The 10 most intriguing individual storylines for USC spring practice
Tuesday marks the first of 15 spring practices for USC, and with 14 newcomers in the mix and many spots up for grabs with former standouts moving on to the NFL, there are plenty of compelling storylines for the Trojans over the next five weeks.
We break down the 10 individuals we're most intrigued to watch and evaluate this spring. Again, this doesn't necessarily mean the 10 best players or the 10 most impactful, but rather those with the most compelling storylines or most to prove.
RELATED: Also check out our position-by-position breakdown and overview of the key position battles for spring | USC injury notes and Clay Helton's areas of emphasis for spring football
1. Freshmen quarterbacks Miller Moss and Jaxson Dart
The competition for the future of the USC QB position begins now. Yes, junior starter Kedon Slovis has at least one more season running the offense, but most expect he'll move on to the NFL after this 2021 campaign.
That means one of the Trojans' highly-rated 4-star 2021 QB signees -- Jaxson Dart or MIller Moss -- is going to be next in line and likely serve as the backup quarterback this season, meaning they could be pressed into early action should Slovis be sidelined at any point.
That makes this, in our opinion, the most compelling position battle of the spring. There is certainly a more pressing one at left tackle, and we'll get to that, but quarterbacks always steal the spotlight and getting our first look at Dart and Moss in college practices indeed has our full attention.
2. Junior quarterback Kedon Slovis
Slovis is locked in as the unquestioned starting quarterback, so there's nothing to evaluate in that regard this spring. But he has acknowledged publicly what many fans noticed last fall -- that he just wasn't himself last season and had perhaps lost some confidence in his arm coming off an elbow injury and the COVID-disrupted offseason.
He says he feels like himself again now and we're eager to see how he looks on the practice field. Offensive coordinator Graham Harrell has said Slovis will be full-go without any limitations, and while the Trojans want to get a look at those two freshman QBs they also want to get their starter comfortable, confident and in sync with some of his new receivers.
3. Sophomore offensive linemen Courtland Ford (pictured) and Jonah Monheim
Yes, we're going to cheat again and double up at No. 3 on this list because Courtland Ford and Jonah Monheim are kind of in the same situation. Both played one game last season -- Ford at left guard, Monheim at right guard -- and both are in the mix for the vacant left tackle job, along with veteran Jalen McKenzie and fellow second-year player Casey Collier.
With McKenzie struggling at right tackle last season, Ford and Monheim seemingly carry more upside going into the spring as USC looks for a replacement to projected first-round draft pick Alijah Vera-Tucker at left tackle. They're also a little ahead of Collier in terms of readiness, though he makes this list as well.
Monheim is interesting in that the coaches believe he can play all five positions and is a pretty natural snapper at center, should that be where he eventually settles in the future. But he can also play guard or tackle and he was USC's highest-rated OL signee in that deep 2000 class.
Ford has been generating the most buzz in regard to the left tackle conversation, but he has to prove it this spring still.
Having one of those two emerge as the favorite for that LT job coming out of spring would seem the best-case scenario for the Trojans.
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