The Opening Finals were held over the weekend in Oregon, and USC quarterback Sam Darnold was in attendance as a counselor. The program is designed for the top high school quarterbacks to receive intense coaching over the 3 day event put on by the folks at Nike. Darnold competed in the counselor competition and accrued the highest score any player has ever recorded.
Sam Darnold won the college counselor QB competition here at The Opening ... with the highest score they've ever recorded in the event.
— Paul Myerberg (@PaulMyerberg) June 30, 2017
While we’re not exactly sure what the counselor competition entails, we found some video of Darnold passing at the event.
Heisman Trophy ♂️ ✔️ • USC QB Sam Darnold at @theopening ✌ @Elite11 pic.twitter.com/lvk1DEfSUT
— Blue Star Sports (@BlueStar_Sports) June 30, 2017
The hype train started last year when Darnold led the Trojans to nine straight wins in 2016, including a nail biter at the Rose Bowl versus Penn State. At the Rose Bowl he completed 33/53 attempts for 453 yards and five touchdowns, one interception and a rating of 161.4.
Darnold’s 2016 statistics were 246/366 for 3086 yards which gives him a 67.2 percent completion rate. He threw 31 touchdowns and nine interceptions and finished with a rating of 161.1. And then there’s this throw, keeping your 2018 dreams alive.