The USC Trojans were dealt a big blow today as Lincoln Riley told us after practice that defensive back Prophet Brown suffered a non-contact injury that will sideline him for quite some time.
“Prophet Brown got an injury here, gonna miss certainly the first part of the season, we’ll see how it plays out,” Coach Riley told us on Friday. “Certainly hopeful to get him back here at some point, I think that’s very much a real possibility, but we’ll see how that progresses.”
While no depth chart has been released yet, Brown has been one of the elder Trojans in the program, was garnering rave reviews from his coaches and teammates, and was my pick to start at the slot/nickel corner position this year.
While certainly a tough loss, and you feel for Brown and how hard he has worked, the USC Trojans are blessed with a lot of depth at that specific position.
So what will the starting group look like?
Well, without seeing much of practice, this is simply my projection based on what I have seen, who I have spoken with, and what the coaches have said.
USC Trojans Starting Defensive Backs Prediction
Let me start off by saying that the USC Trojans and defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn will certainly use a rotation of guys. It is a deep group with a lot of talent, so they could ultimately use 8-9 players throughout games, depending on matchups and personnel groupings.
Starting Safeties
This safety room is stacked, but Kamari Ramsey is the star of the room, and perhaps the entire defense. He is a do-it-all player and reminds me a ton of Derwin James. While I have him slotted as a starting “safety,” Coach Lynn will move him all over the field, including at nickel, star, and in the box in run-heavy situations.
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Bishop Fitzgerald has received high praise since transferring to the USC Trojans from NC State. He had a decorated career with the Wolfpack and aims to bring that leadership and physicality to the USC backfield.
While maybe not considered the “staters,” Christian Pierce will be heavily involved, and Notre Dame transfer Kennedy Urlacher has established himself as a true threat for playing time. Everyone has been raving about him.
Starters: Kamari Ramsey, Bishop Fitzgerald
Starting Cornerbacks
This group is obviously much more difficult to predict, especially with the injury to Brown, whom I had slotted as the starting nickel/slot.
I think it is fairly clear that DeCarlos Nicholson has established himself early on as one of the starters on the outside. He was a pseudo starter last year, has a ton of experience, and has length at the corner position that many simply do not possess.
The other outside spot is where it gets murky, and this is a testament to the depth, so that is a positive.
RJ Harvey was viewed as the potential starter when he transferred to the USC Trojans from San Jose State, and he is certainly competing for that spot.
Chasen Johnson is another transfer who is extremely talented, versatile, and has played well early in camp.
Redshirt freshman Braylon Conley is a name who keeps coming up after practice. Whether it is the coaching staff or his teammates, don’t sleep on Conley to have a breakout season and potentially seize that starting role.
Marcelles Williams is another highly touted redshirt freshman who will get playing time, regardless of “starter” status. He is a potential lockdown corner when he reaches his full potential.
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Redshirt freshman Isaiah Rubin and true freshman Alex Graham are two sleeper names to watch. I don’t see either of them cracking the starting rotation to start the season, but depending on how the year progresses, they could absolutely get valuable reps. A lot to be excited about in the development of both players.
So with all of this being said, the three guys I would slot as starters at this moment are DeCarlos Nicholson and Chasen Johnson on the outside, and Marcelles Williams at the slot/nickel.
Starters: DeCarlos Nicholson, Chasen Johnson, Marcelles Williams
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Thoughts, Trojan Fam? Comment below!