LOS ANGELES -- Leonard Williams has been on the USC campus for less than a year. He was a huge surprise last fall when he finished second on the team in sacks (8) and tackles for loss (13.5). After his run of postseason accolades, the learning curve has only gotten steeper.
The Freshman All-American and reigning Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year takes on a new role as a sophomore.]
Williams entered USC as one of the nation’s most decorated defensive ends out of Mainland High School in Daytona Beach. But with a lack of depth inside, Williams was moved to defensive tackle.
His efforts, especially during the first half of the season, were applauded by the USC coaching staff. Defensive line coach Ed Orgeron said he was “pleasant” to work with and the game came easy to him. Meanwhile, head coach Lane Kiffin remarked on his ability to dominate as a true freshman in a road win at Washington.
That was all as a defensive tackle.
This spring, in Clancy Pendergast’s 5-3 scheme, Williams’s been handed a lot more responsibilities.
“I’m kind of moved out to end now, so I get a lot of one-on-one rush on the edge, but I’m moving around a lot,” Williams said. “I’m at 3-technique. I’m head up on the center. I’m 5-technique. I’m just moving around -- 7-(technique) -- sometimes on the tight end. So, I have a lot more to learn now.”
With a steep learning curve, the USC coaching staff has not allowed Williams to take a deep breath. The accolades have only upped the ante.
“We’ve been really hard on Leonard,” Kiffin said. “I think that trying to learn from maybe a mistake we made (the year before) with those five Freshman All Americans (by) maybe not being hard enough on them because they’re reading about how great they are everywhere and how they’ll be preseason All-Americans. So, we’ve been really hard on Leonard,
demanding.
“(We’ve) really pushed him and he’s really responded.”
A lot of that pushing has come from Orgeron. Much like he did last season, when Williams was in the midst of giving opposing Pac-12 offenses fits, he credits Orgeron for his development.
"He’s not telling me personally I have a lot to work on but each day I’m learning something new from Coach O,” Williams said. “So, in my head, I’m just like ‘yeah I still have so much to work on to get to that point where I want to be.’ ”
Interestingly enough, today, Williams is more comfortable inside as a 3-technique than he is outside at end. A lot of what is being taught by Orgeron is helping him to regain his comfort outside. A nightmare for opposing offenses would be for him to be equally dominant outside as he was inside in 2012.
“He played tackle as a freshman and didn’t even know what he was doing,” Orgeron said. “He had (eight) sacks. Not bad.”
Added offensive lineman Marcus Martin: “He's a dominant player. As a freshman he did the same thing. His game just got better. You can see it in spring. Even as a center watching him, it’s like 'Dang, this kid is good.'"
