Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The USC Spring Football game was full of ups and downs, as both sides struggled to fully solidify themselves amongst the heavy dose of competition. The game began with the ceremonial coin toss as captains from both team Cardinal and team White took center stage to kick off the festivities.

Team White, the defensive unit for the Trojans, was led by one of the rising stars on the defense in mike linebacker Hayes Pullard. The junior from Crenshaw anointed himself as the leader of the new 5-2 defense, after an impressive spring camp.

While the Clancy Pendergast scheme may be a change of pace for many of the returning starters, Pullard has made one of the  smoothest transitions from weak to middle linebacker in this stretched-out scheme.

Pullard is coming off a break-out year in his sophomore campaign, registering 107 tackles, eight for loss, and a pick-six as one of the bright spots on last year’s defense. Pullard finished the year with an All Pac-12 Honorable Mention.

Things for team Cardinal were not as easy, as the offense scuffled along looking to find their leader in front of 15,284 Trojan Faithful.

Lane Kiffin, scrambling to find a player to represent the team in the midst of pregame preparation, called upon Cody Kessler to run out and participate in the coin toss. When asked after the game Kessler shook off the importance of the event.

“I had no idea, I was standing next to him and Kiffin just said go out there and be a captain.”

This raises the question of who will be the emotional leader of the offense, to fill the shoes of four-year varsity starter Matt Barkley?

Max Wittek got the start at quarterback for the Trojans, completing 12-17 passes for 145 yards. Kessler looked impressive down the field, finishing the game with 242 yards passing with three touchdowns. While, Freshmen Max Browne took what the defense gave him finishing the day 7-11 for 80 yards and one touchdown.

The Trojans have talent on the offensive end with receivers  Marqise Lee and Nelson Agholor , in addition to the duo of Silas Redd and D.J. Morgan leading the way in the backfield. While these weapons give the Trojans depth at the skill positions, its obvious that Lane Kiffin’s offense revolves around a quarterback with good pocket presence, and firing it deep when necessary, while also taking what the defense offers in zone packages.

Mar 5, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Southern California Trojans quarterbacks Max Wittek (13) and Cody Kessler (6) at spring practice at Howard Jones Field. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

“Really excited about the play of all three guys,” Kiffin said after Saturday’s game. “They all commanded the huddle really well and took control of the situation.”

Each of the quarterbacks showcased a strength during their playing time in the spring game, efforts mirroring their diligent work during spring practice leaving the starting spot a three-horse race.

And each quarterback showcased leadership qualities throughout the spring. Wittek showcased his timing and accuracy to numerous parts of the field, while Kessler did a great job of chucking it deep, hitting Marqise Lee for the teams first touchdown. Max Browne was patient –sometimes to a fault– playing within the system, firing the best completion percentage in the contest and taking the least amount of chances down the field.

“I will go back and watch the film, but I don’t think anyone separated themselves,” Kiffin responded about whether any quarterback emerged.

“Some programs are struggling to find one quarterback, we are lucky to have three.”

While all three quarterbacks took major steps forward, each of the Trojans’ possible gunslingers have areas to improve upon over the summer.

Cody Kessler seized the increased playing time throughout Spring Ball rising on the scene as a legitimate threat to take the starting job. Kessler’s greatest strength may be his presence in the pocket, alluding the pressure and utilizing his chemistry with Nelson Agholor to keep the chains moving.

Max Wittek compiled a “resume full of good plays” that he believes will grant him the nod come fall ball. Wittek may have the best understanding of the offense, notching two starts last season and a large portion of the reps in the early portion of Spring Ball.

Max Browne has the biggest ceiling, coming from the five-star accolades to the young man among the boys in the tight quarterback race. “Putting myself in Max and Cody’s shoes, if I am the quarterback, what am I going to do on that play?” Browne said on his preparation.

All three quarterbacks should remain tied in the depth chart come Monday, as Summer Workouts will be crucial for a quarterback to gain momentum for fall practice looming on August 1st.

