A full year under Clay Helton brings much-needed stability to USC

#AllAboutBall is more than a USC social media hashtag, more than a marketing slogan found on billboards across Los Angeles, more than a clever nod to Pete Carroll’s mantra of turnover-margin domination as the Trojans ruled the mid-2000s. It is new coach Clay Helton’s statement of intent.

Helton isn’t the offensive wonk that Lane Kiffin was, the beloved bellowing Cajun uncle Ed Orgeron was, the backslapping country club navigator Steve Sarkisian was. Helton is a football coach. Nothing flashy, nothing fancy, nothing Hollywood about him, and so far USC has embraced that no-frills approach.

Salute to Troy, the annual preseason booster function, came and went without incident after the last two years were marred by cornerback Josh Shaw’s fabricated tale of heroism and Sarkisian’s use of expletives while intoxicated.

The quarterback competition ultimately won by Max Browne never turned divisive. Three-way threat Adoree’ Jackson focused on playing defensive back rather than splitting time on both sides of the ball. That happens when a program needs some stability and hasn’t won the conference or played in the Rose Bowl in seven seasons, its longest drought since joining the Pacific Coast Conference in 1922.

The question now is whether ‘football first’ can overcome the most difficult schedule in the nation to reverse that historic futility, starting Saturday night against defending national champion Alabama in Arlington, Texas.

Left tackle Chad Wheeler, limited in training camp because of plantar fasciitis, will not start against the Crimson Tide. Sophomore Chuma Edoga gets the nod instead. Edoga started the emphatic 42-24 win over No. 3 Utah last season, but Alabama’s front seven represents a far more formidable challenge than even the sturdy Utes presented, as outside linebacker Tim Williams and defensive end Jonathan Allen combined for 22.5 sacks last season.

Clemson was able to keep Williams and Allen off the stat sheet in the national championship game last season, a key reason the Tigers were able to score 40 points, total 550 yards of offense and average 6.5 yards per play. Since no one will ever confuse Browne for Deshaun Watson in terms of mobility, the USC offensive line must keep him upright and deny penetration in the run game. Helton must give them every opportunity to do so.

For 10 months, Helton has shown he can handle the demands of coaching USC that don’t involve a game. He has put together a strong staff, recruited at a high level, connected with his players and the university, kept everyone academically eligible and avoided the negative, often self-inflicted headlines that sunk Kiffin and Sarkisian.

Now he has to show he can be the football coach USC needs. His decision to use man-to-man pass defense against UCLA was promising, as was the hire of Clancy Pendergast as defensive coordinator. Pendergast’s work in 2013 when USC was decimated by NCAA-imposed scholarship reductions was nothing short of remarkable. There is plenty of talent on hand now, though the defensive line and linebackers are inexperienced. On offense, Helton is aiming for a balance between showcasing physicality and highlighting USC’s always-electric collection of skill players and quarterbacks.

Even with that schedule, there is no reason USC cannot compete for titles this season. Everything else is in place, starting with three words: all about ball.