April 2010 Archives

• Early expectations are comparing Mays to former Trojan and 49er Hall-of-Famer Ronnie Lott. Including Lott himself. 49ers coach Mike Singletary is also extremely "excited" about Mays' potential and is looking forward to utilizing the safety's "unbelievable" speed.

• Although he admitted that a phone call from the Saints came as a bit of a surprise, Brown is looking forward to helping New Orleans repeat as Super Bowl champions.

• Titans head coach and former Trojan Jeff Fisher was thrilled at the opportunity to snatch up Williams in the third round. He noted Williams' versatility as a wideout and kick returner could allow him to be a weapon on offense and special teams.

• The Colts are receiving praise for their selection of Thomas in the late third round. Indy's President, Bill Polian, expects Thomas to contribute immediately in some regard, be it on defense or special teams.

• In Minnesota, Griffen has the privilege of learning from one of the best defensive ends in the league, Jared Allen. The potential of having Allen and the freakishly-athletic Griffen on opposite sides of the Vikings' D-line is a scary-good combination.

• As the 112th overall pick, BleacherReport.com named McKnight one of the draft's 10 best value picks. There should be immediate chemistry between McKnight and Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez, as the two helped the Trojans to an 11-win season, including the 2009 Rose Bowl victory. It looks like the Jets will use McKnight as a wide receiver as well as a tailback.

• McCoy was the only USC player reunited with his coach, Pete Carroll, via the draft, however he joined several other Trojans who signed with the Seahawks in free agency. Carroll and Seattle's general manager John Schneider both expressed their excitement for snatching up a player of McCoy's caliber late in the draft.

• Although Johnson grew up in Los Angeles and stayed close to home by playing for USC, he's ready to show his new hometown of Nashville, Tenn., his skills at running back.

• Although the team was known as the Houston Oilers when Howell's dad, Pat, played on the offensive line, Nick is hoping to follow in his father's footsteps.
  

• Carroll's familiarity with the trio afforded them the opportunity to continue to work with their college coach.

• The Raiders like Parsons' ability to contribute in the trenches anywhere on the field - on offense, defense or with the special teams unit.

• S Taylor Mays selected by the San Francisco 49ers with the 17th pick in the second round (49th overall)
• OT Charles Brown selected by the New Orleans Saints with the 32nd pick in the second round (64th overall)
• WR Damian Williams selected by the Tennessee Titans with the 13th pick in the third round (77th overall)
• CB Kevin Thomas selected by the Indianapolis Colts with the 30th pick in the third round (94th overall)
• DE Everson Griffen selected by the Minnesota Vikings with the second pick in the fourth round (100th overall)
• RB Joe McKnight selected by the New York Jets with the 14th pick in the fourth round (112th overall)
• TE Anthony McCoy selected by the Seattle Seahawks with the 16th pick in the sixth round (185th overall)
  

Moments ago, Taylor Mays became first Trojan selected in the 2010 draft, as he was taken by the San Francisco 49ers with the 17th pick in the second round (49th overall).

Mays joins former USC offensive lineman Chilo Rachal with the 49ers. He'll also face his former coach, Pete Carroll, twice a year, as San Francisco and Seattle are both members of the NFC West division.

We wish Taylor the best of luck with his new team and look forward to watching him perform on Sundays!

Huzzah! The live blog of USC's Saturday scrimmage returns for another afternoon of (hopefully) sun and (definitely) pigskin. Saturday marks the penultimate spring intrasquad scrimmage for the Trojans, and precedes the final game, which will be played a week later at the Coliseum and is open to the public. By the way, you can buy your tickets to the noon May 1 Coliseum scrimmage here.

If you've joined RipsIt the past two weekends for the coverage, well, you know the drill. Visit the blog around 11 a.m. on Saturday to hear RipsIt and live blog regular Stephanie Graves dish out the details on the action. As always, feel free to send us your questions and chat with the other Trojan fans.

After the scrimmage, look for the standard regimen of recaps, photos and stats to provide further details from the practice.

While the coaches spent much of Friday in meetings preparing for Saturday's practice and scrimmage, they did take some time during the lunch hour to pose for a coat-and-tie head shot that will be used in publications and other media outlets.

The USC sports information office has a supply of various-sized white dress shirts and cardinal-colored jackets, along with pre-knotted cardinal ties, that the coaches can quickly slip on for their snapshots.  All told, the process takes about a minute or two.

