After playing home games nearly an hour from campus, USC pitcher Grant Govel says returning to campus has inspired the team to play its best.
Welcome back to the Times of Troy newsletter, where we have regretfully gone too long without giving full and proper due to Andy Stankiewicz and USC baseball for all that’s already been accomplished by the midway mark of this college baseball season.
The Trojans have 26 wins before April. In each of 2019, 2021 and 2022 — Jason Gill’s three full seasons as USC’s coach — the Trojans won 25 games the entire season. That’s a tremendous turnaround, even before you consider the other hurdles the Trojans have faced with Stankiewicz at the helm. They’re only just now playing on their own home field, and since USC prioritized finishing its football facility first, the new baseball stadium is still short on amenities. Like a clubhouse. Or batting cages. Or a press box. Stankiewicz was honest last summer about what to expect. When they met on Zoom to discuss the future, the third-year coach admitted it would be a bit longer before they got the state-of-the-art stadium they’d been waiting for. There wasn’t going to be much extra in name, image and likeness endorsement money, either — at least, not to the level that SEC schools were offering. “He basically told us everything that wasn’t going to be here this year,” said starting pitcher Grant Govel. “The only thing he said we were going to have is a field.” Not everyone on the Zoom was happy with that, Govel said. After an NCAA tournament appearance, many were understandably hoping for more. “We’re obviously shorthanded with money,” Govel said. “We have to really rely on ourselves for . But it goes to show you that guys are loyal. … A lot of people chose to stay because they want to be a part of the history.” I spoke with Govel, one of the Trojans’ two breakout starting pitchers, before USC’s road series win over Maryland, to ask him what’s behind USC’s stellar start and the pitching staff’s sudden dominance. The Palos Verdes High grad has a microscopic 1.20 ERA this season, which is somehow just second-best among USC’s pitchers, behind Mason Edwards and his personal 0.67 ERA. You guys are off to a historic start. What’s that been like? And what’s behind this team playing as well as it has? Govel: The year I came in, we had to go to Great Park. We didn't feel like we really had a home field, even though we were hosting at Great Park. You know, the drive there, staying in hotels, never sleeping in our own beds. It was an almost entirely uncomfortable state for the entire year. You know, it was like literally no home field advantage type thing. So comparing that to this year, I think the guys that experienced that, especially like starters, like Mason , me, just the returners, you know — we want to protect . We played a lot of games at home. We want to protect our field, you know, because we're sleeping at home, we're getting the good treatment again, and we want to win, you know. And so that's the biggest thing. I feel like guys have the urge to just do something cool every day, you know. This program has a lot of history, a lot of great players, a lot of great teams. No team had ever won 19 games in a row until this team did. Did that stretch feel special? How do you maintain that momentum? Govel: As a starting pitcher, every game had a lot of pressure, because no one wants to be the losing pitcher to start the year. So I think every starter took that into account. When we're on the mound, we're not thinking about the streak, obviously, but it plays into our preparation beforehand. I can't say we were expecting it, but we kind of were because we were going about our days in the fall like we were pros and like we were there to handle business every game. And I think the coaching staff plays a big role in that as well, because every day we have a structured plan. You know, we're very detailed in what we do. So I think it was expected and not, but it was — it was a good feeling to see all the work that we had in the fall pay off. You came in and sat basically two seasons after having Tommy John surgery in 2023. What’s it been about this season that’s led to everything coming together for you? Govel: Going back to last year, I came into this program around 175 pounds, and I wasn't really doing a lot of weight room stuff on my own. I felt good after Tommy John, but I felt like I only had two pitches after — I had a fastball and a cutter. I lost the feel of, you know, a curveball and the changeup, right? So I gave up a lot of home runs last year. I think I gave up 11, with a lot of walks, and our Allen said, if you give up hits, you better not give up walks. So this year, you know, I've been good with both, but I'm trying to choose one, you know — either give up hits or give up walks. 