LOS ANGELES — Long before he would tap dance across the Coliseum field last Saturday, dodging and dipping and darting through defenders in a way no other USC quarterback ever has, Caleb Williams was already a master in the art of escape.
The skills that would one day make him a scrambling savant were born largely out of necessity. Growing up, Williams played regularly with older kids. The cousins he often saw were older. His best childhood friends — Gary, Michael, Malik and DJ, to name a few — were older. Most were much bigger too.
"They were huge," USC's sophomore quarterback recalled during the summer. And by no means did they take it easy on the smaller, younger kid in their crew. So Williams had to get creative.
