It's a new day at USC. Kliff Kingsbury not only brings a different offense but the credentials that should be expected from a USC offensive coordinator. He's a game-changer for a football program. Below are 10 areas in which he'll specifically change the Trojans.
1. WATCH THE THRONE
Kliff Kingsbury arrives with more fanfare than probably any USC assistant since Norm Chow. But it’s not simply hype. He is accomplished and he is experienced. Not only have his offenses ranked in the top 10 every season since 2011, his nine years as a coordinator and/or head coach are the most of any incoming USC OC since Chuck Stobart, who directed the Trojans offense in 1987-88 -- Rodney Peete finished second in the Heisman that second season.
2. QB GURU
I’ve never been one to put all my eggs in the prep pedigree basket. But if anyone is going to maximize JT Daniels’ ability, you’d have to think it would be Kingsbury. The latter’s track record (Case Keenum, Johnny Manziel, Baker Mayfield, Davis Webb, Patrick Mahomes), is very reminiscent of the last high-profile OC the Trojans brought in 18 years ago. Chow had worked directly with Ty Detmer, Steve Sarkisian and Philip Rivers prior to coming to USC. He then cemented his guru status after coaching Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart for four seasons -- that his tenure was unnecessarily cut short is still regrettable. USC would be fortunate to get half that time with Kingsbury, who, as I noted above arrives with more experience as a head coach and coordinator than Chow did in 2001.
3. BREAKING HALFTIME
It’s no secret that USC’s offense didn’t function nearly as well in the second half as the first. The numbers were particularly pronounced with its starting quarterback. Consider these splits for Daniels:
First half: 62.7 completion percentage, 1,741 yards, 7.9 yards per attempt, 10 touchdowns, five interceptions
Second half: 54.5%, 931 yds, 6.51 ypa, 4 TDs, 5 INTs
Daniels, to be fair, was the offensive catalyst in wins against UNLV and Washington State, a pair of September games in which the Trojans finished strong. Sandwiched in-between were two forgettable performances at Stanford and Texas. These were only the first four games of Daniels’ career, of course. So it was peculiar then that as he gained more experience he continually struggled after halftime, especially in games where he started out strong, such as Arizona, Colorado, Cal, UCLA and Notre Dame.
