He seemed surprised that someone wanted to speak to him.
As he approached the lone reporter who waited for him after practice, Mitch Mustain mused, "I've never done this before."
But Mustain is all too familiar with dealing with the media.
To those who've followed his story, Mustain seems to defy logic.
A year ago, the 2006 Gatorade High School Football National Player of the Year was leading a resurgent SEC program as a highly-touted freshman.
Today, he is leading the Trojans' scout team.
In Fayetteville, Ark., he was doing anything but. He was the homegrown hero who led his high school to the state championship, the center of all local media speculation and the future of the beloved Razorbacks.
But when he transferred to USC following a fallout with the program and the madding pressure from the sycophantic fanbase, he became just another name on the Trojans' roster.
And that is how Mustain prefers it.
"It's different," the transplant said of the change from Arkansas. "But I really like it a lot. I really like the atmosphere."
While it's by no means permanent, Mustain currently makes his home on the Howard Jones practice field.
Though his efforts during the week are not showing up in the box scores, his assignment of mimicking the opposing team's quarterback week-in and week-out is integral to the Trojans' success on Saturdays.
(Think Rudy, with legitimate talent and without the music.)
"This is my gameday - Tuesday and Wednesday," Mustain said. "[Playing on the scout team] has really helped me out a lot, you know. I got in some bad habits last year, and it's really helped me break some of them."
Thus far he has channeled his inner gunslinger to play the parts of Nebraska's Sam Keller and Washington State's Alex Brink.
This week's incarnation in the form of Washington's Jake Locker, however, will certainly test the traditionally pro-style quarterback's acting chops.
"I watch a little bit of video on Monday, and then we go through it again Tuesday," Mustain said of his preparation. "I try to pick up just a few of their mannerisms, but not enough to throw me off. Really, we just go out and play and hope it helps our guys."
In a conference that boasts eight returning quarterbacks, Locker, the first-year Huskies' starter, has reinvigorated a previously dormant offense and given a face to a team with his dual-threat capability.
"[Locker] poses a lot of problems," USC coach Pete Carroll said. "Jake just steals the show. So we're going to have to do everything we can to slow him down and keep him from being the factor that controls the football game. I think he's that good."
In four games, Locker has accumulated a respectable 704 passing yards on 113 attempts for six touchdowns. He also leads the team in rushing with 361 yards.
Mustain, in comparison, ran for -24 yards as a starter for Arkansas in 2006 and does not see himself becoming a runner anytime soon, despite his best efforts in practice.
"I think [my performance] was proof that that won't work," Mustain jokingly said. "We are trying to mimic [Locker], but I don't think any of us can do it with our legs."
Given USC's recent track record against running quarterbacks, Mustain's performance is essential to effectively prepare and gameplan for one of the most dynamic offensive threats in the Pac-10.
Mustain's focus, however, is not to only prepare the team, but to ready himself to play in the Coliseum in cardinal and gold someday - a stark contrast to the black jerseys donned by the scout team.
The jump from practice field stud to starter is a relatively common path at USC. One does not have to look beyond the current Trojans roster for proof of that. Stafon Johnson and David Ausberry are testaments to the potential of the scout team.
Come spring, Mustain will be in the middle of one of the most tense position battles in the country when the Trojans' quarterback depth chart sorts itself out.
For now, though, Mustain can enjoy the solitude of the practice field's cardinal confines, seemingly worlds away from Fayetteville.
- To comment on this article, visit www.dailytrojan.com or e-mail
Andrew at andrewfi@usc.edu.
