This one seemed obvious, and according to Yahoo Sports' Pete Thamel, USC left tackle Alijah Vera-Tucker will indeed declare for the NFL draft.
Vera-Tucker, who is projected as a guard at the next level, gave the Trojans a tremendous boost this year when he reversed his decision to opt out of the season and came back to fill the team's pressing need at left tackle as a redshirt junior.
Most early mock drafts project Vera-Tucker as a first-round pick, and Thamel says NFL scouts view him as a top-40 prospect in this draft with first-round potential.
“One of the main reasons I came back was to compete with my brothers one more time and further my education toward a degree,” Vera-Tucker told Thamel. “Now it’s my time. I’m ready. I think it’s time to take that next step.”
Per PFF, Vera-Tucker allowed 8 pressures and 2 sacks this season. Six of those pressures and both sacks came in the Pac-12 championship game vs. Oregon after he had put a dominant stat line through the first five games.
Nonetheless, he was USC's highest-graded player on either side of the ball this fall (an elite 81.8 on PFF's scale).
He was one of the highest-rated guards nationally last season, when he allowed just 7 pressures (including only 1 sack) over 13 games and 590 pass-blocking snaps while boasting an 87.9 isolated pass-blocking grade from PFF. Overall, he was also USC's highest-rated offensive linemen last year at 78.8, topping first-round pick Austin Jackson, who replaced at left tackle this year.
If Vera-Tucker is drafted as highly as expected, it would mark back-to-back years USC's left tackle went in the first round.
Meanwhile, his departure again leaves a massive void for the Trojans with no obvious answers.
Moving right tackle Jalen McKenzie to the left side would seem like a stretch, considering he too had just moved out from guard to tackle this year and struggled in that transition (team-high 18 pressures, 3 sacks allowed in six games).
USC had two true freshmen get playing time this season in Jonah Monheim and Courtland Ford, but both played at guard. Perhaps a full offseason of continued development could put either in the mix at a tackle spot. The Trojans also have highly-rated 4-star Rivals250 OT Mason Murphy arriving in the summer.
The rest of the options on the roster are either better suited at guard, or simply untested/inexperienced.
Filling the voids on an offensive line that struggled overall as is this fall will be the major question for USC entering 2021.
In terms of NFL draft, the Trojans still have several key players facing big decisions, including wide receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown and Tyler Vaughns, defensive tackle Marlon Tuipulotu and safety Talanoa Hufanga.
**Read more about their situations the cases for staying or going**