Next week, headshots will be taken of USC's new players, along with any returning players who want an updated portrait because their "look" has changed.

The biggest challenge for longtime USC photographer Dan Avila:  getting the coaches and players to smile.

The latest installment of "Project Trojan" is now online at USCTrojans.com and available to All-Access members.  This episode details USC's Pro Day experience, as the Trojans' NFL hopefuls ran through drills in front of dozens of pro scouts.  It's especially timely with the NFL Draft currently in progress.

Members can click here to view.

The USC coaching staff introduced a new goal line drill at practice this past Tuesday and it was enthusiastically received by the players.  With music blaring and players from the offense and defense yelling nearby, the ball was placed at the 2-yard line.  As was documented in this practice Dispatch, the offense scored 4 times and the defense stopped them 4 times...before the coaches decided to run 5 more plays, in which the defense was victorious 4 times.

Here's a look at one of those big defensive stops.  To say that the Trojan defensive players got a little excited with the result is an understatement.  Enjoy the coaches video, from sideline and end zone angles.

For only the second time since the 2003 NFL Draft, no USC player was selected in the first round today (the other time was 2007).

So those draft-eligible Trojans will have to wait at least another 19 hours--and likely endure a semi-sleepless night tossing and turning--to learn their pro football fate.

A reminder:  the draft's second and third rounds begin on Friday at 3 p.m., while rounds 4 through 7 are on Saturday at 7 a.m.  NFL Network and ESPN will supply the coverage.

But don't fret.  There's a good chance that the names of USC players will be called often the rest of the way.

The No. 6-ranked USC men's volleyball team, the defending Mountain Pacific Sports Federation champion, travels to No. 3 Cal State Northridge for an MPSF tourney quarterfinal match this Saturday (April 24) at 7 p.m.

Tickets are on sale at the CSUN Ticket Office by calling 818-677-2488.  They are $10 for adults and $5 for USC students.  It's anticipated that tickets will sell quickly, so call now.

The Trojans are hot, having won 6 of their last 7 matches, and are hoping to get on a run similar to last year's that propelled them to the NCAA Championship final.

This is where it all began last year and the Trojan volleyballers once again need your support.  So come on out to Northridge on Saturday night and cheer them on.

Ominous rain clouds are draped above USC's campus, but fear not RipsIt readers! Our trusty rain coat trash bag will keep us dry and the coverage - like the impending rain - a-flowin'.

The conclusion of spring practice is fast-approaching, with only five more sessions, including today's and the May 1 scrimmage in the Coliseum. We'll be back after today's action wraps up to bring you the highlights and provide details on how the team continues to progress as it prepares for next season.

Also, if you're following the NFL draft, we'll be tweeting updates on any USC player news, should it take place while we're out at Howard Jones Field. Follow us here.

The 75^th NFL Draft will be a three-day affair this year conducted out of Radio City Music Hall in New York City.  It will be aired live on NFL Network and ESPN.

The first round will be held in prime time tonight (Thursday), starting at 4:30 p.m. PT.  The second and third rounds will be on Friday at 3 p.m., while rounds 4 through 7 are on Saturday at 7 a.m.

*  *  *

Fourteen Trojans have a reasonable chance to get drafted this year:

Charles Brown

Jeff Byers

Everson Griffen

Will Harris

Nick Howell

Stafon Johnson

Taylor Mays

Anthony Mccoy

Joe Mcknight

Alex Parsons

Josh Pinkard

Averell Spicer

Kevin Thomas

Damian Williams

And if they don't get picked, then they and the other 2009 Trojan seniors listed below are eligible to be signed as free agents:

Luthur Brown

Jordan Congdon

Robert Erickson

Nick Garratt

Adam Goodman

Garrett Green

Thomas Herring

Some USC draft facts:

- In its history, USC has had 457 players drafted by the NFL.  That's second only to Notre Dame's 462.

- USC has had more first round NFL draft picks (74) than any other school.  Ohio State is second with 68.

- USC is tied with Notre Dame for most players selected as the top pick of the NFL Draft (5).  Troy is the only school to have the No. 1 pick for 2 consecutive years (Ron Yary in 1968 and O.J. Simpson in 1969).

