Karl-Anthony Towns (basketball) Chuma Edoga Jersey , Todd Gurley (football), Abby Wamback (soccer), Sydney McLaughlin (track)– he was relaxed and happy. He was home.After spending the past couple months in New York after being drafted No. 3 overall by the Jets in this year’s NFL Draft, participating in minicamp and learning about his new home, the San Clemente kid was back in SoCal for a visit before returning to the Big Apple for training camp.The night was about as stereotypical as it gets for Los Angeles– a cool 70 degrees with the sun setting gracefully on the water– and Darnold made his way around the Ritz Carlton in Marina Del Rey as one of the featured pro athletes at an event he wasn’t even a thought to get an invite to four years before. It was the Gatorade Athlete of the Year awards, honoring the top high school athletes from around the country in each of their respective sports.Now 21-years-old and a man who is set to earn north of $30 million over the course of his rookie contract alone, Darnold was ranked as a four-star recruit coming out of San Clemente High School by almost every scouting network out there, typically falling around the ranking of the 200th best prospect in the nation. However, while he wasn’t winning the National Player of the Year awards like the dozen of student-athletes currently surrounding him, he was winning the team ones.After losing the majority of his junior season to a foot injury, Darnold returned for his senior campaign with a mission on his mind. The dual-threat talent threw for nearly 3,000 yards and 39 touchdowns in 2014, while rushing for 785 yards and 13 touchdowns to lead San Clemente High School to a 12-2 record and the CIF-SS Southwest Division final.Those 14 battles on the gridiron, and the few that came before his senior year, are what he looks back on as the building blocks for his development into a future superstar.“The CIF, especially for me the Southern Section, I learned so much from playing with those guys because a lot of those guys ended up playing D-I football,” Darnold said. “There was a lot of really good football IQ that was there, not only from the players, but from the coaches as well. The coaches know their football— a lot played at the highest level. It’s really cool to be able to learn from them and be able to compete with them because I think when you compete at the highest level in high school, it prepares you better for college as playing with the highest level in college does for the NFL. I think that’s the biggest thing with college football and the CIF-SS that I had to go through. Every single game was tough.”Although every single game was tough, watching him slip through perspective tacklers and demonstrating the calm attitude he is now known for would make any onlooker think differently. Just as he exuded the values San Clemente instilled in him as a blossoming teenager, he found the support he needed through his time at USC.“Just leaning on their coaching and learning to lean on my teammates to find my success that I had was amazing. I wouldn’t be in the position that I am today if it weren’t for those coaches, my teammates, my classmates and faculty,” Darnold said. “It’s amazing to have such a Trojan Family to be able to lean on whenever times are bad or whenever things are going really good because those people there would keep me grounded and also pick me up when things weren’t going too hot.”Now in New York, Darnold finds himself in a similar situation to when he arrived on campus as a Trojan: a newcomer looking to earn a starting role over an experienced veteran.His time at ‘SC is well documented: dropping his first game as a starter when being called on in the fourth game of the season only to rally off nine-straight wins, including one of the most memorable Rose Bowl games of all time, then Trevon Wesco Jersey , as an incumbent, leading the Trojans to their first conference title in nearly a decade on the way to another New Years Six Bowl, the Cotton Bowl.Being placed in his current position is nothing new to the rookie and he is taking advantage of it the same way as he has in the past. Darnold says he’s competing, but also making sure to take the necessary time to learn the playbook and draw valuable insights from veterans Josh McCown and Teddy Bridgewater filling the roster with him. However, while the football may not be too different, the location certainly is.“So far I haven’t gone through a winter which I think will be the biggest part, but it’s not that hard. It’s just another place to live,” a smile now showing as he promises he won’t lose the SoCal kid mantra he’s developed. “Some of the people are different, **takes a deep breath** the Jersey people are a little bit different, but it’s awesome to be able to hang out with them and understand their experiences, see what they go through on a daily basis. Where all the good places to eat are, all that stuff.”How can his acclimation while retaining his roots be put to the test? Simple. New York style pizza or In-n-Out?“I guess since pizza and burgers are different, it just depends on my mood. Right now I could go for both,” Darnold says while letting out a good laugh. “I don’t want to pick one. I don’t think that would be fair for the burger or pizza.”Touche.Though Darnold never went through the experience of being at an event like the Athlete of the Year ceremony, the young man who may be following in his footsteps as the next USC quarterback did. JT Daniels, who led Mater Dei to their third National Title and first Southern Section title since 1999 last season, was named the Male Athlete of the Year and will be competing for the Trojans starting role this year. Darnold, just three years older, believes his CIF compatriot is in a good position to leave a similar mark to his own on campus.