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**This is a new daily morning segment at TrojanSports.com, as a way to recap the previous day, set the stage for the day ahead, highlight the best of social media and the best of this board. See the debut installment from Monday here as we looked back on previous poll questions concerning how many games will actually be played in 2020 and who will lead USC in rushing yards next fall**
Question of the Day
We saw what Kedon Slovis did in a roughly three-fourths of a season (half of Fresno State, missed almost all of Utah, all of Washington and about half of Iowa) as a true freshman, passing for 3,502 yards, 30 TDs and 9 INTs. What will he do as a sophomore? Put aside coronavirus factors for the sake of this hypothetical, but do factor in JT Daniels' presence. Also consider that Slovis averaged 380.5 passing yards per game over the final six games. As a reference point, only four QBs passed for over 4,000 yards last season -- LSU's Joe Burrow (5,671), Wazzu's Anthony Gordon (5,579), Hawai'i's Cole McDonald (4,135) and Memphis' Brady White (4,014).
The polls are in ...
On Monday, we asked what USC would have to do next fall (assuming a full season) for fans to buy into the direction of the program under Clay Helton. We got 34 responses as of Tuesday morning, with the most popular choice being a Pac-12 championship and New Year's Six bowl win (12) votes, followed by a Pac-12 championship and New Year's Six bowl appearance (10) and 10 or more regular-season wins and a Pac-12 South title (8). Four voted that it would take a Pac-12 championship and College Football Playoff appearance, and none of our voters indicated they would be satisfied with 9 wins and a division title.
No surprises here. As always, I'll share my vote and perspective. I voted for 10 or more regular-season wins and a Pac-12 South title. That comes with caveats and other supporting evidence.
They'd have to continue this recruiting momentum and have a top-10 class at minimum. If that happens and they win 10 games and reach the conference championship game, that shows me plenty -- and a big reason I would feel that way is that I really believe in this new defensive staff and think they landed some major assets that can help continue to grow the program moving forward.
Graham Harrell will be a popular name again next offseason and that's a we'll-cross-that-bridge-when-we-come-to-it situation. But a top-10 recruiting class and 10 wins with a new defensive staff that should be able to recruit even better in the 2022 class while getting an earlier start would be a strong statement.
What we don't know is what it will take for athletic director Mike Bohn to feel content. Our sources have made it clear to us that everything is on the table regarding the future of the program behind next season. The staff overhaul this offseason didn't assure Helton of anything beyond the coming year. There is enough financial flexibility to make a move if things don't look so encouraging, but there is also significant reason to buy into the idea that 2020 (if the season is played) could be a turning point for the program.
Monday headlines
-Grad transfer OT Keldrick Wilson says USC is one of his three top contenders
-Adam Gorney ranks the contenders for 4-star 2021 CB Jaylin Davies
-Mock draft roundup: Where the Trojans stand in the latest NFL draft projections
-2021 4-star ATH Jamier Johnson puts USC in his Final 7
-5-star basketball prospect Josh Christopher chooses ASU over USC, Michigan
About the Josh Christopher decision ...
Several of our subscribers wondered why Christopher would choose Arizona State over staying at home and playing for a USC program that is about to have back-to-back first-round NBA draft picks (or going to a program like Michigan that has had major NCAA Tournament success in recent years).
The 5-star prospect's older brother Caleb Christopher is already on the roster at Arizona State, and that surely was as big a factor as any in the end.
Unfortunately for USC, not only did the Trojans miss out on two game-changing prospects this week in Christopher and fellow local 5-star prospect Ziaire Williams (committed to Stanford), but they now have to compete against them next year.
Still, Andy Enfield has put together another compelling roster makeover led by incoming 5-star center Evan Mobley, so there will be plenty of intrigue entering next season all the same.
Top tweets
Every morning we round up the best of social media from the day before from posts relevant to USC athletics.
This obviously wins the day. Congrats to former Trojans outside linebacker Porter Gustin:
Not a bad idea ...
Now we really feel lazy during this quarantine ...
USC redshirt freshman wide receiver Munir McClain is multi-talented ...
Clay Helton highlights USC football's academic achievers ...
From one former Trojans standout to another ...
