The USC Trojans did not have a good start to their 2016 season as they got throttled by the Alabama Crimson Tide last week. Now it seems they may have to something else to deal with after star receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster got into a scuffle with his teammates at practice Tuesday.
According to The Los Angeles Times, Smith-Schuster was being covered by safety Ykili Ross, who knocked down a pass and celebrated. The receiver took offense and threw a few punches at him and then walked off the practice field.
Head coach Clay Helton seemed to downplay the incident.
“Every day is a game to that kid, and that’s what I appreciate about him,” Helton said. “Scuffles happen in football practice, and we’re all brothers out here. Everyone hugged up and went on.”
#USC WR JuJu Smith-Schuster's day at practice today: pic.twitter.com/E89xsUss2O
— Shotgun Spratling (@ShotgunSpr) September 7, 2016
“When you get a lot of anger off of what happened on Saturday, disappointment with ourselves, I think you let emotions fly. It’s unacceptable. You’re not allowed to do that with your teammates,” offensive tackle Zach Banner said after practice.
It is not hard to understand why he was upset after Smith-Schuster only caught one pass for nine yards in the 52-6 loss over the weekend. He is expected to be the team’s top receiver and one of the best in the NFL Draft next year.
Let’s hope this just turns out to be an act of frustration and doesn’t become a real problem.
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