Kristofer O’Dowd ignoring the preseason hype

USC center Kristofer O’Dowd has been named to several preseason All-America and All-Pacific 10 Conference teams.

But the senior from Arizona is not paying much attention.

“You can’t get caught up in that hype because you really haven’t done anything yet,” O’Dowd said. “So I try to do my best to stay out of the papers and the websites and focus on the season.”

O’Dowd, 6 feet 5 and 300 pounds, is hoping for a healthy start.

In 2009, O’Dowd suffered a dislocated kneecap during training camp, sat out the season opener against San Jose State and then rushed back in time to play the next week at Ohio State. His condition worsened as the season progressed and he also suffered a shoulder injury before he was replaced in the lineup for the seventh game against Oregon State.

O’Dowd sat out all or part of the five games and then returned to start the final two.

“Last year was really just a dark time for me,” he said.

O’Dowd had off-season shoulder surgery and appears to have regained the form that earned him all-conference recognition in 2008. He is the linchpin of an offensive line that has been in flux because of injuries at guard.

“I’m starting to feel like my old self,” he said. “I’ve still got a lot to work on, but I’m getting there. I want to lead this offensive line and be a leader on this team.”

On the corner

While Nickell Robey and Brian Baucham have made their share of plays at cornerback, Torin Harris has done the same and provided some of the biggest hits.

Harris, 6 feet 1 and 185 pounds, redshirted last season while Kevin Thomas and Josh Pinkard completed their eligibility.

“Last year, I really didn’t have to push to get ready — it was more about learning technique and taking advantage of the time I had,” Harris said. “Now, it’s getting everything together and going out there and making plays.”

Quick hits

The Trojans did not practice Thursday. They will practice twice Friday and will scrimmage for the final time on Saturday.

gary.klein@latimes.com