- Last year, a national-best 11 USC players were drafted.  That was the second year in a row--and third time in 4 years--that USC had more players drafted than any other school.  It was also the third time in those 4 years that USC had at least 10 players drafted.

Here's what a couple NFL draft experts said last year about selecting USC players:

- ESPN's Herm Edwards, the former NFL head coach:  "If you want to play pro football and you're a young high school athlete, you know going to USC is going to give you the best opportunity system-wise and competitive-wise on the field.  That's what USC brings to the table.  That's why historically, year after year, you see all these players coming into the league."

 - ESPN's Ron Jaworski, the ex-NFL quarterback:  "It's competition.  It's fierce competition every day you go out on the USC practice field.  Not only on Saturday when they play the game.  Every day they're competing at the highest level."

By: Stephanie Graves

It is no secret that the lives and practices of the Trojan Marching Band often parallel that of the USC football team, this afternoon being no exception. Today, the Spirit of Troy's annual spring competition took place, but unlike the team who is trying to fill 22 starting positions, the band only had to fill one:

The USC Drum Major.

Often referred to as "Tommy Trojan" due to the tunic and armor he dons on game day, the Drum Major is the highest ranking student leader in the band and is often looked as the embodiment of "The Spirit of Troy" itself.  It takes an entire semester of training before one can even be prepared to audition. Subsequently, the entire summer is devoted to preparing for the newly selected leader's Fall Debut.

Last Year, Kenny Morris stepped in the leather sandals of this Trojan Warrior and has spent the past year carrying the very much iconic sword.

"You don't really think about it until you get to this point," reflects Morris. "But it was one of the greatest experiences of my entire life."

Today he passed that experience, and the sword, on to 21-year-old Tim Larson. The junior neuroscience major from Albuquerque, New Mexico tried out last year only to tie twice with Morris. The final tie breaker commenced during the 2009 Trojan Huddle where each candidate had an opportunity to lead the band in a mock game day situation. Though it was Morris that emerged victorious, the then sophomore Larson left enough of an impression in everyone's minds that it was clear he already had a head start for next year's campaign.

And so the second chapter of the journey began.

"Being so close last year drove me to work even harder," recalls Larson. "I was constantly practicing and going over the things I needed to go over. If I wasn't practicing, I was thinking about it. I really pushed myself as hard as I could to go for it."

Now with two years of constant dedication finally over, the dream that was born his very first day of band camp as a freshman is a reality.

Upon returning for his final year with the Trojan Marching Band, the newly crowned Drum Major is looking forward to bringing his relentless spirit and enthusiasm to the rest of the self proclaimed Greatest Marching Band in the History of the Universe.

"I can't wait to instill that feeling in other people," says Larson.

Tim Larson is not only a student and veteran trumpet player, but a dancer and athlete as well. He spent his first two years at USC as a hurdler on track team and recently joined the Break on 2 Latin Fusion Dance team. We are sure he will use his versatility to relate to, inspire and lead his fellow bandsmen.

All 325 of them.

- In his post-practice huddle with the media, head coach Lane Kiffin said:  "The guys came out with a lot of energy.  They responded well.  They focused today."

- As has been the pattern throughout spring ball, the Trojans spent a significant portion of the early part of practice working on special teams play and then an extended amount of time on offensive and defensive fundamentals.

- During the 11-on-11 team run drills on Brian Kennedy Field, the top run was a 30-yard scoring sweep around the left end by tailback Allen Bradford, while there were also a pair of long play action scoring passes to wide receivers Brandon Carswell (on a streak from quarterback Mitch Mustain) and Brice Butler (on a slant from quarterback Matt Barkley).  Then, during the subsequent team passing period, the highlight completion was Mustain's aerial to fullback Stanley Havili.

- The wideouts showed up well in the full team period that usually ends each practice, with Carswell, Butler and Travon Patterson making nice grabs.  There were two fumbles during the 35-minute period.  On the first one, offensive tackle Tyron Smith came out of the scrum with the ball.  The next one occurred near the goal line after a long Bradford run when cornerback Daniel Harper came from behind to punch the ball out, but it took a basketball hop right back up into Bradford's grasp for a touchdown.

