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An Austin native, Brent lives in Round Rock where he and his wife have raised four boys. Brent works for Don Quick and Associates, Inc. in Round Rock, TX and can be reached at brent@donquick.com.
This Christmas Eve edition of TTFT focuses on the SDS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl and A&M's opponent, USC.
1. USC has taken a beaten from the portal and the draft
A&M has had 19 players enter the portal and three opt out of the bowl game. USC hasn’t had it much better, with 18 in the portal and at least two opting out. But the losses that the Trojans have suffered are likely heavier. They’ve lost three of their starting wideouts, their top two running backs, their backup tight end, their starting right tackle, a backup safety and one of their two starting corners.
2. USC has had quarterback upheaval as well
USC’s quarterback situation mirrors A&M in many ways. Miller Moss came into the 2024 season highly regarded and even had some first round discussion surrounding him. But, when USC’s season fell apart, he was benched and ended up in the transfer portal. Moss’s stats were significantly better than Conner Weigman — 233-362 (64.4%), 2,555 yards, 18 touchdowns and 9 interceptions — but the Trojans had a losing record with him at the helm. Jayden Maiva will start the Las Vegas Bowl after completing 79 of 130 passes (60.8%) for 906 yards, 7 touchdowns and 3 interceptions down the stretch.
3. Not much experience for USC at running back
Bryan Jackson will start for USC at running back and he had a total of 20 carries on the season for 125 yards (6.1 YPC). There’s not much left after him, and that's an odd situation for a program that has a history of turning out elite backs.
4. USC's receiver corps depleted but still dangerous.
USC will be without wideouts Zachariah Branch, Kyron Hudson and Duce Robinson — numbers 2, 3 and 5 on their receptions list — but they still have a couple of dangerous players at the positions. Leading receiver Makai Lemon averaged 14.6 yards a catch (46 for 665 yards) and Ja’Kobi Lane, who had 36 catches for 398 yards (11 YPC) and nine touchdowns.
5. Stop me if you've heard this before
USC is a pass-heavy offense, as you’d expect with a Lincoln Riley team. They’re 10th in the nation in passing and 81st in rushing, even before losing their top two backs. But they do a good job of keeping their quarterbacks upright — or did before RT Mason Murphy left for Auburn.
6. Trojan defense doesn't pressure the QB much
Defensively, USC gives up a lot of yards but not as many points as you’d think. They’re 53rd in the nation in rush defense but 90th against the pass. Part of that is due to their inability to get pressure into the backfield, being 90th in sacks and 118th in tackles for loss.
7. USC may get a big boost on defense
Linebacker Eric Gentry, who missed all but four games due to concussion issues, could be back for the Las Vegas Bowl and that could be significant. Gentry was still sixth on the team in tackles, lead the team in tackles for loss (6.5) and was second on the team in sacks (2). If Gentry isn’t USC’s best defender, corner Jaylin Smith was. He picked off two passes and had an 81 pass coverage score from PFF — but he’s headed into the draft and won’t play Friday.
8. Similar results against common opponents
A&M and USC had two common opponents, and both beat the same team and lost to the other. The Aggies hammered LSU 38-23 while USC beat them — in Vegas, no less — 27-20 in week one. A&M lost to Notre Dame 23-13 in week one, while USC lost to them 49-35 in the final week of the season.
9. True freshmen working their way into A&M's two-deep due to portal attrition
A&M will only be missing three starters — DEs Nic Scourton and Shemar Stewart and DT Shemar Turner — but they’ve lost quite a few backups to the portal. Eight true freshmen who have played minimal snaps are now in the two-deep: QB Miles O’Neill, WRs Ashton Bethel-Roman and Ernest Campbell, OL Blake Ivy, Ashton Funk and Papa Ahfua, DT Dealyn Evans and DE Solomon Williams. The 12th Man, Nana Boadi-Owusu, is also in the two-deep at defensive end.
10. Merry Christmas
That's all. Thanks for reading.
