USC Football: 3 early storylines heading into 2020 season

Clay Helton is back to lead USC football through another season, but can the Trojans finally capitalize on a talented roster?

Stop me if you have heard this before: USC football is really talented and should be a contender in the Pac-12. Despite another exhausting offseason of talk about how Clay Helton should be fired, USC brings back the fifth-most returning production in college football next season, according to ESPN’s Bill Connelly.

Moreover, they kept various suitors from stealing offensive coordinator Graham Harrell, who is instrumental to whatever success the Trojans want to have this season.

There was plenty of turnover on the defensive side of the coaching staff, however. Out goes Clancy Pendergast and in comes former Texas and Houston defensive coordinator Todd Orlando. There is some reservation among USC fans about bringing in Orlando after he led a Texas unit that finished 97th in total defense, but on the bright side USC brings back 87 percent of its defensive production from last year which did have a lot of freshman and sophomores.

USC has a chance to make a major statement in week one as they have a neutral site showdown with Alabama and that is just one of many storylines for the Trojans this season and I’m going to highlight the three biggest to watch for in Southern California this season.