With the NFL’s 1^st round of the draft mere hours away, here’s a look at the remaining USC Trojans entering the draft. For player stats go HERE.

QB Mitch Mustain

Mitch Mustain’s story is such an odd one. He started as a true freshman at Arkansas then transferred to USC and played backup to Mark Sanchez, Aaron Corp (God what a disaster he was at USC!) and Matt Barkley.  Mustain never got a lot of playing time, and when he did, he didn’t exactly garner confidence from the Trojan faithful.  I don’t know folks, I hope Mustain gets drafted but am not sure. I’ve often said his situation can be compared to Matt Cassel’s – Cassel famously backed up a pair of Heisman Winners  at USC and was a late draft pick and seemed destined for a practice squad until the famous Tom Brady injury. Now Cassel is a franchise player. Mustain isn’t as big nor as athletic as Cassel was when he went into the draft.  Combine that with his recent drug arrest (apparently all a misunderstanding but it does count towards character), and I don’t think Mustain is on many team’s radars.

RB ALLEN BRADFORD

Allen Bradford is a big back who had an odd career at USC. When he was on, he reminded fans of Lendale White. When he was off, you wondered if he was even suited up.  Maybe it was the era of Trojan football in which he played but he didn’t seem to get a lot of attention. That said he is big, strong and speedy and I do think he will get drafted. He’s young and hungry and is going to be a good addition to someone’s roster.

CB SHAREECE WRIGHT
I follow Shareece on Facebook and that dude has been all over the country for look see’s with teams for the past few weeks.  He did get injured at pro day, which probably explains all the frequent flier miles he’s racked up recently.  Shareece is quick on his feet and a better than decent tackler. If he can get and stay healthy he will have an NFL career.

LB Malcolm Smith & Michael Morgan

Smith and Morgan are similar players. Smith is a bit smaller at 6’1 to Morgan’s 6’4 but both had very impressive pro day workouts and both are very athletic. They are the types of players that for teams that have gone back and looked at the tape, will be attractive to teams in later rounds or as free agents.

RB CJ Gable

It feels like Gable has been around SC forever, and in a way he has. He made his debut with the Trojans in the first game of his freshman year against Arkansas in 2006.  He had an amazing freshman year and the Trojan Nation collectively held their breath – would he become another Reggie Bush? Sadly, (in playing terms!) he didn’t. He had a season ending injury early in the 2007 season and when he came back, he just never recaptured the lightning in a bottle quality of his freshman campaign.  That said, Gable is athletic and fast and has great feet.  He’s flying under the radar a bit on this draft, which should make him a steal for whatever team picks him up sometime on Saturday in the later rounds.

The only two I haven’t covered are WR David Ausberry and OC Wendell Lewis. I wish all the Trojans Good Luck over the next few days!

Your Gridiron Goddess