DGDestroys

July 9th, 2010 at 8:19 AM ^

DJ Shoemate. Formerly recruited as a wide receiver, never really wanted to play fullback but was switched to that position by Carroll, and hasn't seen significant time throughout his USC career. Wants to play RB, not FB, for UConn. That's what I was able to summarize from USC blogs

MGoDC

July 9th, 2010 at 8:24 AM ^

Thanks for the info. Interesting, I thought RB was considered one of UConn's primary strengths though? Outside of a really primetime player I'm not particularly worried about the impact of transfers. It's going to be hard for him to beat out their incumbent for any significant amount of carries by week 1.

Mitch Cumstein

July 9th, 2010 at 8:16 AM ^

It seems as if the free transfer is allowing a lot of backups to leave the school w/o penalty.  Something I hadn't thought of, but it seems several guys had transfer on their mind, now that they can do it w/o sitting out a year, they pull the trigger.

icefins26

July 9th, 2010 at 8:18 AM ^

Looks like a big boy to be at RB -- 6'1" 220 -- he was a backup FB last year.  Let's hope the contribution is minimal come September 4th.

DGDestroys

July 9th, 2010 at 8:21 AM ^

Former number 6 safety in the country coming out of high school, Byron Moore, enrolled at a JUCO in California. As a RS Freshman he obviously wasn't able to take advantage of the transfer rule, so he went to JUCO. I love seeing these players dropping like flies.

BlockM

July 9th, 2010 at 8:23 AM ^

Yeah, it really gets me going when kids are unable to attend a four year college and have to enroll in JUCO too. /s

I like to see the USC program suffer, but I'd rather see the hopes and dreams of as few kids as possible dashed along the way.

DGDestroys

July 9th, 2010 at 8:55 AM ^

Only one kid thus far has gone to JUCO, and he's planning on transferring back to D1 football, according to the article I read. He's not dashing his dreams, they're merely being postponed. But I do agree, I don't want the players who were innocent of any wrong doing to be hurt in all of this.

Maximinus Thrax

July 9th, 2010 at 10:04 AM ^

As a former student who attended a JUCO before attending M, I can say that going to one of them does not dash one's dreams.  Two of my classmates from there are attorneys, one has a PhD in microbiology, I am a CPA, and many, many others are productive members of society.  It's not like being sentenced to a term at a juvenile detention facility.

BlockM

July 9th, 2010 at 10:17 AM ^

I didn't mean to imply that going to a JUCO would turn him into an uneducated bum, just that he was probably pretty excited about going to a college like USC. Not to mention that his chances at being a successful football player in college or the NFL probably takes a hit as well.

MrWoodson

July 9th, 2010 at 8:26 AM ^

By my count, they have lost four players so far. And in an earlier thread someone said they had info that Rojo is looking to exit. Even if most of these are two or three deep players, it will hurt. Especially if the NCAA rejects USC's appeal and sticks to the reduction of 10 scholarships per class for the next three years.

DGDestroys

July 9th, 2010 at 9:21 AM ^

There have been a couple more, but they were already on their way out from what I hear. Here's my total count of defections that have happened and might happen. 

1- Jarvis Jones-> UGA: Already wanted out, transferring before NCAA ruling came in. Touted recruit who got injured this year. RS Freshman?

2- Jordan Campbell-> Louisville: Already on his way out too? Backup linebacker, RS Junior.

3- Malik Jackson -> Tennessee: Backup DE. Junior. Transferred because of playing time, not sanctions. Just took advantage of the transfer rule. 

4- Seantrel Henderson-> Miami?: We all know the story, no need to rehash.

5- Glen Stanley-> ???: Wants to leave, coaches not responding to his requests for a release from scholarship. 

6- DJ Shoemate-> UConn: Just wanted playing time, third string fullback. Wanted to play running back. 

7&8- Travon Patterson and Brandon Carswell-> ???: Exploring options?

9- Marquis Jackson-> Seemingly unrelated to sanctions, probably academics. JUCO DE who committed to USC but never signed LOI, enrolled at Texas Southern.

According to Malik Jackson, many players are on their way out. Only time will tell. FWIW that site also has a list of other players they could see transferring out.

PurpleStuff

July 9th, 2010 at 2:24 PM ^

Those are the two that actually hurt.  Both were big time recruits at positions that had been under recruited by Carroll in his last few years.  Considering the limited scholarships going forward, it will probably be difficult to replenish numbers on the o-line and at linebacker.  Moore might be a blow too if there are injuries going forward (he was the fourth safety on the depth chart and could have realistically seen the field).

Jarvis Jones actually has a neck injury and USC doctors have refused to clear him to play so he left for a school that would.  Campbell had been suspended by the coaching staff for quite some time before his departure.  Malik Jackson got terrible reviews from the new staff and once his brother Marquis couldn't make the grades he bolted. 

Patterson has 10 catches for 96 yards going into his senior year.  Carswell has 6 catches for 28 yards going into his RS junior season. 

Seems the sanctions (other than driving off two recruits who will be released from their LOI's) have been more about giving players a second chance who weren't going to see the field than about guys disappointed they can't play in a bowl game.

Nothsa

July 9th, 2010 at 3:32 PM ^

Losing career backups obviously hurts if you have injuries at those positions. However, it may also lower the effect of those scholarship reductions. Second, they will be in a position to recruit larger classes in two years, coming out of the reductions. USC could see a big boost there.

