time football school). As far as “players telling the press our teams’ resolve is questionable”….I didn’t hear that but I’ll take your word for it. In that case he’s got to clamp down on his players especially if they are leaders. I know the players love CH but it takes more than love. They must believe in him. They better do something fast or he’s going to lose control of this team. The players are going to give up. They already quit against Bama in the 2nd half.
I saw all of PC’s first losses and you could tell we were on a different road than we are now, though the Utah fiasco showed he didn’t know how to take a team to Vegas.
No sense bringing up McKay. He even said publicly that the team he inherited in ’60 was very slow and not talented. Our team now has some amazing speed and talent. Sure, we have some talent weaknesses, but overall, we’re one of the top 10-15 most talented teams in the country I would say and I’ll bet numerous P-12 coaches would switch their talent with our in a heartbeat.
Mentally, we stink, of course. Picturing this team coming back and winning tough games against tough teams is just a pipe dream for now. We all gave Gomer the benefit of the doubt a month ago. Our players are once again caught is a turmoil-filled environment. I can really see how recruiting might be a challenge, especially if Martin, who’s not a good play caller, moves on.
The offense is extremely talented. I thought, at the start of the year that the defense had some areas that they were thin and inexperienced at. But not the offense. Most teams that have a good offensive staff could turn that team into a great offense. Whatever the problem is on offense, I really don’t think it’s a lack of talent. The mystery to me is why that offensive line is not working better. They’re 2-deep at every position and they went out and hired a veteran O-line coach in the off-season. At best they’ve been average so far. What’s the problem.
I think our OL talent is all hype based on misguided star assignments from the fan boy sites. Banner an AA? Come on. He’s not even all-Conference if you watch him get handled game after game. JuJu’s over-rated too and Browne shouldn’t even be starting IMHO. Our RBs are good but not in the class of some of the better backs nationwide. And Gomer is, well, Gomer. Punt USC Punt! What a mess. Utes will be a real test for the USC Underachievers! So will CAL, UW, ASU, et al. That’s life for the school that pays out millionzzz every year to train coaches before we fire/hire again/rinse/repeat.
Banner should be playing on the inside(guard). He’s a very good run blocker. He doesn’t have the quick feet to play on the outside. That’s why when Wheeler went down they went to Edoga instead of him. Juju is outstanding. I think Browne is good but I would go with Darnold. The running backs are good. You have 2 guys that gained near 1,000 yards each. I’d like to see them use Ware more. He’s a harder runner. I think they’ll play well against the Utes but I can’t see them beating them in Utah. I think that they should beat Cal. ASU 50% chance. I don’t think they will beat Washington. The one that I really don’t think they will beat is Colorado. As far as paying millions to coaches for on the job training, that’s on the Board of Trustees and AD. Hopefully Lynn Swann will be better. Maybe I’m wrong about this but if CH doesn’t make it, I can’t believe that they will go out and hire another assistant or 34-29 coach. Everyone would be irate. But you never know. The hardest people to fire in america are people in the field of education so they may just feel that they have enough job security to hire another on the job trainee.
Never put it past USC to screw up a football coaching hire. Word has it they don’t really search as flipping a coin or intentionally avoiding candidates who are actually hot commodities is the Trojans’ preferred mode of choice.
One thing for sure. They’re certainly not looking for the most qualified candidate.
Seems every single play USC runs now is subject to some type of drama scrutiny, much of it laughably created here.
Now, SW claims to have “heard from some sideline observer” (a midget Troll perhaps with a red hair wig and painted nails) he knows Gomer’s state-of-mind after a contested incompletion and exactly how it affected Darnold’s future.
All we need to know is Gomer likes to punt, USC’s o-line is horrible and Tee Martin is still reading Offensive Football For Dummies.
Martin can read ? One wonders with his 11 Wunderlich score
Cut Tee Martin some slack. He is a product of the SEC, where they only discovered what good offenses are when Lane Kiffin showed up and a couple of Big 12 schools joined the league.
A midget troll with a red hair wig? Sounds like Buckett
No drama…
None Jack.
Juju completely cost USC a much needed TD and it would have made a huge difference at that point, but for some out of this world reason decided to try and make a one handed catch.
That’s just the stupidity and selfish play of someone who is desperately trying to be in the spotlight after being shut out of the first three games of his junior season.
Go to the USC Scout site, and on the main page, there is a link to the “Emergency Peristyle Podcast.” Its with Harvey Hyde, and it definitely sums up the season so far, what is wrong, and also the Stanford game (Where was Traveller during the Alabama and Stanford games BTW?) Definitely listen to it, its worth it for any USC football fan.
Whatever happened to Trojan Brunch?
“I’VE SEEN PICTURES OF THE PLAY”????????????????
Are you kidding me??????????
Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Juju completely played that ball like.a show off and it cost USC a touchdown. The replay CLEARLY showed that Juju had the easy catch, but for some show boat reason chose to only use one hand.
Again, thanks Juju. USC is 1-2 and you haven’t made a play since the Oregon game.