USC’s Donte Williams talks the present, eyes the future

LOS ANGELES — Donte Williams doesn’t want to talk about the past.

That’s what he told reporters Thursday as he addressed them for the first time since December, when he closed his USC interim head coaching tenure with a loss to Cal. But when asked not about the previous season, but the conversations he had with new head coach Lincoln Riley to determine that Williams would continue on at USC, Williams declined to answer.

“I’m not focused on the past at all,” Williams said. “So pretty much regarding the majority of your guys’ questions today, I would like to take everything from going forward, not too much focused on what has happened here in the past.”

Williams was hired as cornerbacks coach at USC prior to the 2020 season, then added the associate head coach title prior to 2021. When Clay Helton was fired two games into that season, Williams assumed control of the Trojans.

His tenure started with an exhilarating win over Washington State in which USC scored 45 consecutive points to eliminate a two-touchdown deficit. But that was pretty much the only high, as a combination of shortcomings and injuries dragged USC down to a 4-8 finish to the season.

Prior to the last game, Riley was hired as head coach. Williams praised the hire, but did not want to answer questions about his future out of respect for the players.

Now officially back in the fold for a new coaching staff, Williams did not want to look back, even to reflect on lessons learned from that interim tenure. The most he would do is explain what it was about Riley that made him trust the new USC head coach.

“It’s every day he’s evolving, just like the times are around us,” Williams said. “We’re not doing what he did even at Oklahoma, or what he even did last week. As the head coach, you can see his vision and his constantly changing to evolve with the times.”

Williams is stepping back into his cornerbacks role and adding the title of defensive passing game coordinator. He will have a unique challenge this year after losing both starting corners – Chris Steele and Isaac Taylor-Stuart – to the NFL draft and key backup Jayden Williams to the transfer portal.

Donte Williams is bullish on the additions USC has added, though. He praised Colorado transfer Mekhi Blackmon’s experience, particularly against Pac-12 receivers, and Oklahoma transfer Latrell McCutchin’s knowledge of new coordinator Alex Grinch’s system.

And then there’s five-star freshman Domani Jackson out of Mater Dei, whom Williams has been recruiting for many years.

“I’ve never felt so close to a particular person, right, just because he’s been a high-level player for so long,” Williams said. “If you have someone that you’re constantly recruiting on a daily basis, multiple times a day, it’s a little different when it’s real, now all of a sudden they’re in the building every day and now you can get a chance to see him grow as a person.”

Recruiting is one of the key skills that has made Williams’ name in the college football landscape; he was named Rivals.com’s Pac-12 recruiter of the year on Saturday. And he will continue to play an integral role in that area for USC.

He will go about his duties of implementing Riley and Grinch’s vision on the field.

“Obviously, you’ve got a respect factor for several guys as you’re in the business long enough. Guys either that you’ve competed against on the field, competed against from a recruiting standpoint,” Grinch said. “I think he’s an elite coach, I think he’s an elite recruiter.”