Lincoln Riley updates how Malachi Nelson is adjusting in first spring practice

Malachi Nelson was a huge recruiting get for USC and Lincoln Riley. Now the freshman has to get used to spring practice and learn a college offense.

At this point, it’s a lot of mental reps for Nelson since Riley called his freshman quaterback’s offseason leading into spring “not ideal.” The good news is Nelson isn’t under pressure to start immediately with Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams back for the fall.

Still, Riley came away impressed with Nelson early on.

“He’s done well,” Riley said. “We’re repping those three guys along with Jake Jensen, we’re giving them all a little bit and he’s taken advantage of having those three older quarterbacks in the room. They’re there to kind of help him and guide him along and show him pretty good examples about how we want to do it. He’s smart, he retains things well. He’s coming off not an ideal offseason, from an injury standpoint. You can tell he’s not 100%. 

“But the mental work that he’s getting right now is great and will pay dividends. I’m impressed with some of his recall and the things he’s doing as a freshman but you know, he’s learning a lot which will set the stage for him to really go have a great offseason. (It’ll be good mentally and physically) for him to compete in the offseason.”

Nelson is a unique talent and is just the latest in the line of highly touted quarterback prospects to learn under Riley.

“Throughout a long, long recruiting process with him and his family, I think that just comfort factor and getting to know you know who he is as a person, getting to know his family, the way he’s raised his goals,” Riley said in December. “I’ve seen him improve throughout the years even when he’s getting offers and a lot of attention very early on. I feel like the kid has really continued to work hard and wants to improve and I think a lot of those things I just listed in terms of, you know, what we’re looking for at USC. 

“He fits and then as far as what we’re looking for at the quarterback position, I mean, he’s a guy that I feel like has an extremely bright future as a player, as a leader and as a winner. That’s what we have to have in that position.”

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As a member of the Class of 2023, Nelson was a five-star recruit out of Los Alamitos (Calif.) High, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He was the No. 2 overall prospect in California, the No. 5 quarterback in the class and the No. 11 overall prospect in the class.