'Cause that's the only way you get beat as a pitcher is either you beat yourself or they beat you, and so every game, I'm — I'm telling myself, and I'm writing my journal, 'Don't beat myself, you know. I think with Tommy John, it was hard to come back from all this because you lose feel. And especially for me, I was at home for an entire year. I didn't go to school. I was away from an athletic program, and I almost — I would say — lost my competitive edge over hitters. I fell into the thought last year that it's an even game. But I really have the advantage, you know? Hitting a baseball is pretty darn hard. So, with getting that mentality and that thought process back, that I'm the one people fear, you know? Like, I control everything — I'm the pitcher, you know? Mason has made a huge improvement this year as well. What’s made him so great over the course of the season? Govel: He has one hell of a curveball, as well as a very good fastball and changeup, and he, in the fall, was dominating, and he had something to prove because he always thought last year that he should have been in a starter role, and I really think that with our bullpen depth, it was hard, but I think Mason could have easily been our Sunday, Saturday, or Friday guy, but he's proven that he's got what it takes to be our Friday guy and be the guy that we want to put on the line and say, ‘Hey, you're not this guy. Like, you have no shot.’ Plus he has a really good curveball. I think he has like a 93% on lefty hitters with his curveball. That's insane. Mason could have left last year, you know? He could have gone to the SEC or even somewhere better, you know, but he chose to stay here, and it's, you know, when we have our Friday guy rolling our Saturday guy — and like, when we have weekend rotation doing the things we do, it builds confidence within our whole , within our hitters, because then our hitters have the free — basically the feeling of, 'Hey, we just got to score one or two runs.' Last week, we asked, on a scale of 1-5, with five being most confident, what’s your confidence level in Eric Musselman as USC’s men’s basketball coach after two seasons?' The results, after 448 votes: 3-29.2% 4-24.6% 5-18.2% 1-16.9% 2-11.1% — After signing the No. 1 overall class in 2026, USC is keeping up its momentum in 2027. For sheer numbers reasons, USC probably won’t finish with the No. 1 recruiting class for a second straight season. General manager Chad Bowden has already suggested USC’s 2027 class will be smaller than its 35-person class in ‘26. But the ‘27 group is already off to a great start, bolstered by a commitment from arguably the top prospect in California, San Diego’s Honor Fa’alave Johnson. He’s one of five top-100 prospects already committed. Centennial four-star wideout Quentin Hale, Mater Dei cornerback Danny Lang and Servite offensive lineman Drew Fielder join him to give USC three of the state’s top six prospects. That’s exactly where USC should be winning right now. That USC stole Fielder from Oregon, where he had been committed, only makes that performance all the more impressive. — USC will hold its long-awaited football fan event on Apr. 11 at 9 a.m., in conjunction with Swim with Mike. With no annual spring game, USC has talked for two years about finding a way to connect with its football fans. It settled this year on holding “Fan Appreciation Day,” which will feature “family-friendly activities, activations and photo opportunities” that involve members of the 2026 football team. 'Swim with Mike,' a fundraiser for disabled athletes, will be hosted concurrently at the Uytengsu Center across the street. USC beach volleyball has lost just four times this season, but two of those losses have now come at the hands of Texas. The Trojans entered last Saturday riding a seven-match win streak, but they fell on Texas’ home court in Austin. It came down to USC’s No. 1 pairing of Ashley Pater and Kennedy Coakley, which was 6-5 in the top spot this season. But they’d won three straight matches leading into Saturday, when they lost to Texas’ top pair in straight sets — 21-17, 21-19. The true test of the Trojans’ mettle lies ahead. Their nine remaining opponents on their schedule are all ranked in the top 10. Four of those matchups are against either No. 1 UCLA or No. 2 Stanford. I’ll admit, having first read the book, I was worried about how 'Project Hail Mary' might translate on the big screen. I wasn’t sure how certain elements of the story would be represented in movie form. Those concerns, I’m happy to report, turned out to be for naught. Because 'Project Hail Mary' rocks. It’s the rare end-of-the-world space movie that might be described as delightful or fun, due in no small part to Ryan Gosling, who is at the peak of his charms as Dr. Ryland Grace. The movie starts with Grace waking up in deep space, with no idea who he is or why he’s there. Quite a journey takes place from there, one that’s actually worth getting out to the movie theater to see for yourself. USC football focuses on accountability, fine details during spring practice Turnover-plagued USC blown out by No. 1 South Carolina in season-ending loss Lindsay Gottlieb, USC have already proved this season is no preamble That concludes today's newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at ryan.kartje@latimes.com, and follow me on X at @Ryan_Kartje. 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