After then-freshman Palaie Gaoteote's three-game run filling in for senior Cam Smith during the middle of last season, he was mostly relegated back to the bench until USC's finale against Notre Dame.
Defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast said at the time that he wasn't interested in forcing the rookie playmaker on the field at another position because he wanted Gaoteote practicing at middle linebacker in preparation for his future role.
Well, sometime after the season those plans shifted a little.
Redshirt senior John Houston said he was informed 2-3 months ago that he would be sliding over to that "Mike" linebacker spot this spring while Gaoteote would work at the "Will" linebacker position. (Senior Jordan Iosefa is also working with the inside linebackers).
"I can be able to communicate and just know the defense, know some of the calls and checks that's maybe harder for other people, especially just learning it," Houston said of stepping in to fill Smith's void. "But it's kind of easier for me. I've been here a couple years so I know the playbook pretty well."
Gaoteote understandably was raw as a true freshman, but his instincts and physical abilities stood out as he racked up a team-high 9 tackles and 2 tackles for loss against Colorado and 11 tackles and a sack at Utah before a quieter performance against Arizona State. He also had some defensive breakdowns along the way as well -- rookie mistakes, one might call them.
It was also stated at the time that even when he was filling in at Smith's MLB or "Mike" spot that Houston was taking on a larger share of the communication responsibilities for the defense from the other inside linebacker position.
And in explaining his rationale for the switch last Thursday after the Trojans' second practice of the spring, Pendergast acknowledged that Houston's veteran presence was a factor.
"We lost some real veteran leadership in Cam and we wanted an experienced guy in the middle, so we moved Jordan Iosefa there as well. It's early in camp so all those guys are going to play both spots inside. We're just trying to get a feel for a couple different combinations there," he said.
When pressed further about how the individual skill sets of each guy fed into the impetus for those changes, he elaborated that he doesn't see a significant difference in the two roles.
"I think when you look at the way football is these days, there's not really a 'Mike' linebacker that's a downhill thumper. Everything's played pretty much -- a high percentage of the game -- outside the hashmarks from the numbers to the sideline. In this defense, the 'Mike' and the 'Will' athletically are going to be very interchangeable," Pendergast said. "That was really the thought process.
"EA played really well in the Notre Dame game at the dime linebacker position, which was into the boundary a lot. He's an explosive athlete so we're trying to get our best guys out there in the right spots, so taking a look at him there in spring ball will be beneficial for him and us."
(Gaoteote had 7 tackles and a sack in that Notre Dame game to finish his season strong).
For their part, both Houston and Gaoteote are embracing the situation.
Houston indicated he didn't require much explanation from Pendergast about the change, noting, "We're a combo. We come any way we have to. ... I just trust the scheme and trust what he's got going on for the team."
Houston, who started all but the final game last season, finished second on the team with 67 tackles playing alongside Smith and notched 2.5 tackles for loss, 5 deflections and a forced fumble.
Gaoteote, meanwhile, made those three starts in place of Smith at middle linebacker and started that finale in place of Houston while totaling 38 tackles, 4.5 TFL and 2 sacks overall in nine games.
Speaking after the first spring practice, he indicated that he was expecting to be working primarily at the WILL spot all spring.
As for the fall ...
"I'm expecting to just be on the field. I'm going to grind my way out and try to fight for that starting role and just be on the field -- wherever the coach needs me, wherever it fits best for the defense I'll play it," he said. "I think it allows me to play downhill a lot more and just allows me to move around, just be natural out there and just fly around as best as I can."
Said Pendergast: "The game's starting to slow down for him and just being here a second semester, there's a lot of things that he had to adjust to. Plus he was injured in fall camp. I think he got injured the first day of full pads and missed all of fall camp. So he's made progress and I'm real excited about where he's at right now."
The moves make sense as explained, and moving an experienced player like Iosefa from outside linebacker to inside gives the Trojans some good depth there along with sophomore Kana'i Mauga, redshirt-freshman Solomon Tuliaupupu (a 4-star prospect and top-100 overall recruit in the 2018 class who missed last season following preseason foot surgery) and 4-star freshman Ralen Goforth.
Tuliaupupu and Gaoteote are especially close, and Gaoteote said it "kind of brought tears to my eyes" seeing his friend back in action this spring.
Pendergast also weighed in on Tuliaupupu's outlook.
"I think he's got a lot of upside. Taking the year off has allowed him to learn the defense and kind of get acclimated to college life, and I was really impressed with his aptitude in the meetings last year and that's carried over so far in the spring as well," he said. "He's a very businesslike kid that wants all the information you can give him."
