USC Coach Clay Helton draped an arm around quarterback Sam Darnold after USC’s 41-20 victory over Arizona State on Saturday.
“At some point in time,” Helton said, smiling, “Sam’s going to have a tough day.”
That time has not yet arrived.
Darnold dazzled against the Sun Devils, completing 23 of 33 passes for 352 yards and three touchdowns. He ran for a touchdown. It was a performance that dwarfed his introduction as USC’s starter, the week prior, which had already compared favorably to the debuts of recent USC quarterbacks Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart and Matt Barkley.