- The coaches introduced a new drill to conclude today's practice, a goal line drill from the 2-yard line, complete with blaring music.  "It was our first shot at short yardage and goal line, so we tried to create an energetic environment," said Kiffin.  "We wanted to make it like a game, to make it realistic.  We had no penalties during the drill.  I was pleased that our players were able to maintain their focus in a highly energetic environment...The guys played hard.  There were some good plays on offense and good plays on defense."  The drill appeared to finish as a stalemate, with the offense scoring 4 times (on 3 Bradford runs and a catch by tight end Blake Ayles of a Mustain pass that was deflected at the line by defensive end Malik Jackson) and the defense stopping them 4 times.  But after the horn sounded signifying the end of practice, the players called for more.  So they ran 5 more plays from the 2-yard line and this time the defensive shut down all but once (only a Bradford sweep where he bowled over linebacker Malcolm Smith at the goal line was successful).

- Barkley spent more time during and after practice working as a holder for the placekickers.

- Defensive tackle Hebron Fangupo participated throughout practice (he had been slowed while recovering from last year's ankle injury), leading Kiffin to remark that having him back "adds to the competition on the defensive line.  We now have eight guys there we're excited about."

- What do the injured players do during practice?  Well, they spend the entire session off on a side field rehabbing and conditioning with trainers and strength coaches.  From the looks of it, they work as hard as their healthy teammates.  Today, this group included Martin Coleman, Torin Harris, Butch Lewis, De'Von Flournoy, Allen Noble, Spencer Spiegel, Rhett Ellison and Brian Baucham.

Here's head coach Lane Kiffin and his thoughts on Tuesday's practice.

The first episode of "Project Trojan:  2010 Spring Football" is now available for free viewing at USCTrojans.com.  Click here for the direct link.

The show includes exclusive practice footage as well as interviews with head coach Lane Kiffin, assistant coach Ed Orgeron, quarterback Matt Barkley and linebacker Malcolm Smith as they go through the opening days of spring ball.

While this episode is free, future "Project Trojan" episodes will be part of the premium content on USCTrojans.com's All-Access platform, so sign up here.

Next week, look for an episode highlighting the Pro Day experience of the draft-eligible Trojans.

Back by popular demand, RipsIt will again be live blogging Saturday's scrimmage to relay all the happenings from Howard Jones Field.

We had a tremendous following and interaction with all of you during the live from last Saturday's scrimmage.  We had fun reading all your comments, answering your questions and chatting with the best fans in the world. So happy, in fact, that we're considering making the live blog a standard part of RipsIt for all future USC scrimmages (including the May 1 Spring Football Game at the Coliseum) as well as the regular season home games next year.

As for tomorrow, Stephanie Graves will also be returning to help respond to user questions and provide her own observations of the action. So don't be shy to keep us on our toes with plenty of comments and feedback.  Oh, and it'll be a full day for Stephanie, because as soon as the scrimmage is over she'll rush over to the McDonald's Swim Stadium and join her Trojan Marching Band-mates as they perform at Swim With Mike (look for her; she plays the mellophone).

Check back in at this very location around 11 a.m. tomorrow to get the color commentary on the sights and sounds of Saturday's practice.

Or, if you'd prefer to watch the scrimmage in-person, click here to find out how you can get your pass into Howard Jones Field.

Either way, we hope to see you then!

Here are a couple reports that were filed yesterday by ESPN's Pac-10 blogger, Ted Miller, following his visit to USC:

Miller's practice notes are here.

Miller's video chat with linebacker Malcolm Smith is here.

Miller also had a lengthy sitdown interview with Lane Kiffin and he should be posting that story soon.

The furniture movers are here again today, with another truckload of new desks, chairs and other items to install in the coaches offices.

This time, the furniture is mainly earmarked for the defensive coaches, so the movers are waiting for the defensive staff meeting to break and the coaches to go off to lunch before the installation process can be completed.

There's no football practice today for the Trojans, but Lane Kiffin and his staff are in the office preparing for Saturday's practice, which will include another intrasquad scrimmage. 

But if the Trojan coaches seem to be dragging a bit today, they have an excuse.  They put in a 20-hour day yesterday.

April 15 is the first day that the NCAA allows football coaches to call current high school juniors, so the Trojan coaches were all up at 3 a.m. to start making those calls.  They didn't waste a minute dialing up recruits across the country, another testament to the attitude and drive Kiffin and his staff have towards recruiting.

