Beleaguered USC football team finding answers hard to come by

Donte Williams wanted immoderate clip to assess. The USC interim caput manager felt similar helium had an knowing of what went incorrect successful the Trojans’ 31-16 nonaccomplishment to Notre Dame connected Saturday, but wanted to ticker the movie to beryllium definite whether it was players making the aforesaid mistakes arsenic erstwhile weeks, oregon coaches’ schematic errors.

After reviewing the tape, it turns retired it was a operation of the two, which has truly been the communicative of USC’s 3-4 play to date.

There person been the self-inflicted mistakes, similar the 9 penalties that gave Notre Dame 4 archetypal downs connected Saturday. Williams gave immoderate of the younger players connected the squad immoderate slack for this, noting that immoderate of the errors whitethorn travel arsenic a effect of not being beardown capable yet oregon not having caught up to the velocity of the game.

But past determination are those that Williams described arsenic “repeat offenders.” He didn’t sanction names, but deliberation violative lineman Jalen McKenzie’s mendacious starts, oregon information Xavion Alford’s trio of costly penalties against the Irish.

“You get 1 feline that beauteous overmuch bites once, you amended judge he’s going to wound your manus again. Those are repetition offenders,” Williams said. “So we gotta fig retired idiosyncratic other to get connected the tract to bash those things.”

But past determination are the coaching shortcomings, too, not putting USC successful a presumption to win oregon preparing them for the champion squad connected its schedule.

Asked Saturday nighttime wherefore his squad made truthful galore costly mistakes with an other week to hole for this game, Williams said that further clip to hole didn’t needfully mean a squad would play cleaner football.

But during his Sunday Zoom telephone with reports, Williams was asked wherefore Notre Dame’s middling discourtesy was capable to enactment unneurotic 4 drives of 70 oregon much yards.

“The crushed wherefore Notre Dame astir apt hasn’t had immoderate of those drives [in erstwhile weeks] is due to the fact that they person a young violative line,” Williams began. “And you springiness them an other 2 weeks to hole for an opponent, due to the fact that they were caller disconnected a bye also. So their guys besides got into a spot of a groove.”

As for wherever USC goes adjacent with 5 games near this twelvemonth remains to beryllium seen. A location crippled against 0-7 Arizona should beryllium an casual mode for the Trojans to get backmost successful the triumph column, but it won’t hole each that ails this team.

Williams talked astir taking immoderate of those repetition offenders retired of the rotation and giving different guys a accidental to beryllium they tin bash a amended job. It’s a bully idea, but fixed this team’s deficiency of extent and acquisition could backfire.

So wherever the answers travel from arsenic USC tries to find a way to 3 much wins and vessel eligibility remains to beryllium seen. But contempt the evident frustration, the squad has not turned connected each other.

“I spot those guys, those guys are my brothers truthful I deliberation I wouldn’t privation to beryllium successful the trenches oregon successful this concern with anyone else,” backmost Kedon Slovis said. I person a batch of confidence, it hasn’t gone our mode this acold but we’re going to find it.”

INJURY REPORT

Nickel backmost Greg Johnson did not formal to play against Notre Dame owed to a genu wounded helium has been dealing with, Williams said during his Sunday property conference.