Clay Helton says USC starting QB will be named 2 weeks before Alabama opener

USC will name a starting quarterback two weeks before its season opener against Alabama, Coach Clay Helton said Thursday at Pac-12 Media Days.

Helton plans to release a two-deep depth chart when fall camp ends after 18 practices, settling at that point on Max Browne or Sam Daold, the two signal callers who began vying for the starting job in the spring.

“I think it’ll be sufficient time to name a starting quarterback,” said Helton, whose team is replacing a three-year starter in Cody Kessler.

The Trojans open against the Crimson Tide on Sept. 3 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

The first-year coach opted against picking between Browne, a redshirt junior, and Daold, a redshirt freshman, when spring camp concluded in April.

Browne, though, is considered to have a slight edge.

“If we had the spring game then had to play a game that next Saturday, it would have been Max,” Helton said Thursday from Hollywood and Highland, “but that window was so tight. If I’m going to say that at every other position, that it’s about competition, it has to start at the quarterback.”

Neither has significant experience in college.

Daold redshirted as a freshman last fall. Browne threw a total of 19 passes the past two seasons as the backup to Kessler. The 6-foot-5 quarterback completed 11 of 19 for 143 yards without a touchdown or interception.

There is a possibility Browne could transfer elsewhere and play immediately without penalty, because he has already graduated.

Classes for USC’s fall semester start Aug. 22, falling a few days after Helton’s timetable to name a starting quarter.

Helton acknowledged the possibility, but sounded unconceed about Browne’s potential departure.

“There’s always that reality,” he said. “At the end of the day, you’ve got to play the best player and who’s performing the best. You can’t look at your other players in the eye and not play the best player.

“If you’re not playing the best player and losing games, they usually find a new head coach. So it’ll be better to put the best 11 players you have out there.”

The first test for either will certainly be stiff.

Alabama won last season’s College Football Playoff.

“You’re preparing yourself for a playoff game,” Helton said. “You’re preparing yourself for a national championship game. The quality of talent prepares you, and that’s what matters the most.”

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