Could Drake London play a different role in USC's offense in 2021?

One of the noticeable observations from the first week of USC spring practice was seeing junior wide receiver Drake London line up on the outside after feasting in the slot the last two years.

The Trojans' wide receiver depth has been thin so far this spring, with Bru McCoy yet to make his debut and two of the three freshmen newcomers not arriving until the summer, so it was easy to conclude the staff was just getting creative to fill the spots.

But after talking to wide receivers coach Keary Colbert and London on Tuesday morning, it sounds like there could actually be more to it.

"I definitely wanted to showcase my talent out there," London said. "Like coach has said and reiterated a ton of times, spring ball is really for practice and trying out new things and just trying to figure it out. This is my first offseason with the team, so as much as I can get reps outside, I’m going to do it."

London was with the basketball program during much of the 2019 winter offseason and spring and then of course spring ball was cancelled last year due to the pandemic. London made the decision prior to this recent basketball season that he would abandon his two-sport pursuit and focus on his football future, and part of that, as Colbert said, is making sure the scouts at the next level have no unanswered questions about the dynamic playmaker.

"His first couple years, he played a lot on the inside because of Pittman and Amon-Ra and Tyler Vaughns. That’s just the way it worked out, trying to get our best four on the field, that he was on the inside. And Drake owned it. He was head and shoulders better on the inside. But we’ve talked about it more this season, just wanting to get him experience on the outside as well, so he can check all the boxes for a complete wide receiver," Colbert said. "We don’t want to leave any room for anybody to have anything negative to say. We’ve talked about it. He’s taken that in stride as well, playing on the outside. Honestly, he’s just as good inside or outside. He can do it all. That’s the best thing about his game, you can play him on the inside or outside and you’re going to get the same results."