USC Football Spring Game 2017: 5 things to watch for

1. The Sam Darnold Show

After a fantastic redshirt freshman season, the second year of the Sam Darnold Experience is about to begin. There will be plenty of hype, to say the least, for what he could potentially do.

Game 4 of the 2016 season saw Darnold take over the starting quarterback job, and he never looked back. His first start was the only one he didn’t throw a touchdown, as well as not throwing for at least two scores. No game saw him throw for less than 200 yards and 62.3 percent passing, either. It led to USC going to another level, winning out after his second start.

Well, heading into 2017, it’s safe to say expectations will be high for Darnold. That all starts with the spring game, which won’t be a much-needed showcase for him by any means. However, it’s the chance for him to send everyone rushing to Twitter to proclaim him the 2017 Heisman Trophy winner. More importantly, it’s the chance for the red-shirt sophomore to connect with his new receivers, which as noted, will have some interesting faces in the mix.

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The spring game won’t be anything big for Darnold or show anything we shouldn’t expect. It’s a chance to see one of the best quarterbacks in college football, though, which for one day in the middle of April, should be fun to watch.