The impact will vary by position, too. USC could suffer weaker lines for years to come because of the lower numbers, while 'instant impact' positions like RB and WR could bounce right back.

blueblueblue

July 9th, 2010 at 3:43 PM ^

USC could suffer weaker lines for years to come because of the lower numbers, while 'instant impact' positions like RB and WR could bounce right back.

But with weaker lines, the RB will indeed 'bounce right back'  - bounce off a weak OL that is getting pushed into the backfield. That is the problem with assuming positions are independent - even if they get good RBs or WRs, they need a good line to make those positions work (we know this all too well). And they need good depth to make those lines work. USC might get some key athletes in, but they will suffer at all positions.

PurpleStuff

July 9th, 2010 at 3:56 PM ^

Any juniors or seniors who leave now would have been gone by the time the scholarship reductions really kick in anyway, so I just don't see the impact going forward (and obviously the short-term impact of losing your third string fullback is pretty minimal).  To me any and all negative effects are going to come from the 15 per year limit and the fact that SC basically won't have any margin for error in recruiting.

tpilews

July 9th, 2010 at 4:45 PM ^

Well, yes, but you also have to take into consideration that when they get back to being able to sign 25/year, the first year they'll still be very short of 85. The more that leave now, the longer it takes to get those scholarships back.

We'll know a lot more once the season starts and we can see a roster of players.

WolvinLA2

July 9th, 2010 at 5:19 PM ^

I agree with this, maybe more than 2 years, really.  They'll be in a position similar to us where they are down schollies so they need big classes, and then their problem is that such a high proportion of their players are underclassmen.  It will be 5+ years before they are back to having talented upperclassmen leading their team. 

GOBLUE4EVR

July 9th, 2010 at 8:27 AM ^

big name player or starter bails i'll start to believe that they are going to in trouble this year... all thats going to leave is backups that were never going to see the field and just got caught up in the glitz and glammer that was USC... don't get me wrong losing depth players is going to hurt them but not as much as everyone is hoping...

GOBLUE4EVR

July 9th, 2010 at 10:56 AM ^

saying is/was true for michigan... but the problem for michigan was the kids that bailed on us were backups that were going to play and that killed our depth... the kids that are leaving USC were so buried on the depth chart that they were never going to see the field unless there were some injuries ahead of them...

SysMark

July 9th, 2010 at 8:39 AM ^

This was a guy who wasn't going to play and wanted out anyway, so he took the opportunity that came with the sanctions.  UConn's quarterback Zach Frazer was a Notre Dame castoff.  You have to give them credit for making the most out of what they can get.

WolvinLA2

July 9th, 2010 at 1:22 PM ^

Not true at all.  The reason UConn's running game was so good last year is because they had 2 backs who split carries last year, and they each had 1200 yards rushing.  The other guy, the power back, graduated.  Without him, Todman was going to have to carry the load by himself, which (a) he was never asked to do last year so who knows if he can handle it, and (b) he's 5'8" so that's tough to do, especially in short yardage situations.  If this DJ is really any good, UConn could go back to having that (sorry for the cliche) thunder and lightning backfield like they had last year. 

Last year you never knew who would get the ball, and if Todman was out there was still a big running threat.  I was hoping for that not to be the case this fall, but it's looking like it might be.

West Texas Blue

July 9th, 2010 at 10:19 AM ^

Still waiting for golden boy Mitch Mustain to transfer. He ain't gonna get playing time unless Barkley goes down, so just wondering when he's finally gonna bolt. I'm definitely enjoying this exodus of players from USC.

MGoDC

July 9th, 2010 at 11:05 AM ^

I'm sure he didn't go to USC with the intention of being the backup. That's not what I said. My criticism was you apparent sarcasm that being the USC backup can in no way prepare you for the NFL. My guess is he came to USC expecting to start, ended up not starting, and has now re-evaluated his options and decided that Matt Cassels has proven that a USC backup can eventually have a successful NFL career if given the opportunity. Perhaps he trusts the coaching staff at USC to develop him better than the coaching staff at lesser schools that he could immediately start at.

WolvinLA2

July 9th, 2010 at 1:26 PM ^

Cassel sat behind 2 Heisman trophy winners at USC, and never behind a true freshman, a little different than Mustain.  Mustain was the third guy in a 2 man QB competition last fall, between a true freshman and a pretty good 4 star sophomore, neither with much at all for experience, when Mustain had almost a full year as a starter under his belt. 

That doesn't scream NFL prospect to me.  I think he just wants to live in LA for free one more year.

blueblueblue

July 9th, 2010 at 10:47 AM ^

All this "the USC transfer RB wont affect our game with UConn" talk ignores what RR preaches over and over - the benefit of competition at each position. Yes, the USC transfer will only have pre-season practices to compete, but we can't pretend that a few weeks of more competition wont elevate their current RB position - even just a little. My guess is that RR would beg to differ with such an assumption. I agree that it's not something to worry about, but it will be something.

Hoken's Heroes

July 9th, 2010 at 11:00 AM ^

....a non contributor bench warmer at USC going to U Conn. iIf UM continues to play D as it had been the last two seasons, your grand ma will be able to score against UM.