After losing quarterback competition, what’s next for USC’s Sam Darnold?

San Clemente High Coach Jaime Ortiz entered the 2012 season thinking he had a plan.

A senior named Sean Donnelly would start at quarterback, Ortiz figured. The veteran had waited his turn and learned under Travis Wilson, the quarterback who went on to set the school record for career starts at Utah.

When training camp began, though, one kid was threatening to wreck Ortiz’s careful planning. His name was Sam Darnold. A sophomore, he was the youngest player on the team, and his dynamism on the ground and tidy proficiency in the pocket almost dared Ortiz to start him.

Darnold kept pushing. Ortiz stayed patient. Before the season began, Ortiz broke the news: your time will come, he told Darnold. But not yet.

Darnold was disappointed, Ortiz said, but he did not complain

“Sam had the attitude, ‘Hey, if I’m not going to start at quarterback, I’ll start at wide receiver, I’ll start at outside linebacker,’ ” Ortiz said.

He became one of the team’s best players. One game, he caught a touchdown on offense, then returned an interception for a touchdown on defense.

“That,” Ortiz said, “is Sam’s persona.”

Darnold must again conjure patience after coming achingly close to being named the starting quarterback. Now a redshirt freshman at USC, he shocked mostly everyone, including Coach Clay Helton, by challenging the presumed starter, Max Browne, for the role.

Darnold turned Browne’s coronation into a battle. On Saturday, Helton met with Darnold to thank him for his efforts.

But Helton told him he’d have to wait, just as Ortiz had requested four years ago.

Helton’s decision means that if all goes well for USC, the Trojans won’t see Darnold playing significant minutes until 2018. So what’s next for Darnold?

He has already ruled out the possibility of transferring. In the summer, he guaranteed he would remain at USC, no matter the outcome of the quarterback competition. In a statement released by USC on Saturday, he reaffirmed that commitment.

Helton also vowed that a sluggish start from Browne wouldn’t quickly lead to a change at starting quarterback. A switch would only come, Helton said, after an injury or prolonged underperformance over several games.

“We will not rotate quarterbacks,” Helton said, though he added, “We do envision using Sam’s unique athletic skill set for special situations throughout games this season.”

Darnold’s powerful frame (he is 6-feet-4, 225 pounds) makes him a threat in short-yardage and goal-line situations. Unlike Browne, who is a traditional pocket passer, USC can utilize Darnold in the read-option or in run-pass options, both of which would allow Darnold to run the ball himself.

Such a role has precedent. Tim Tebow fulfilled similar duties at Florida, though Tebow was a more run-oriented quarterback.

If Browne remains the starter and stays for his senior season at USC, Darnold would find himself, effectively, in the same position as Browne, as a redshirt junior in 2018.

His challenge would likely come from Matt Corral, a five-star quarterback from Westlake Village Oaks Christian who has verbally committed to the Trojans. Corral would be a freshman in 2018.

Darnold had contemplated the probability that he’d encounter stiff competition at USC. He factored it into his decision during his recruitment, he said.

But Darnold wanted to play for a good program, and “if you’re going to go to a good football program, shouldn’t they have good quarterbacks in hand?” his father, Mike Darnold, said.

Darnold committed to USC, in part, because he trusted that Helton, then the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, would give him a fair shot to win the job.

In spring, when observers wondered if Helton was using Darnold just to push Browne, Darnold disagreed.

“I definitely felt I had a chance,” Darnold said before training camp.

A freshman starter is a rarity at USC. Since World War II, only two freshmen have started the season-opener at quarterback: Matt Barkley, in 2009, and Todd Marinovich, in 1989.

Despite Darnold’s youth and Browne’s talent, little separated the pair in training camp. By the middle of last week, Darnold was moving in and out of the pocket efficiently, throwing receivers open and was becoming more aggressive downfield.

“The performance by Sam Darnold at such a young age in both spring and fall camps has made us very confident as a staff that Sam could enter any game and our offense would not miss a beat,” Helton said in Saturday’s statement.

Darnold said he would continue to prepare as if he were the starter. His history suggests he will labor intensely but quietly.

At San Clemente, Donnelly was injured in the middle of the season. Darnold, who hadn’t practiced at quarterback since training camp, was thrust into the starting role against Tesoro.

After lurching through the first half, he led a fourth-quarter comeback. With seconds remaining, he lofted a long touchdown pass. Ortiz trusted Darnold. Instead of calling for the extra point, Ortiz had Darnold go for two points and the win. Darnold converted.

He played one more game at quarterback that season. Then Donnelly healed, and Darnold returned, silently, to his former role.

zach.helfand@latimes.com

Twitter: @zhelfand