Sam Darnold reveals USC’s depth at receiver by spreading the wealth

USC’s flanker was blanketed by a defender, but Sam Darnold liked the matchup. After Saturday’s game against UCLA, USC”s quarterback recounted his thinking.

“He’s a huge body,” Darnold said, referring to his target. “You guys can look at him, he’s 6-4, he’s a big man. So whenever you can get him in a one-on-one situation with a smaller DB, it’s always advantageous if you see one-one-one coverage to just be able to throw it up there and hope he makes a great play.”

Typically, USC’s flanker is JuJu Smith-Schuster, one of the nation’s top receivers. But Smith-Schuster wasn’t on the field for this particular play.

De’Quan Hampton, a lightly used backup, was playing instead. Aside from a few catches for short gains this season, Hampton was best known by USC fans for criticizing USC’s pass distribution during spring practice. No matter what he did in the 2015 season, Hampton complained, the ball never came his way.

“It got to the point where I roasted DBs to look good on film,” he said at the time.

Darnold never hesitated. He heaved the ball and gave Hampton a chance.

The receiver did not disappoint.

Hampton cut in front of a UCLA cornerback, snatched the ball at its high point and came down in the end zone for the first touchdown of his career.

This is a boom time for USC’s pass catchers. Last season, when quarterback Cody Kessler directed nearly one of every three passes toward Smith-Schuster, other targets felt overlooked.

This season, Darnold has spread the ball around, and in the process has revealed USC’s depth at receiver.

Against UCLA, 11 Trojans caught passes: six receivers, three running backs and two tight ends. Adoree’ Jackson, a cornerback who makes occasional appearances as a receiver, would have made it 12 but his second-quarter catch was ruled a lateral and counted as a run.

“Sam just trusts his guys,” offensive coordinator Tee Martin said. “It’s the way that they practice. Everybody practices with the ones, he gets reps with all the wideouts and he ultimately will trust them in some of the key situations in the game.”

Saturday was not a one-game anomaly. Compared to last season, passes to tight ends have swelled from 8% of passes to almost 14%, according to data from FootballStudyHall.com. Passes to receivers other than Smith-Schuster have increased from 44% to 50%.

The wider distribution has re-energized the bulk of the receiving corps. Most of the players trust that Darnold will find them eventually.

Hampton was lagging behind last season’s pace before Saturday, with only four receptions for 22 yards. But he said he remained confident because he’d seen Darnold find targets other than the top two options, Smith-Schuster and Darreus Rogers.

Freshman tight end Daniel Imatorbhebhe became a favorite in the red zone during the middle of the season. Tight end Tyler Petite caught two pivotal touchdown passes against Colorado. Deontay Burnett, who became the starting slot receiver after an injury, led USC in receptions, yards receiving and touchdowns against Oregon.

“It’s a lot of fun because you’ll never know what’s coming,” Hampton said. “You have so many dudes who can do a lot of different things.

“I’ve just got to be ready.”

Against UCLA, he had a career day: three catches for 51 yards and two touchdowns. And Isaac Whitney, who had one reception before Saturday, caught a 17-yard pass for a first down in the fourth quarter.

“That’s what a team is,” Coach Clay Helton said. “You hope that when one guy goes down, the other one has prepared himself to make those types of plays.”

Darnold played on the scout team last season as a redshirt, allowing him to build chemistry with younger players and reserves. He also played basketball during the off-season with a rotating slate of players, learning the athletic talents and tendencies of his teammates.

Spreading the ball around, Darnold said, is by design.

He said he wants offensive players to think, “Hey, my opportunity might come on any given day, and I’m going to take advantage of it.”

Hampton said that’s what he was thinking as he tracked a 31-yard Darnold touchdown pass in the second quarter. He added a six-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter.

Hampton was smiling as he emerged from the locker room after the game.

“It was worth the wait,” he said.

Quick hits

Jackson was named one of three finalists for the Jim Thorpe Award, given to the top defensive back in college football. The other finalists are Michigan cornerback Jourdan Lewis and Louisiana State cornerback Tre’Davious White. … USC has not swept UCLA and Notre Dame since 2011. … USC resumes practice Tuesday.

zach.helfand@latimes.com

Follow Zach Helfand on Twitter @zhelfand