San Francisco 49ers preseason announcer Tim Ryan follows the NFL and especially the 49ers very closely. He also is a former USC star defensive lineman and knows the college game too. That’s why it was surprising to hear the blunder he made on Saturday night.
Ryan and Greg Papa were calling the Niners’ preseason game against the Denver Broncos. Sam Darnold made a nice scramble for the Niners in the second quarter. Both Papa and Ryan noted that Darnold’s scrambling ability is better than most people realize. That’s when Ryan made his error.
“Sam is way more mobile than people give him credit for. Remember all those USC days, what he did down there with Pete Carroll,” Ryan said.
Tim Ryan on Sam Darnold: "Sam is way more mobile than people give him credit for. Remember all those USC days, what he did down there with Pete Carroll."
Sam Darnold wasn't even in high school during Pete Carroll's last USC season. pic.twitter.com/9bq2LDrxEl
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 20, 2023
What’s the issue? Darnold didn’t come to USC until well after Pete Carroll had left for the NFL. Carroll began his Seattle Seahawks career in 2010. Darnold was at USC from 2015-2017. Clay Helton was the coach the two seasons that Darnold played. It was probably thanks to Darnold’s excellence that the Trojans were convinced Helton would be a capable head coach, which proved to not be the case.
T-Rock probably wanted that mistake back not long after he made it.
