USC Defensive Lineman Breaks Leg a Third Time

The Trojans’ deep defensive line got a little shallower when Jamaal Williams showed up on crutches for Tuesday’s practice at UC Irvine.

The freshman defensive end has a broken right leg and plans to redshirt this season. He suffered the injury Monday during a routine drill.

“I heard a pop in my leg,” Williams said. “I knew what it was exactly.”

That’s because Williams had broken the same leg twice in 12 months--in September of his senior season at St. Augustine High in San Diego and in March while playing basketball.

“It’s a tough, tough break,” Coach Paul Hackett said. “In the two days we saw of him, he really showed some exciting ability.”

Hackett also learned that defensive tackle Sagan Atuatasi will not join the team. Atuatasi, who originally signed with USC in 1999, was at summer school attempting to qualify academically.

With defensive linemen Ryan Nielsen and Shamsud-Din Abdul-Shaheed practicing sparingly while recovering from surgery, the Trojans may shift players to the line from other positions.

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The novelty of training camp wore off around five o’clock as the players finished the afternoon session by running sprints. Offensive lineman Faaesea Mailo looked particularly winded.

“C’mon,” assistant strength coach Brad Ohrt yelled. “You’re out here in the shade with a nice breeze.”

Mailo shot back: “I’m still fat.”

Despite the late-afternoon breeze, temperatures were hot and the coaching staff warned the team that Tuesday would be one of the toughest days in camp, a time when excitement gives way to exhaustion.

“They told us what we’d be in for,” Mailo said afterward. “And they didn’t lie.”

The Trojans get a break from two-a-day practices today, going only in the morning. On Thursday, the team is scheduled to start working in full pads.

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The competition for starting spots along the offensive line might not be settled until next week, but offensive line coach Steve Morton said Mailo, Brent McCaffrey, Eric Denmon, Trevor Roberts and Jacob Rogers have so far distinguished themselves . . . . With Steve Stevenson nursing a pulled hamstring, Matt Nickels and Keary Colbert have joined the battle for third receiver.