{"id":46283,"date":"2017-10-07T06:54:34","date_gmt":"2017-10-07T06:54:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=46283"},"modified":"2017-10-07T06:54:34","modified_gmt":"2017-10-07T06:54:34","slug":"frustration-appears-usc-searches-improvement-near-midway-point-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/sports\/frustration-appears-usc-searches-improvement-near-midway-point-season.html","title":{"rendered":"Frustration appears as USC searches for improvement near the midway point of the season"},"content":{"rendered":"

Frustration appears as USC searches for improvement near the midway point of the season<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Frustration appears as USC searches for improvement near the midway point of the season:-Stress wore on the faces and in the voices of USC team members this week as they approached the midway point of the season.<\/span><\/p>\n

Clay Helton pronounced with a rare edge Tuesday that, \u201cThere’s a lot of things to correct. I’m not gonna BS you.\u201d That is about as as profane as USC\u2019s mild-mannered coach gets publicly.<\/span><\/p>\n

Offensive coordinator Tee Martin mounted a vigorous, and sometimes exasperated, defense of his offense and his play calling. “Newsflash,\u201d he said at one point this week. \u201cWe lost a lot of really good players that have gone off to the NFL right now.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Multiple players cried in the locker room last Friday after a loss to Washington State, USC\u2019s first loss in more than a year.<\/span><\/p>\n

USC (4-1, 2-1 in the Pac-12 Conference) has responded to that loss differently than even a year ago, when the Trojans began 1-3. Partially, the expectations USC carries \u2014 it began the season a playoff favorite, the Pac-12 frontrunner and in the top five \u2014 have added tension. Helton has no easy maneuver that can cure all of USC\u2019s problems, as he had last season in quarterback Sam Darnold. And, USC\u2019s lack of a bye week has left the team battered by injury and dizzied by a month with no time to take a breath.<\/span><\/p>\n

The first five games whooshed by with little time for reflection. USC escaped with precarious victories in each of its first four games before losing at Washington State.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Trojans never had an easy game. Most troubling, they never showed consistent signs of progress on offense.<\/span><\/p>\n

Saturday\u2019s game against Oregon State should provide an opportunity for both. Oregon State (1-4, 0-2) has been outscored by an average of 25.2 points a game this season. The Beavers\u2019 only win was by three points over Portland State, an FCS team.<\/span><\/p>\n

Saturday probably will be about signs of improvement.<\/span><\/p>\n

Helton was asked Tuesday if his offense had regressed. He danced around the question. He said the team had taken strides from a year ago and said he wanted to see similar progress from September to October.<\/span><\/p>\n

Asked again Thursday if he\u2019d seen improvements, he got more specific.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI thought defensively that we’ve improved, especially with our younger kids,\u201d Helton said.\u201cSpecial teams have probably been the biggest bump up.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

But for the offense, he said, \u201cYou go through the first month, 35 points of offense and [459] as far as offensive yardage, most teams would be like, ‘Oh yeah, that’s awesome,’\u201d Helton said. \u201cFor us, we have extremely high standards.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The trend has been downward. USC began with 521 yards against Western Michigan, then zoomed to 623 against Stanford. Since, USC has steadily slid until it managed only 327 against Washington State.<\/span><\/p>\n

USC has sustained a rash of injuries \u2014 fully half of the starting lineup has missed time in addition to several important reserves \u2014 but USC\u2019s execution has diminished, too.<\/span><\/p>\n

Martin defended his offensive scheming this week.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere has not been one game plan that I haven’t liked,\u201d Martin said, before reconsidering with a laugh. \u201cProbably Alabama [last season], those guys.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

USC has also struggled to put away teams early. None of the Trojans\u2019 wins were comfortable.<\/span><\/p>\n

Linebacker Cameron Smith said USC had to “take bigger steps throughout the rest of the season,\u201d but did not agree that USC had been living dangerously with close wins.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I wouldn’t say ‘dangerously’ is a word you say when you win a game,\u201d Smith said. \u201cThere’s times when we would obviously like to have games that weren’t going into overtime and close ones.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The loss wore on USC perhaps as much as the three losses combined did a year ago. Helton said the 45-minute bus ride from Pullman to the airport in Lewiston, Idaho, on Friday evening was dead silent. There was not a single word, he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

By Tuesday\u2019s practice, some frustration remained. “I wish we played tomorrow to be honest with you,\u201d Helton said afterward.<\/span><\/p>\n

But Helton and USC have resisted drastic change. Helton reversed USC\u2019s fortunes last season by remaining steady and calm, and USC\u2019s players responded.<\/span><\/p>\n

“We’re not gonna freak out,\u201d Smith said. \u201cIt’s not something where we’re gonna change what we’ve been doing for the last year. So it’s something that us as leaders need to step up and show the younger guys how we react after a loss. And we’re all [angry], and we’re not OK with it at all. We didn’t come here to lose games.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Players said they looked forward to having a target for their irritation.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I’m sure everybody’s gonna be mad,\u201d safety Chris Hawkins said. \u201cSo we play Oregon State. They’re probably not going to be happy to play us after this one.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Source:-http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/sports\/usc\/la-sp-usc-oregon-state-20171006-story.html<\/span><\/p>\n

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