"At the end of the day, it's unacceptable.. I'm not used to losing…" – Cornerback Adoree' Jackson
Though unexpected at the start of the season, the current state of things in USC football land was very likely. That the talented Trojans would be overmatched and out-coached by its two strongest opponents of the season—Alabama and Stanford—and that they would beat Utah State for a home win was a near certainty.
1-2 is a record USC has not seen next to its name since 2001; the first year of the Pete Carroll era. That year, things actually turned worse (1-4) before getting any better.
In 2016, the losing record is expectedly producing panic from the feisty fans on message boards and social media. But the losing record has also brought consequential changes from those with the power to do so. One particular change that show a tinge of desperation as well as a frenzied search for an answer.
"I told Max [Browne] the other day, my greatest dream was to be 3-0 right now and him leading this team," head coach Clay Helton said Tuesday. "But then you have to face reality and you have to make hard decisions."
Exit Max Browne. Enter Sam Darnold.
After being handed the job he had coveted and worked toward for three years, Browne was succinctly stripped of it as soon as he couldn't fulfill unrealistic expectations against championship-level teams. Despite thinking he had monopoly on the job—Helton had at least said so—Browne's play and position was undercut by the decision to give Darnold reps in the red zone.
"It was not that Max played bad," Helton said. "It was just that the ball was not getting in the end zone."
Before naming a starting quarterback, Helton had said the guy would not have to constantly look over his shoulder. But in the end, Browne did have to endure stepping off the field as soon as he got close to the end zone and handing another guy the ball he thought to be all his.
"I would be lying if I said I wasn't surprised," said Browne on Monday. "I was better than I thought."
Amid an offensive identity crisis, an injured and penalty-stricken offensive line and death knell of a schedule, Browne was fighting a losing battle from the moment he became the starter.
"You're spot on with that one," he responded to a reporter who asked if the spark Helton was looking for was likely out of his control.
To tack on the lack of offensive production on the quarterback alone is what Helton said he didn't do. "He is not the scapegoat," he repeated. Directly, maybe not. But indirectly, Helton pulled back on the short leash he had said he didn't have with Browne only to place an enormous amount of pressure on Darnold. He now has to provide the spark Helton is looking for, or hope his surrounding circumstances improve in a way Browne's did not.
"I'm ready this week," Darnold said. "We're going to prepare just as we have been for the last three weeks."
In a vacuum, the next five games are the perfect proving ground for Darnold to begin his career. Utah, Arizona State, Colorado, Arizona and Cal present fertile defenses for the dynamic Darnold to exploit with his dual-threat talent, vindicating Helton's decision in the process. However, the games that could be the vault he needs to spring his starting quarterback platform off to a promising start are also the games that could make Helton's decision look like an irresponsible, panic move.
High risk, high reward.
At this point, the Pac-12 Championship USC kept touting as "the goal" after the drubbing by Alabama will be out of their reach as soon as they can't replicate what they did last season: Win all five of their Pac-12 South games.
Darnold is a redshirt freshman with little experience, but he is already getting the perks a guy thought to be the future of the program. An opening up of the offensive style and playbook to fit his tendencies and talents, and the release of Adoree' Jackson from the defense to the offense for a handful of plays that will, if anything, free up other playmakers around him. But the pressure to produce is on him from the start, even more so than if he had began the season against Alabama.
It's only Week 3, but it's already all hands on deck for Helton and Co. as they head to Salt Lake City.
Reach Staff Reporter Paolo Uggetti here, and follow him on Twitter here.
Annenberg Media