USC Football Notes: Lincoln Riley talks depth chart decisions at LB, LT, K

With USC releasing its depth chart after midnight, coach Lincoln Riley joined reporters over Zoom about 10 hours later Thursday morning to discuss some of the more notable decisions -- or indecision.

Of course, he was asked about the still-unsettled competition at left tackle, where the first-team spot was listed on the depth chart as redshirt sophomore Courtland Ford 'OR' graduate transfer Bobby Haskins.

As for what has held up a final decision there ...

"Well, most of it's positive. They're both pretty good players, and it's been a little bit tougher just to pick out between those two. We felt at the other four positions we've had clear separation," Riley said. "... But yeah, we have two guys that have played some, two guys that are talented. They've been going at it. We also knew that you've got Haskins coming off the injury when he wasn't with us all spring, so it's not like we got to look at him all spring. I think Courtland's body developed quite a bit through summer into fall camp and he's been better physically, so yeah, I think it's been a matter of trying to get a good look at both. And we feel like we have two good players.

"Again, to us, it's not like we're, 'Oh, no, gosh, who's our left tackle?' We've got two good players there. I'm sure they're both going to get some opportunities, and I'm sure that will play out as the season goes on. ... We're going to give them both some shots and each guy's going to get their opportunity to prove that they should be the guy. It will probably settle in at some point, but as long as we're getting production at that position, that's obviously the main thing."

While Riley said both Ford, the incumbent starter from last year, and Haskins, a two-year starting left tackle at Virginia, will play Saturday in the opener vs. Rice, it remains to be seen which one goes out there first and what that signifies, ultimately.

But it sounds like the coaches may already have a preference in mind after all.

"Oh, we've got a good idea who's going to step on the field first. We just got off the field for kind of our last kind of little act in practice. We'll know probably by this afternoon and give the guys a heads up. They're both going to play. There's no question about that. We're not just going to play one guy in this game, I don't anticipate," Riley said. "I mean, we want to see both of them. We want to give them a chance to produce, and then, once you get your snaps in the game it's what you do with it. If a guy goes in there and is playing super well, then maybe we'll stick with him. But certainly the plan is to give both guys a shot and opportunity and see who takes off and runs with it."

On Wednesday after practice, left guard Andrew Vorhees indicated there could be a little more to the situation and evaluation as well.

"They both bring tremendous talent to the table. I'm really proud of both [of] their development throughout camp. I know they're kind of struggling physically with illness and ailment, but that's part of the game and I think they're doing the best that they can to put themselves in the position to make it a hard decision for the coaches," he said.

Reporters don't get much in the way of injury updates/clarity and it was not readily noticeable what either lineman has been dealing with, but clearly if both are expected to play Saturday, then it can't be too significant.

Meanwhile, the biggest surprise on the depth chart was redshirt freshman walk-on Denis Lynch edging out redshirt senior Alex Stadthaus, a former walk-on who was put on scholarship this year, for the starting placekicker job.

Lynch, a 5-foot-8 left-footed kicker who is popular with his teammates, has not yet played in a game at USC. Stadthaus, who will still handle kickoffs, was 6-fot-6 on field goals and 11-for-11 on extra points last year while sharing the job with Parker Lewis. Both Stadthaus and Lewis entered the transfer portal after the season, but Riley convinced Stadthaus to stay and put him on scholarship.

"It was close, man. We had two outstanding kickers. Stadty is a guy who’s really a leader, a really strong figure on our team. Denis is a grinder. Denis is one of the hardest-working specialists I’ve been around, and he needs to continue that. But his work ethic at a young age is impressive. To me, it’s just a plain example of us doing what we said we were going to do. What guys did before, we’re not paying a whole lot of attention to. It’s going to be about production and results now," Riley said.

"The reality is they were both very good in camp. Denis was a little bit more consistent, and therefore, Denis will be the kicker to start the season. We obviously have a ton of confidence in Alex. I can’t imagine a scenario where you have more confidence in your No. 2 guy going in. Alex is still going to have a huge role on this team, no matter how that plays out. He’s just an important figure. I feel lucky. Had a few years where we didn’t have any. Feels good to have two guys you really believe in."