USC Football: 5 Biggest Offseason Goals for Trojans

USC football head coach Steve Sarkisian is wasting little time getting the Trojans ready to meet their goals for the 2015 season. 

In fact, as USC was finishing its 2014 campaign, Sarkisian talked of parlaying a strong finish to the season into the next.

"It’s always great to close out the season on a high note, to build momentum into the offseason conditioning program," he said. "It’s all part of the formula. It’s a piece of the puzzle to have a really successful next 12 months, which is what we’re all striving for."

Those "next 12 months" are well underway, and the process of hitting milestones necessary for USC to win a Pac-12 Championship is afoot.

Finding a 'Killer Instinct'

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USC's fourth-quarter struggles throughout 2014 are well-documented and spurred the team to adopt "finish" as its mantra late in the season. Sarkisian wants to take that mindset into 2015.

"That will be a huge focus of ours this entire offseason," Sarkisian said. "We have to improve."

USC was outscored in fourth quarters over the course of the season, as opponents took advantage of what Sarkisian described as a lack of "killer instinct."

"We have to continue to try and develop that, and that's totally on me," Sarkisian said after USC's final-minute loss at Utah. "That's totally on coaching to developing a mindset to make that happen."

Physical practices and a year of familiarity with the team should translate into a more comfortable, and thus more aggressive, USC team in late-game situations next season.

Retooling Receiving Options

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As anticipated, quarterback Cody Kessler's primary receiving target in each of the last two seasons, Nelson Agholor, opted to pursue the NFL draft.

Perhaps less expected was speedy receiver George Farmer doing likewise last week. Farmer began to break out late in the 2014 season, with three of his four touchdowns coming in November.

Also gone are running back Javorius "Buck" Allen and tight end Randall Telfer. Telfer's contributions as a receiver were limited to 21 catches, but Allen was among Kessler's favorite targets both late in 2013 and throughout 2014, when he snagged 41 passes.

In total, 191 catches made in 2014 are unaccounted for heading into the 2015 offseason.

The receiving corps will build around John "JuJu" Smith, a breakthrough playmaker in his debut season. Smith should have no trouble translating into the No. 1 role Agholor and Marqise Lee expertly manned before him.

Beyond Smith, USC welcomes back Darreus Rogers, whose four touchdown receptions were tied for third-most on the team, as well as Steven Mitchell. Two of Mitchell's seven catches in 2014 were good for touchdowns.

USC's Holiday Bowl defeat to Nebraska last month hints at the greater use of talented tight end Bryce Dixon as a pass-catcher.

Overall, Kessler is going to be working with a new group, so developing chemistry in the months to come is essential for him to take the torrid pace on which he finished 2014 into 2015.

Getting Newcomers Up to Speed

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Isaiah Langley

Sarkisian proved in his first year at USC that he would not shy away from playing true freshmen. First-year players were featured in prominent roles on offense, defense and special teams in 2014, and 2015 should be no different.

USC is welcoming a star-studded signing class, currently ranked No. 4 in the nation and climbing. Surely some, if not most, within this new crop will be capable of contributing next season.

The first wave of 2015 newcomers arrives at USC this week, with quarterback Ricky Town, cornerback Isaiah Langley, offensive lineman Chuma Edoga, linebacker Cameron Smith and junior college transfer wide receiver Isaac Whitney enrolling early.

They will get a head start by participating in spring practices, but any number of opportunities should open as preseason camp and Week 1 approach.

Having this full-sized recruiting class—USC's first in three years—ready to collectively contribute from the onset of the 2015 campaign should be a primary goal in the offseason.

Developing a Star Running Back

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In each of his six seasons as a head coach, Sarkisian's teams have always had a 1,000-plus-yard running back. In the last four seasons, Sarkisian has also had a back score at least 11 touchdowns.

Allen is the most recent of these, coming off a 2014 campaign in which he rushed for 1,489 yards and 11 scores and continuing the meteoric rise he began to close 2013.

Here are the rushing stats for running backs under Sarkisian as head coach:

Player	Season	Carries	Yards	Rush TD
Javorius "Buck" Allen	2014	276	1,489	11
Bishop Sankey	2013	327	1,870	20
Bishop Sankey	2012	289	1,439	16
Chris Polk	2011	293	1,488	12
Chris Polk	2010	260	1,415	9
Chris Polk	2009	226	1,113	5

With Allen gone, Sarkisian has options to take over as the new No. 1 running back.

Coming off a 2014 during which he had 129 carries for 595 yards and four touchdowns, junior-to-be Justin Davis is the likeliest option. Davis has shown tremendous burst in his two seasons at USC but must become more consistent to be a viable every-down option.

Tre Madden has proved capable of shouldering a No. 1 back's workload but will have nearly two years of rust to shake off when he returns from injury in 2015.

The rest of the running back corps is made up of either newcomers or walk-ons, so while Sarkisian has more options than a season ago, the situation is shrouded in mystery.

The unknown is not necessarily a bad thing for Sarkisian, however. Bishop Sankey, who was named a finalist for the 2013 Doak Walker Award, was hidden on the depth chart before injuries allowed him to take over as Washington's No. 1 back in 2012.

Striking Defensive Balance

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First-year USC defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox faced a tough proposition when calling plays for the 2014 Trojans: Bring consistent pressure with the blitz and risk leaving a young secondary exposed, or play it conservative.

Wilcox opted for conservative play-calling more often than not. In fact, at one point late in the season, USC ranked last among Power Five conference programs in blitzes, via USCFootball.com's Ryan Abraham.

Despite this, the Trojans racked up 33 sacks on the year to rank No. 31 in the Football Bowl Subdivision.

With the secondary gaining experience in 2014 and the team adding bodies from a signing class replete with talent, Wilcox will be able to get more aggressive in 2015.

Su'a Cravens' move to linebacker after a standout 2013 at safety was a revelation. His speed off the edge gave USC a unique dynamic with the pass rush that should be a foundation for the Trojans' blitz.

Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise cited. Statistics courtesy cfbstats.com. Recruiting rankings and information via 247Sports composite scores.