“There’s so many expectations when you’re the quarterback at Mater Dei. For him starting all [three] years at Mater Dei High School, that’s going to prepare him a lot more than anything for playing at SC. I think he’s going to be able to handle it fine whenever he gets that chance to play. I really do think he’ll be able to go in there and do well right away and lead the boys to a lot of wins when he gets the chance.”Just as Darnold explains how Mater Dei prepared Daniels for his next role in life, he reflects on the upbringing that made him who he now is.“They taught me about football. That’s the biggest thing that I learned from San Clemente,” Darnold says. “More than that, I learned so much from all the classmates that I had, all the teachers that I had because they taught me lessons that I will forever be in debt for.”So, while many of the other pros wandering the Ritz are using the award ceremony as an excuse to take a vacation to Los Angeles, Darnold moves on to the next group just happy to be home. EAGAN, Minn. �? After signing Kirk Cousins to a fully guaranteed contract last year, the Minnesota Vikings might have given their quarterback even more to work with this time.This season will surely be a crossroad of sorts for both Cousins and the Vikings, their trajectory toward �? or away from �? that elusive Super Bowl victory inescapably intertwined.More Vikings coveragePreview: Cook Shareef Miller Jersey , Vikings look to keep rolling vs. PackersTop Tweets: Vikings prepare for Packers with TMNT hype videoBarr, seasoned Vikings defense off to strong startNew offense, same Rodgers: Vikings prep for LaFleur’s PackersVikings re-sign center Jones, waive rookie TE Dillon“I’m pretty much a .500 quarterback in my career so far, and I don’t think that’s where you want to be,” Cousins said this summer, his most pronounced acknowledgement that his debut in purple did not quite pan out as he or the team hoped with an 8-7-1 record that missed the cut for the playoffs.On the statistical surface, and by the eye test for stretches of the schedule, Cousins largely excelled. His 70.1 percent completion rate was the 10th-best in NFL history. He topped 4,000 passing yards for the fourth straight year, producing the fourth-highest total in the league during that span. His interception rate of 1.7 percent was the best of his career.Still, against the last four postseason-bound opponents the Vikings faced, losses to Chicago twice, New England and Seattle, Cousins posted four of his six worst passer ratings of 2018.When the Vikings lost the finale to the Bears, thus keeping them out of the playoffs, Cousins averaged 4 yards per attempt, his lowest of the year.The offense had several weaknesses beyond his control, but his performance in the first edition of the $84 million deal wasn’t strong enough to cover them up, either.So the Vikings set out to make Cousins more successful this season, hiring former NFL head coach Gary Kubiak as an adviser after appointing Kevin Stefanski as offensive coordinator.New offensive line coach Rick Dennison, a longtime companion of Kubiak, was also handed the title of running game coordinator to help boost a critical area that failed to take the pressure, literally and figuratively, off Cousins last year. Center Garrett Bradbury and tight end Irv Smith Jr. were their first two draft picks. Even wide receiver Josh Doctson, a familiar target for Cousins from their time together with Washington, was added this week.“If we have a really good year, but I don’t play very well, does that mean I crossed the road and we’re good? If I have my best year I’ve ever had and we don’t win Zach Brown Jersey , does that mean that I’m not good? I don’t know. I just think that winning does kind of tell the story, and if we win the rest tends to take care of itself,” Cousins said Wednesday. “I need to play well regardless, win or lose, and I’ve got to earn my way every day. I’m being evaluated like everyone else, and if I don’t play well, win or lose, I’m not going to be here.”The offense will put Cousins under center more often than the shotgun formation he frequently operated out of last season. Play-action passes will be a favorite, using a skill Cousins has long held. The arrival of Kubiak raised a too-many-cooks concern, but Cousins has expressed appreciation for the variety of perspectives the coaching staff can provide him. Cousins has also taken a more collaborative approach with the offense toward the implementation and digestion of the what, why and how of the new playbook.“He’s more about trying to help guys out and do his job, get the guys around him in the huddle on the right page, and go from there,” coach Mike Zimmer said.There’s another change for Cousins this year, a beard he began growing at the beginning of training camp after a casual suggestion by Bradbury. Cousins said he’s curious to see if his facial hair can match the thickness sported by new right guard Josh Kline.“I kind of grew it on a whim,” he said, smiling, “so I’ll probably cut it on a whim.”Beneath the offseason enhancements, the Vikings still have at their core a wide receiver tandem in Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs that is one of the NFL’s best. They’re eager, too, to see what more Cousins can do in the revamped system. Diggs, though, made clear Wednesday that Cousins doesn’t need to further prove himself.“He brings what you need from the quarterback position. So as far as like the leadership and me having him as a teammate, I love him,” Diggs said. “I think he does everything that he can, so I’m not saying it’s a make-or-break season because the quarterback position is hard.”