A quartet of Trojans were named to the Pro Football Focus preseason All-Pac-12 team ahead of the 2017, with one or two noteworthy snubs.
Unsurprisingly, preseason All-Americans Sam Darnold and Cameron Smith headlined the team at quarterback and inside linebacker respectively, but the likes of receiver Deontay Burnett and outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu also received worthy nods on the first team.
Burnett is best known for being the hero of the 2017 Rose Bowl, catching the game-tying touchdown pass from Darnold along with a slew of other passes during his coming out party. He returns for his junior season with the weight of being USC’s primary receiving target on his shoulders following the departure of JuJu Smith-Schuster and Darreus Rogers.