When Sam Darnold met with Coach Clay Helton late last Sunday, he learned some surprising news.
Darnold, the redshirt freshman from San Clemente High, was replacing Max Browne as USC’s starting quarterback.
“I had no sense of what was coming,” Darnold said. “I had no idea. I just knew I was going to be ready whenever my number was called. I stay ready. That’s my goal.”
Helton first contemplated a quarterback shuffle the night before when the Trojans were on their return flight to Los Angeles after a 17-point drubbing to seventh-ranked Stanford. The loss was fresh, but in six days, they faced another Pac-12 road test at No.