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Question of the Day
While we're still not even sure what's going to become of this 2020 football season, it was fun nonetheless to think ahead a handful of years as USC announced Monday it had inked a home-and-home contract to play Ole Miss in 2025-26.
It remains to be seen whether former Trojans coach Lane Kiffin is still coaching the Rebels by that point, but either way it's an intriguing non-conference matchup that seems to have been met by favorable response from the fan base.The debate, of course, is whether USC needs to add road games and Power 5 opponents to a schedule that already includes nine conference games and Notre Dame. But from a spectator standpoint, watching USC-Ole Miss is a lot more fun that having the Trojans host San Jose State.
So our poll question today is simple -- what is your satisfaction/approval/excitement level for the home-and-home contract with Ole Miss on a 1-10 scale with 10 being the highest. Additionally, though, it would be fun to hear what is the Power 5 program you would most want to see USC play. We don't have a way to do this in formal poll fashion as I want all options on the table, so just respond on Trojan Talk with your thoughts.
The polls are in ...
On Monday we asked which of USC's 12 commits so far is the most underrated with regard to the new Rivals250 rankings that came out last week.
The poll received 62 votes as of Tuesday at noon, and 3-star offensive guard Maximus Gibbs was the most popular pick, racking up more than a third (21) of those votes.
Gibbs is a 3-star prospect now, but Rivals analyst Adam Gorney has stated that he has a good chance of getting the 4-star bump depending on what he shows this fall for St. John Bosco HS. Here's what Gorney said on the Trojan Talk podcast about that last month:
"I think Max Gibbs is an intriguing prospect that we're just going to have to really see during the season again," he said. "I saw him last year, he was in and out of games. I thought that he was very, very good, but we just need to see him more consistently on the field, consistently dominating ... and he has to stay in shape. He has definitely done that over the last year. He looks like a completely different person from when I saw him two years ago. He's much more agile, much lighter and he's starting to really get into football shape, and that's really positive see."
In a fairly close second in the poll was 3-star offensive tackle Mason Murphy with 12 votes. The buzz I've heard on Murphy is highly encouraging, and he was my vote. Likewise, Gorney also suggested that Murphy had a strong likelihood of ending up a 4-star before this cycle is done.
"Mason Murphy is another kid who looks great. Definitely a tackle in college, and a guy who I saw last year was impressive and really just need to see a little more of him and need to see him dominate more. He's right on that cusp of 4-star status," Gorney said.
Rounding out the voting was 4-star DT Jay Toia (10 votes), an imposing physical presence on the defensive line for Grace Brethren HS who has the 4-star rating but is not in the Rivals250 as of now; 3-star DE Colin Mobley (7), the newest commit last week from Maryland; 4-star ATH/LB Julien Simon (4), the highest-ranked prospect at No. 108 to receive votes in this poll; 4-star ATH/S Anthony Beavers (3), the No. 199-ranked prospect; 2 votes each for 4-star RB Brandon Campbell (No. 173) and 4-star safety Xamarion Gordon (No. 228); and 1 vote for 4-star S Calen Bullock (No. 119). (Top-25 commits Quaydarius Davis and Jake Garcia were not voting options due to the poll function capping us at 10 potential selections).
See the full poll here with votes continuing to be received the rest of the week.
Former USC QB Jack Sears lands at Boise State
The transfer portal odyssey of former USC quarterback Jack Sears -- which began when he left the team soon after being relegated to fourth string after fall camp last year -- ended Monday night as Boise State announced he was joining the Broncos.
On the one hand, landing at another program often ranked in the top 25 polls is a nice landing spot for Sears, but as many quickly noted the Broncos already have an entrenched starting QB who is younger than Sears. Hank Bachmeier (from Murrieta Valley HS) passed for 1,879 yards, 9 touchdowns and 6 interceptions in eight games as a true freshman last season. They also have a capable backup in redshirt junior Chase Cord, who made two starts last season and was a contributor in many other games in mobile-QB packages.
But both were also injured at times last year, prompting Boise State to start its third-string QB in four games (sound familiar?). The Broncos have one other scholarship QB on the roster -- the incoming freshman Cade Fennegan (whom USC made a move on late before National Signing Day) -- but the feeling from those who cover Boise State is that Sears must feel can come in and compete and at least claim that No. 2 job.
Bachmeier plays with a reckless abandon at times and it's entirely possible that backup QB will be called upon again next season.
Either way, it's an interesting landing spot for Sears after he was committed to San Diego State for a time. He was expected to compete for the starting job there, and it's unclear how Rocky Long's departure as head coach impacted those plans.
Wearing No. 0 ...
I asked a source if this means Talanoa Hufanga and Jay Tufele ARE wearing No. 0 next season, or if it was just a hypothetical. It was just for fun. But that raises the question, who SHOULD wear 0 next season?
Story links from Monday
-Kedon Slovis shares the messages he received from past USC QBs last season
-Four-star CB Jaylin Davies breaks down his top-4 list, USC interest
-USC inks home-and-home contract with Ole Miss for 2025-26
-See where USC 5-star signee Evan Mobley ended up in the final basketball recruiting rankings
Top tweets
This is an encouraging sign for the hopes of a 2020 college football season in LA ...
Some thoughts on potential protocols for a college football restart ...
The annual Academic Progress Rate reports are out ...
Key USC WR target Michael Jackson III ...
USC introduces a familiar name as its new swimming coach ...