Because the Trojans also practiced yesterday afternoon, the coaches didn't get out of the office until 11 p.m. because they were reviewing the practice video.  They were back in Heritage Hall this morning getting ready for tomorrow's scrimmage.

So, the coffee pot in the football office is getting refilled often today.

Here's a list of a few things that can be accomplished in a 30 hour time span:

• Fly from Los Angeles to South Africa
• Watch your favorite Super Bowl commercial 3600 times
• 31,130 sit-ups
• Swim for a good cause. A lot.

USC's men's and women's swim teams elected to go with the latter, combining to swim for 30 consecutive hours for this year's 30th anniversary of Swim with Mike.

The teams began their marine marathon this morning at 8 a.m. and will continue until 2 p.m. tomorrow (Saturday April 17).

To sponsor any of the swimmers from either team, click here. And if you want to simply cheer on your fellow Trojans, head over to McDonalds Pool on the USC campus sometime within the next 27 hours.

• Charles Brown, OT
• Luthur Brown, LB
• Jeff Byers, C-OL
• Garrett Green, QB-WR
• Everson Griffen, DE
• Will Harris, S
• Nick Howell, OL
• Stafon Johnson, RB
• Taylor Mays, S
• Anthony McCoy, TE
• Joe McKnight, RB
• Alex Parsons, OL
  
• Josh Pinkard, S
• Averell Spicer, DT
  
• Kevin Thomas, CB
• Damian Williams

"It was a pretty decent Tuesday practice," said USC head coach Lane Kiffin.  "I was really impressed with the offensive line.  We only had 6 offensive linemen today and they all did well."

Some observations:

--Once again, a good portion of the early practice (45 minutes) was devoted to special teams fundamentals.

--A number of receivers made nice catches and/or big plays, including Travon Patterson, Robbie Boyer, Ronald Johnson, Kyle Prater, Brice Butler, David Ausberry and Jordan Cameron.  Prater outdueled cornerback Shareece Wright in a one-on-one drill, followed soon after by a Butler highlight grab.  Johnson, as he has in nearly every spring practice, hauled in a long scoring bomb.  Johnson later made a spectacular reception of an underthrown ball, squatting low and then flicking the ball up one-handed to make the catch for a sizable gain.  Quarterback Matt Barkley hit Patterson on a long aerial that drew cheers from teammates and spectators.

--The hit of the day might have been linebacker Devon Kennard's crunching blow on tight end Jordan Cameron.

--In run drills, tailback Allen Bradford charged up the middle and broke through several tacklers for an impressive long gain.

--The practice ended with a 2-minute drill.  Linebacker Malcolm Smith ended one drive with a pass deflection that brought the entire defense unit alive.  Then safety T.J. McDonald, on first-and-goal from the 9-yard line and 2 seconds on the clock, made an endzone interception that concluded the day's practice.

--The Trojans experimented with the Wildcat formation for a few plays, with tailback Dillon Baxter lined up at quarterback.  "It's something I've done at the last two places I coached (Oakland Raiders and Tennessee) and so I wanted to try it here," said Kiffin.  "It's just an experiment.  Maybe we'll bring it out again some time."

--There was a new player wearing a gold quarterback jersey:  defensive end James Boyd.  The coaches told him yesterday they were switching him back to the position he played in high school (he threw for 4,266 yards and 44 touchdowns as a 2008 senior at Los Angeles Jordan High) and he jumped at the opportunity.  "I was happy when they told me," the 6-5, 250-pound Boyd said.  "I've got to get back into quarterback shape now.  I spent the whole past year getting bigger to play defensive line.  I have a lot to learn and I have to get my mechanics down.  But I'm excited."  Said Kiffin:  "We're thin in our quarterback depth.  James did some really good things at quarterback in high school.  He has a big time arm."

--Kiffin was asked his analysis about last Saturday's scrimmage, now that he was able to watch video of it:  "I didn't like the defense in the first half and the offense in the second half.  It was a great lesson for the offense, which didn't come out with the same energy in the second half.  But I thought Matt Barkley had an unbelievable downfield day throwing the ball."

--Cornerback T.J. Bryant and wide receiver De'Von Flournoy, who both shared jersey No. 1, have been assigned different numbers.  Bryant is now No. 38 and Flournoy is No. 81.  "We have some special numbers here at USC, like No. 1 and No. 43, which have been worn by some dominant players in the past," said Kiffin.  "I'm not sure either of those players are operating at that level yet.  They need to earn that number, to deserve it."

