USC football news: Drake Jackson’s windmill dunk, how to “moss” and more

USC football boasts a defensive lineman, Drake Jackson, who can windmill dunk and wide receivers, like Amon-Ra St. Brown, Tyler Vaughns, and Drake London, who are adept at “mossing.”

With Los Angeles shut down because of coronavirus, USC football fans have to turn to social media to get their fix of Trojan athletes doing spectacular things

Fortunately, the Trojans are providing entertainment even while practicing social distancing.

Catch up with all the happenings from USC football ahead of your Tuesday workload…

CHECK OUT: Mater Dei CB Jaylin Davies names Top 7

Drake Jackson can dunk

Because of course, he can.

Last year, freshman phenom Drake Jackson went viral by performing a backflip in USC’s training facility. So it should surprise no one that the 275-pound defensive lineman can elevate and slam down. He’s that athletic.

https://twitter.com/Coach_Sooto/status/1242237460202979328

The windmill is just showing off.

Tyler Vaughns, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Drake London can moss

Under normal circumstances, losing the Pac-12’s leader in receiving yards, Michael Pittman, would cause plenty of concern for USC football.

But these aren’t normal circumstances because the Trojan receiving corps has been abnormally stacked in recent years, and 2020 will be no different.

On Monday, @USC_Athletics did a good job of presenting that visually when they tweeted a video explaining the term “mossed.”

For those who don’t know, to “moss” is to complete a catch like Randy Moss over the top of a defender. To be “mossed” is equivalent to being embarrassed.

And USC’s wide receivers have made “mossing” part of their routine, as evidence by the clips of Amon-Ra St. Brown, Tyler Vaughns, and Drake London perpetrating such embarrassment on their opponents in 2020.

That trio is also why USC won’t spend too much time this offseason wondering who could fill the shoes of Pittman. They already have three perfectly capable receivers ready to step into place.

St. Brown had 1,042 yards on 77 catches last year as USC’s second-leading receiver.

Vaughns very nearly gave USC a third 1,000-yard receiver, ultimately managing 74 grabs for 912 yards.

Then there’s London, who was USC’s fourth-leading receiver with 567 yards on 39 catches. He achieved that total despite entering the second half of the season with just three catches for 62 yards to his name.

Best USC football moments of 2019-20?

The San Gabriel Valley Tribune took a crack at ranking the Top 10 moments for USC athletics during the 2019-20 season and Trojan football rightly claimed a couple of spots.

Michael Pittman got the top moment for his fourth-quarter heroics to lead USC back against Colorado. In all, the receiver came up with 104 yards receiving on just four catches. He made his touches count with two touchdowns. His 37-yard score put USC ahead with just over two minutes to play after trailing 10 points going into the final period.

At No. 5 came Matt Fink’s spectacular performance against Utah, resulting in a stunning upset at the Coliseum. The quarterback went 21-of-30 for 351 yards and three touchdowns after being called into action because of an injury to Kedon Slovis.

Other worth moments from women’s basketball, men’s basketball, women’s soccer and more were also acknowledge. But USC football fans will wish for more moments from the gridiron to warrant discussion in next year’s list.

Clay Helton delivers coronavirus message

Major figures from around the country have helped to spread the message of health and safety while the world deals with the coronavirus. USC head coach Clay Helton has joined those voices.

On Monday, Helton posted a video on Twitter urging the community to follow the advice of medical professionals and challenging USC students to “dominate” in the classroom continuing to develop “mind, body, and soul right from home.”