USC’s returners face an unenviable task: Replacing Adoree’ Jackson

Rarely has anyone accused USC cornerback Jack Jones of being coy. But when he huffed and puffed off USC’s practice field Wednesday, he grimaced. He was hoping he could leave without talking to reporters.

His chest heaved — he was tired, he explained. He’d just spent about 20 minutes after a long practice catching punts, accompanied by Ajene Harris.

They can use all the extra work they can get. Jones and Harris occupy maybe the least enviable position on USC’s roster. They are competing for the punt and kick return jobs, along with Velus Jones Jr., who did not practice Wednesday because of a sore foot. That means they have to replace Adoree’ Jackson, who was possibly the best all-around returner in the nation last season.

It’s a difficult ask, but Jack Jones doesn’t see it that way. He sees a useful blueprint.

“I feel like I’m going to be the best to do it in college football,” Jack Jones said, once he caught his breath.

Informed of Jack Jones’ comments, Harris looked slightly aggrieved.

“Hey,” he said. “I feel like I’m gonna be the best punt returner in the nation.”

Despite the confidence, USC cannot realistically count on production equal to last season. On kickoffs, Jackson scored two touchdowns and averaged 29.5 yards per return, sixth in the nation. On punts, he scored twice and averaged 15.8 yards per return, third in the nation.

Jackson’s return wizardry turned a scare against Notre Dame into a laugher.

Are any of USC’s three options capable of something similar?

Special-teams coach John Baxter said USC faces a similar question every time a returner graduates.

It is the same challenge, he said, as replacing Nelson Agholor, the “same challenge as there was replacing Robert Woods, same challenge as there was replacing Marqise Lee.

“At USC,” Baxter said, “we do have the luxury of replacing good players with good players.”

USC coaches are less concerned about what the returners do after they field the ball than they are with them fielding the ball in the first place.

Jack and Velus Jones are considered the two fastest players on the team. Harris is a talented athlete who once played quarterback. But each has had to adjust to the nuances of catching punts and kicks in traffic.

Even Jack Jones, who returned extensively at Long Beach Poly High, said he needed time to adapt to college punters.

“I’m not 100% yet,” he said. “But I’m getting there.”

Harris, who has played a number of positions at USC, hasn’t returned punts since he caught a handful as a sophomore in high school.

“When I first got here, that was something that I struggled with because I was at quarterback, I didn’t really see the ball from that perspective,” he said. “So I had to really learn how to judge the ball when it’s turning over or when the nose is dropping and it’s coming short.”

At Saturday’s scrimmage, USC held a brief live retuning session, which “was not great,” coach Clay Helton said. “We can do better.”

USC will run another full-contact returning session Saturday, he said.

Helton said all three options have displayed enough explosiveness and speed. But he doesn’t expect one player to handle both punt and kickoff duties.

“That kickoff return skill set is so much different than punt return,” he said. “Some guys got it, and some guys don’t.”

Michael Pittman on wheels

Michael Pittman Jr. zipped around the practice field on a motorized scooter. He wore a practice jersey and a helmet, even though he did not practice and his left foot was in a boot.

Pittman injured the ankle during Tuesday’s practice and was carted off the field. X-rays revealed no break, but Helton said the sprain was “a significant one.”

“I don’t think it’s day to day,” Helton said. “I think it’s going to take a couple weeks.”

Quick hits

USC’s kicking has improved since a dismal performance Saturday. On Wednesday, Mike Brown made a 34-yard field goal, while surrounded by screaming teammates, and with something on the line: Helton announced players would have the rest of the night off without meetings, but only if Brown’s field goal was good.

zach.helfand@latimes.com

Follow Zach Helfand on Twitter @zhelfand