--There were a number of former Trojan players who watched the first half of practice before heading to the Galen Dining Center for a gathering of the Trojan Football Alumni Club.  Among those spotted were Anthony Davis, Allen Carter, C. R. Roberts, Manfred Moore, John Mazur, Joe Collins, Shane Foley, Marvin Cobb, Andy Eddy, Mike McGirr, Paul Salata, Brad Leggett, Matt Koart, Anthony Daye, Michael Hayes, Clint Hampton, Brian Weissberg and Sam Tsagalakis.  Former longtime assistant track coach Ken Matsuda was also there.

--One of the referees who has been working most of this spring's USC practices is Jim Farmer, who has officiated many BCS-conference games.  He's very familiar with the campus;  his late father, Herb, was a professor in the USC School of Cinematic Arts for more than 70 years and also shot Trojan football coaching films from the roof of the Coliseum press box.

--Los Angeles City Attorney Carmen Trutanich and some of his staff members stopped by to watch part of practice and say hello to Kiffin.

--Kiffin had a surprise visit at the end of practice from his wife, Layla, and their 3 children, Landry, Presley and Knox.

Pete Carroll might have moved on, but Ricky Rosas--who was the "Special Assistant to the Head Coach" during the final few years of Carroll's tenure--still makes appearances in the Trojan football offices and at practice.

The 4-foot-8, 100-pound Rosas gained national attention while helping out the Trojans.  He is developmentally disabled as a result of juvenile cancer, but he made a 90-minute bus ride from his home in East L.A. to USC nearly each day for those past few seasons to perform various duties for the Trojan football program, including handing out water at practices and running errands for the coaches.

He is now a 21-year-old sophomore at East Los Angeles College, majoring in communication and on track to receive his A.A. degree in the spring of 2011.  English is his favorite class and he said his grades are good.  After finishing at East L.A., he hopes to transfer to a 4-year university before starting a career in the sports media.

His academic schedule has somewhat limited his ability to get to USC as often as the past few years, but he still shows up to help whenever he can...still taking that long bus ride.

And he's truly excited about the new coaching staff--he got to know new USC head coach Lane Kiffin during Kiffin's first tour of duty at Troy--and the 2010 Trojans.

"The coaches are great guys and I'm glad they're here," said Rosas, as he prepared to go out to today's spring practice.  "I'm looking forward to another great season.  I can't wait.  The team looks good.  They all look like they've gotten better.  And the new players are everything people said they'd be."

Rosas has a message for Trojan fans:  "I want to thank all of them for supporting me in everything I have done here.  USC means the world to me and everybody here means everything to me.  They're like family to me."

When the Trojans have their first scrimmage of spring ball this Saturday (tomorrow), join USCRipsIt at 11 a.m. for a live blog covering the sights and sounds of the intra-squad game. Readers are welcome to sign in and chat with USCRipsIt and other Trojan fans looking to get up-to-the-minute details of the action.

The Live blog will be hosted right here on USCRipsIt, so check back tomorrow at 11 a.m. to get in on the inside scoop.

Male - Individual Day Performance
Jordan Thompson - Men's Water Polo

Female Individual Day Performance
Zsofia Erdelyi - Track

Best Comeback
Ahmad Rashad -Track

Record Breaking Performance
Rebecca Soni - Swimming

Best Athlete - Female
Kami Craig- Women's Water Polo

Best Athlete Male (tie)
Robert Farah -  Tennis
Damian Williams - Football

Female Best Team of the Year
Tennis

Male - Best Team of the Year
Water Polo

Male Trojan of the Year
Jon Hackett

Female Trojan of the Year
Shalina Clarke

Coach of the Year
Jovan Vavic

Staff of the Year
Gregg Millward

The Trojans' first spring practice in full pads today invoked heavy doses of physical play, which drew plenty of "oohs" and "aahs" from the large turnout of spectators. On a near-perfect sunny Saturday afternoon, Head Coach Lane Kiffin pushed his squad through what he described as a "very physical, very long practice." Practice lasted two and a half hours. A few highlights from the Trojans third spring practice of the year...