“My mindset is to keep studying myself and study what others are doing well, and what I am doing well,” Wittek said.

Expect these three quarterbacks to continue pushing themselves to the next level, on and off the field.

Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-USA TODAY Sports

The Trojans completed their 2013 spring camp on Saturday afternoon, in what wound up being a tackle-less spring game in front of over 15,284. But while injury concerns eliminated tackling, and subsequently the running game, the passing game was on display in the Coliseum, bring a fitting end to the first phase of the Trojans’ three-way quarterback competition between Cody Kessler, Max Wittek and Max Browne.

Despite Wittek getting the start for the offense, it was Kessler that was named the captain of the ‘Cardinal’ team, and he sure played like one.

“I think I put everything I had into it,” Kessler told the media. And it showed. The redshirt sophomore finished the day with 242 passing yards and three touchdowns, while completing 68 percent of his passes.

Throughout the day, Kessler did the little things right. He found his receivers in stride, he maximized the size of his pocket and played within himself and his talent set.

Kessler’s first pass went for a 70-yard score to Marqise Lee, as Kessler used sound pass protection to find Lee, who didn’t have a defender within twenty yards of him.

Meanwhile, Wittek played true to his scouting report, delivering both a few sensational plays and a couple of poorly timed mishaps. Wittek got off to a sound start on his first drive, hitting Marqise Lee and Nelson Agholor for first down pick ups and was accurate as a passer.

Something changed in the second quarter however, as he started to struggle. In a four-play stretch, Wittek had an would-be interception dropped by Will Andrew, was sacked by Kenny Bigelow, then threw two straight interceptions into the hands of second-string safety Demetrius Wright.

Even still, being the ‘gunslinger’ that Wittek is, he kept throwing in third quarter and it paid off. Wittek turned in the play of the day, a 40-yard touchdown pass to Lee. He stepped up in the pocket to elude pressure and fired a strike as Lee elevated to make the catch and stay in bounds in the endzone, while shaking off the hands of cornerback Anthony Brown.

All things considered, it was exactly the day that you would expect from Kessler and Wittek. While Wittek has a higher ceiling with an NFL-inclined skill set, Kessler could wind up being the safer college quarterback based on his ability to limit mistakes and stay within himself, which Wittek can struggle with at times.

As for Max Browne, the freshman turned in a solid performance in his first spring game, completing seven of 11 passes for 80 yards, with both a touchdown and an interception. Despite seemingly being third in the race to replace Matt Barkley, Browne got plenty of playing time from Lane Kiffin and Clay Helton, though much of it included hand-offs to Tre Madden.

It was a nice end of the spring for Browne, who has had to face a stiff learning curve in his first camp with the Trojans. He used extra playing time from an injury to Max Wittek to further himself, and it’s paid off in him closing the gap between Kessler, Wittek and himself.

After game, Kiffin told the media that neither of the three quarterbacks had separated themselves from the others, saying that both Kessler and Wittek played “pretty good”, though he “would not imagine” having to make a decision based off today’s performance.

That of course raises one question: did the quarterbacks perform very well due to their execution or were did strong benefit from a shorthanded defense that couldn’t hit or tackle?

That’s hard to tell, and a big part of why the Trojans’ rushing output during the game could be thrown out of the window, considering that plays were blown dead at the onset of contact.

Up next for the Trojans is the conclusion the spring semester. The student athletes will emphasize the first part of their title until mid-May, when fall entrants like Michael Hutchings and Ty Isaac head to Los Angeles to gear up for summer workouts.

Fall camp is expected to start on August 5th for the Trojans, preceded a week and half before by the annual Pac-12 Media Day on July 26th.

We now return to the offseason.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

USC held its third scrimmage of the spring on Saturday, and it was what head coach Lane Kiffin described as the best day of camp for the offense so far. He also elaborated about the development at center

Here are the highlights from the scrimmage:

The Trojans begin their fourth week of practice on Tues., Apr. 2. This practice will be closed to the public.