LOS ANGELES — Michael Pittman had perhaps the best vantage point of the JT Daniels experience in the touted freshman quarterback’s debut practice at USC on Friday afternoon.
After Pittman, the junior wide receiver, shook loose from the tight coverage of cornerback Iman Marshall in a 7-on-7 portion of practice, turning to sprint down the sideline, he reached the end zone right on time to snag a pass from Daniels for a touchdown. The football traveled about 40 yards in the air. The placement was almost exact. Pittman grabbed it in stride as he crossed the goal line.
“JT definitely puts a touch on it,” Pittman said. “He has a feel for the back-shoulder ball, which we don’t really see very much.”
About a half-hour later, in an 11-on-11 drill, Pittman ran a short curl route over the middle of the field. He slipped, slightly. Daniels delivered the ball a little too slowly. It cost them. Cornerback Ajene Harris broke off his coverage and jumped in front of Pittman to grab the interception.
“He’s a freshman. He’s a redshirt (high school) senior,” Pittman said. “It happens.”
The presence of Daniels was felt as USC began training camp at Howard Jones-Brian Kennedy Field, his arrival providing a jolt to a quarterback competition that first began in March with spring practice. Daniels, the Gatorade national player of the year who led Mater Dei to an undefeated season last fall, graduated a full year early from high school to join redshirt sophomore Matt Fink and redshirt freshman Jack Sears as they contend to replace Sam Darnold.
Daniels at certain moments showed the signs of youth, but otherwise delivered some of the best throws among the three passers, leaving Clay Helton and offensive coordinator Tee Martin to praise him afterward.
“For an 18-year-old kid to come out and do what he did today was very impressive,” said Helton, the third-year coach. “It’s like he’s already been in a camp before.”
“I thought he was really, really confident for a guy in his first practice,” Martin said.
The coaches believed the arrival of Daniels, who garnered significant fanfare as a recruit, had an impact on Fink and Sears, who are looking to hold off the newcomer.
“I thought there was extreme competitiveness,” Helton said. “You could see the sense of urgency.”
Sears delivered several sharp throws, including a long touchdown pass to freshman Devon Williams in a 7-on-7 drill. Helton remarked that Sears, who like Daniels lacks college game experience after redshirting in his first season on campus, was learning to make quicker decisions.
Pittman thought Sears, considered a dual-threat quarterback, had become more comfortable as a passer since spring practices, refined during the team’s summer throwing sessions.
“I feel like he doesn’t look to run as much now,” Pittman said. “Just going off one practice. But sometimes, he would use his legs as a crutch. I felt he’s trying to throw the ball.”
Redshirt sophomore receiver Tyler Vaughns said Daniels’ presence “tells you that you gotta bring something to the table that you ain’t had before.”
It was Fink, the most tenured member of the signal callers and the backup to Darnold last season who took the first snap with the first-team offense. Sears followed with the second team and Daniels often rotated in for Fink. Neither Fink nor Sears threw an interception in their first practices and completed a majority of their passes. Martin noted their timing with receivers had improved.
“You could just tell the reps over spring and summer paid off,” Martin added.
The quarterback competition does not have an official end date. Helton reiterated Friday that the team’s biggest question mark would likely remain unanswered until much closer to the Sept. 1 season opener against UNLV. It might take him 20-25 practices before he names a starting quarterback.
For the quarterbacks, the opener looms large enough, still.
“I think they all know that it’s real now,” Martin said. “We have a game in a month.”
QUICK HITS
Sophomore running back Stephen Carr returned to practice for the first time since he underwent back surgery in early March. “That made my heart good,” said Helton, who added he looked about full speed. … Redshirt freshman linebacker Tayler Katoa will leave the program for two years for an LDS mission, returning in 2020. … Left tackle Clayton Johnston changed his name to Clayton Bradley in honor of his stepfather. … Junior outside linebacker Oluwole Betiku (hip), freshman linebacker Solomon Tuliaupupu (foot), redshirt freshman Jacob Lichtenstein (knee strain), sophomore wide receiver Randal Grimes (back) and redshirt freshman defensive lineman Jay Tufele (foot laceration) were all held out of practice. … Sears switched his jersey number from No. 13 to No. 10.