- Junior tailback Allen Bradford, typically known for his punishing style of play with the ball in his hands, demonstrated his ability to deliver big hits as a blocker as well. During a drill where Bradford was assigned to protect the punter, he not only succeeded in blocking his opponent, but pile-driving him into the ground.

- Freshman Kyle Prater just might have suction cups on his hands. The wideout who enrolled early this past semester reeled in a one-handed, outstretched grab on a post-route pass from freshman quarterback Matt Barkley, and later hauled in a fade route with his arms extended over the top of a defender.

- Junior tailback CJ Gable had little trouble finding paydirt, as he scored three times in full squad drills from 5, 10 and 30 yards. Gable also made a nice adjustment on a tipped pass from Barkley, snagging the ball and turning the play into a 50-yard gain with a few jukes and evasive moves. His play certainly grabbed the attention of his head coach, who expressed that he was "excited" about the tailback's performance.

- Recent Trojans Everson Griffen, Anthony McCoy and NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Brian Cushing stopped by to watch practice.

- The first day of padded practice often comes with its normal amount of bumps and bruises. Among the players nicked today were safety Marshall Jones (neck), offensive tackles Martin Coleman (ankle), Matt Kalil (hip) and Kevin Graf (ankle), defensive tackle Hebron Fangupo (ankle), fullbacks DJ Shoemate (hamstring) and Stanley Havili (shoulder), tailback Dillon Baxter (quad), and linebacker Marquis Simmons (neck). Kiffin noted that it would benefit the team "to be able to work through injuries."

The Trojans resume their practice schedule on Tuesday, keeping with the Tuesday-Thursday-Saturday agenda.

Good morning, RipsIt Blog readers!

Now that Ben Malcolmson and his incredible talent has moved on to the Seattle Seahawks, and while the USC athletic department is diligently searching for his permanent replacement, this blog will continue with some pinch-hitters covering spring football.

I'm one of them...and appropriately, my name also is Ben.  Ben Weiss.  I'm a junior public relations major at USC who hails from the east coast.  I've been around the football program through my internship with the USC sports information office.  I know I'm not Ben Malcolmson (heck, nobody is!), but I'll do my best to fill in temporarily and keep the loyal USCRipsIt readers informed about the happenings surrounding the Trojan football program.

We're also working on getting a couple guests to share their perspectives on a periodic basis.

I'll be back after this morning's practice--the first day in full pads--with a report.

• The Lane Kiffin era of USC football has gotten under way with the start of spring practice this week. I'm looking forward to watching our team develop over these next few weeks. I've always believed that spring ball is crucial to building the foundation of a team. Although Coach Kiffin and his staff are in their first year here and have some building to do, the fact that he and some of his coaches have been here before has dramatically helped in the transition. Practice has just started, but I've already heard positive early reports from the players. They like the way they are being coached. It was especially heartening to hear them mention the staff's emphasis on discipline and detail.
  
  
• Earlier this week, we announced a policy for those who want to attend football practice. All of us at USC understand that these new guidelines might seem inconvenient to you (i.e. calling in 24 hours prior for approval), but I thank you in advance for following them. This policy was enacted in the best interests of the program and our players, and we know that those who truly care about USC will understand and be supportive. Bottom line, we want to make sure that we know who is attending our practices. The other day, I was talking to someone about our new system and they used this analogy: air travel has become a bit more inconvenient in recent years because of all the procedures people now must go through at airports, but those procedures were put in place for a reason and people still do travel on airplanes. People will still be able to watch our practices, but the way we manage that has been adjusted.
  
  
• Speaking of football, 2010 season tickets go on sale on April 7 at USCTrojans.com. We have a very appealing -- and challenging -- home schedule: Virginia, Washington, California, Oregon, Arizona State and Notre Dame. And, if you want a sneak peak of the 2010 Trojans in action, don't forget to also buy your tickets to the Spring Football Game on May 1 in the Coliseum. That's always a fun event.
  
  
• Do you want to know the real reason I love the spring sports season? Because it gives me a chance to get out of the office more often than normal and do what I love doing the most: watching our teams compete. One day, I might be out at Marks Stadium watching tennis, the next day at Dedeaux Field for a baseball game, then the next at McDonald's Swim Stadium cheering on the water polo team. I'd love to have you join me. We have 19 teams at USC -- maybe some sports that you've never seen in person before -- and they all compete at high levels. There's no doubt that college sports offer the best entertainment value around.