Clay Helton says he’s not worried about Sam Darnold, but USC receivers’ drops are an issue

USC coach Clay Helton cut right to the chase during his weekly teleconference after USC’s less-than-emphatic 49-31 win over Western Michigan.

“Know there’s going to be questions about Sam,” Helton said.

He was right. Sam Darnold, the Trojans’ star quarterback, had the first less-than-stellar outing of his career. He threw for 289 yards with one rushing touchdown, zero passing touchdowns and two interceptions. It was the first time since the first start of his career against Utah that he failed to throw at least one touchdown pass.

So although USC’s play raised other issues, like the porousness of its defensive front seven, the biggest question coming out of Saturday’s game was: Is there cause to be concerned about Darnold?

And: Is the biggest concern about his mediocre performance? Or that he might not have many targets to throw to?

Darnold entered the season as the most talked-about player in college football. He began as the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy. He was featured on the covers of Sports Illustrated and ESPN magazine.

With the attention came scrutiny.

“It’s hard to ignore,” Darnold said outside USC’s locker room Saturday evening. “But at the same time no matter what anyone says, whether it’s to my face, in the media, anything, I’m going to continue to be myself and continue to learn from the film, and that’s really all I can do.”

Helton’s read of the film mostly vindicated Darnold’s performance.

“I’m very proud of the way he played,” Helton said.

He noted several times that Darnold completed 23 of 33 passes, a 70% success rate. Without four drops, he said, Darnold would have completed nearly 80%.

“If [70%] and 289 yards is our worst day, then obviously we’ll take it,” Helton said. “There are some things that we do need to clean up as far as making sure that we ensure those catches, especially on two of the third downs.”

The rash of drops that Helton described might speak well of Darnold but portend bad news for USC. Darnold showed last season he is an elite college quarterback. He can sustain a one-game aberration. USC’s receivers, with the exception of Deontay Burnett, have proven little.

Steven Mitchell Jr. was serviceable, with four catches for 39, but Jalen Greene struggled, with two drops credited to him by Helton.

And there may not be much help coming. Redshirt freshman Tyler Vaughns, the first receiver off the bench, dropped a third-down pass that hit his hands. And backup slot receiver Velus Jones, another redshirt freshman, couldn’t bring in a difficult but catchable long strike down the seam. A season ago, Darnold could rely on receivers like JuJu Smith-Schuster and Darreus Rogers to make similar catches.

Stanford, USC’s opponent this Saturday, will only increase the degree of difficulty. The Cardinal’s secondary is probably the best in the Pac-12 Conference.

Darnold spread the ball around to a wide array of targets last season, and he completed passes to 10 different players Saturday. Asked if Darnold would need to adapt his approach to more often target pass catchers like Burnett and tight ends Tyler Petite and Daniel Imatorbhebhe, Helton urged caution.

“What I saw in that game is that he really trusted the guys around him and spread the ball around,” Helton said. Trust, he said, is a quarterback’s most important attribute. “And we know there’s going to be some growing pains.”

The disconnect between Darnold and his newer receivers against Western Michigan did not differ significantly from their performance in training camp. Still, Helton said the passing game was not far away from where USC needs it to be.

Darnold also blamed himself. He said he was “too cute” with his passes.

“I just got to put the ball where it needs to be,” he said.

His understanding, left unsaid, was that someone would be there to catch it.

Snap to it

Center Nico Falah adapted seamlessly to the center position midway through last season. His snaps were never an issue.

Against Western Michigan, he sent several wide or high of Darnold, including one that nearly led to a turnover.

“A little bit hot, too,” Helton said, referring to snaps coming in too fast. “It could be the adrenaline running through him. But obviously he’s an experienced player. I expect him to clean that up very quickly.”

Quick hits

Safety Chris Hawkins suffered an elbow strain Saturday, Helton said. . . . Reserve safety Bubba Bolden was diagnosed with a bone bruise in his knee that did not cause structural damage.

zach.helfand@latimes.com

Follow Zach Helfand on Twitter @zhelfand