College Football: 5 reasons USC wins 2017 National Championship

2. Weapons on offense

There’s no denying the fact that USC lost a number of weapons from their 2016 squad. Sam Darnold will no longer have JuJu Smith-Schuster or Darreus Rogers to look to in the passing game. What’s more, he’s not going to have a talented player in the backfield, Justin Davis, anymore. Those losses will surely be felt in the offense, particularly as they look to get into form in preseason practices.

With that being said, the losses shouldn’t overshadow the weaponry that the Trojans offense will still possess. For starters, the loss of Davis won’t be as significant as some may indicate. Yes, he was a nice complementary back who stepped up when called upon. However, running back Ronald Jones II returns again for the Trojans, and he was the more productive of the pairing a season ago. Jones toted the rock 177 times for 1,082 yards (6.1 yards per carry) and found the end zone on 12 occasions.

In the passing game, the group will be led by Deontay Burnett, who was great even last season. Burnett tied for second on the team in receptions, was third in receiving yards and his seven touchdown catches were second for the Trojans. With the likes of Daniel Imatorbhebhe (recovering from injury) and deep threat Michael Pittman Jr. also joining the cause, the weaponry is there for USC to really roll to the College Football Playoff with a stout and balanced offensive attack.