USC Football: 5 biggest questions facing Trojans in spring 2018

3. Can Stephen Carr become a Heisman dark-horse?

Replacing Ronald Jones II isn’t going to be easy, and Clay Helton knows that. The junior running back finished with 1,550 yards and 19 touchdowns in 2017, but chose to pass up one final year of eligibility for the NFL draft.

Where does that leave the Trojans?

Well, luckily for USC, there’s a talented running back who was waiting patiently for carries in 2017. As a freshman, Stephen Carr finished with only 65 touches for 363 yards and three touchdowns. He also proved to be a strong pass-catcher out of the backfield, reeling in 17 passes for 188 yards — a more productive category than Jones II.

Carr is back for his sophomore season as the presumed lead back and he could be the perfect replacement for Jones II. However, can he be a dark-horse contender for the Heisman Trophy?

USC would be glad to get even a fraction of the production of Jones II, but Carr could be much more than that. Will he prove to be a more-than-adequate replacement?