Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com OCT. 23, 2021 33 GAME PREVIEW: USC BY TYLER HORKA T he last month has been a whirlwind for Donte Williams. On Sept. 13, Williams was pro- moted from three titles — associ- ate head coach, defensive passing game coordinator and cornerbacks coach — to one that carries much more weight: USC interim head coach. The Trojans fired Clay Helton after 70 games spread over eight years. A 42-28 home loss to Stanford in week two was the final straw. Out with Helton, up with Williams. The 39-year-old Los Angeles native started his head coaching career in fine fashion. USC beat Washington State 45- 14 on the road. It was never meant to al- ways be that easy, though. Just ask Helton. Oregon State walloped the Trojans 45- 27, in front of a disheartened crowd at the Los Angeles Coliseum in Williams' sec- ond game as interim head coach. Then Williams' father died two days later. Williams revealed on his weekly radio show Oct. 4 his father had been sick for a few years. He mentioned it in the context of USC's Oct. 9 opponent, Utah, dealing with the death of Aaron Lowe, a sopho- more cornerback who was tragically shot on Sept. 26 — the day before Williams' dad died. "I know what it's like to have that kind of tragedy and still have to push through because the world doesn't stop right away just because you're dealing with some- thing," Williams said. "Everyone is deal- ing with a different thing internally, and it sucks because you can't just stop and put everything on pause. "You have to find a way to still fight and push through." That's exactly what Williams did. Five days after his father's death, the Trojans went on the road and beat Colorado 37-14. USC is the 10th school (community and junior colleges in- cluded) Williams has coached at since he humbly broke into the profession in 2007. He went from being a cornerbacks coach at Los Angeles Harbor Commu- nity College, El Camino Junior Col- lege and Mt. San Antonio Junior Col- lege from 2007-09 to being the man in charge of one of the most celebrated and recognizable Division I college football programs in the country. Now he has the chance to coach against a school that can say the same about itself. This is USC versus Notre Dame. It's a rivalry as storied as any in the sport. And Williams — heavy heart and all — is right in the thick of it. "I'm fortunate about the opportunity, but right now it's not even about me," Williams said. "It's about this team and what we do every day to get prepared for [Notre Dame]." WINNING THE MOMENT Adversity has been the name of the game for Williams. USC starting quarterback Kedon Slo- vis exited the Washington State game with a neck injury on the Trojans' sec- ond offensive series. Williams had to turn to freshman Jaxson Dart. And what did he do? Threw for 391 yards and four touchdowns in USC's 31-point triumph, that's all. Dart credited USC's culture for his ability to perform the way he did. "I'm super fortunate to be around a group of guys and coaches who show a ton of resiliency and confidence in one another," Dart said. "We're going to face some adversity, but we have to go 1-0 and win that moment." Slovis, a junior, was shaky in his re- turn the following week. He racked up 355 passing yards of his own, but the Beavers intercepted him three times in USC's 18-point home loss. Slovis has thrown three intercep- tions in a single game once in all three of his seasons as a Trojan. So maybe the clunker is out of the way. If that's the case, then USC could be a force to be reckoned with offensively in the second half of the season. All Slovis seemingly needs to get back to being the player he was when he threw for 30 touchdowns as a fresh- man in 2019 is a clean bill of health and Facts & Figures: USC AT NOTRE DAME Date: Oct. 23, 2021 Site: Notre Dame Stadium Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. ET Television: NBC Radio: This game can be heard on Notre Dame IMG affiliates. Series Facts: This is the 92nd meeting between the two programs. Notre Dame holds an all-time advantage of 49-37-5. Notre Dame won the first meeting 13-12 in 1926 and won the last meeting 30- 27 in 2019. Head coaches: USC — Donte Williams (2-2, first season); Notre Dame — Brian Kelly (107-40, 12th season). Noting USC: The Trojans returned 16 of 22 starters from the 2020 season … USC has not won in South Bend since 2011, losing four straight … The Trojans are one of three FBS teams that has never played an FCS opponent. Notre Dame is one of the other two … USC started the season with a win/ loss/win/loss/win pattern through its first five games for just the third time in school history (1963 and 1994) … The Trojans ranked No. 11 nationally in passing yards per game last season with former Texas Tech quarterback and Air Raid disciple Graham Harrell leading the way as offensive coordinator … USC recorded seven interceptions from seven different players in the first five games of the season … The Trojans had a perfect red-zone offense (12 touchdowns, nine field goals) and fourth-down conversation rate (2 for 2) through five games. FIGHTING ON Trojans interim head coach Donte Williams will not give up on the 2021 season Junior quarterback Kedon Slovis attempted just two passes against Washington State Sept. 18 before leaving the game with a neck injury. He threw three interceptions in a 45-27 loss to Oregon State the following week. PHOTO COURTESY USC ATHLETICS