McCoy making case at receiver
USC’s redshirt freshman, a former five- star prospect, impresses at camp.
The anticipation had been building for more than a year, when Bru McCoy burst out of his stance early last Saturday morning, bodied up cornerback Adonis Otey and caught a touchdown pass at the edge of the end zone in front of an empty Coliseum.
It was yet another example of the former f ive- star wideout making his presence known during USC’s camp — and yet another sign that McCoy may earn a permanent place in the Trojans’ passing offense sooner rather than later.
USC coach Clay Helton said this week that the redshirt freshman looks “extremely comfortable” and that he made “a major step forward” during the Trojans’ f irst live scrimmage action. Offensive coordinator Graham Harrell raved last week about how difficult McCoy was to cover.
But as McCoy makes that long- awaited leap, the question arises how quickly he might work into an especially deep USC rotation at receiver. If last season is any indication, it could be longer than his early performance might suggest.
Like last season, the Trojans have a cemented topthree at receiver, with Amonra St. Brown and Tyler Vaughns on the outside and Drake London in the slot. London was the insurgent in that top group last season, but with Michael Pittman Jr. catching 101 passes, it took the top- f light freshman half of the season to carve out a trusted place in the receiver rotation, even after he turned heads in training camp.
Before Oct. 19, London was held catchless in f ive of six games. He burst onto the scene after that, f inishing with five touchdowns in his final seven games.
His trajectory could be a reasonable model for what to expect from McCoy this season.
“We knew what we had with Ra and Pitt and TV,” Helton said. “We were looking for that next guy that could produce for us, and you look up and there’s Drake, and I think he had over 700 yards for us last year. So there’ll be some — one, two, three guys for us this year that’ll stand out for us.”
Similar promises were made to expand the receiver rotation last season, but London was the only young wideout to make an impact. Outside of Pittman, St. Brown, Vaughns and London, four other receivers caught a combined 11 passes last season.
Of those four, two have since transferred. Of the remaining two, Kyle Ford is injured and Munir McClain is suspended.
McCoy appears to be the furthest along of USC’s young receivers this season, though he’s hardly the only one earning early plaudits. Freshman Gary Bryant Jr. has also made an impression as a movable piece in the offense and a speedy returner on special teams. Helton also mentioned freshman Joshua Jackson Jr. and sophomore John Jackson as potential contributors.
How long it might take for any of them to contribute in a meaningful way is to be determined.