After an inconsistent begin to the season for USC’s secondary, the defensive coordinator stood in entrance of a cadre of cameras and didn’t mince phrases. There have been too many protection busts resulting in too many massive go performs, he mentioned. He deliberate to spend the bye week learning movie with microscopic focus in hopes of understanding precisely what had gone flawed.
“The lowlights can’t be that low,” he mentioned. “You may’t simply say it occurs generally. These issues can’t occur.”
That coordinator was Alex Grinch, talking in September 2023. Six weeks later, he was fired.
The circumstances aren’t fairly that dire for the Trojans’ protection — or Grinch’s successor, D’Anton Lynn — in October 2025. However the issues with massive go performs have persevered since then. The truth is, they’ve been worse this season than they have been beneath USC’s earlier coordinator, regardless of the truth that USC has but to play a top-40 passing offense.
By 5 video games, USC has given up 51 go performs of 10 yards or extra. That’s eighth worst within the nation, equating to a median of over 10 such performs per sport. And towards Illinois, that propensity for permitting explosive performs got here again to chunk USC in a brutal loss.
“The go protection has to get higher,” USC coach Lincoln Riley mentioned after the sport. “It simply wasn’t ok.”
Two days later, when requested in regards to the state of his secondary, Riley took a extra encouraging tone. The cornerbacks, he mentioned, “had a number of errors right here and there.” Take the sport’s two greatest go performs out of the equation, he added, and “it’s going to be actually powerful for them to beat us.”
Whether or not his cornerbacks have that very same confidence popping out of the loss could possibly be one other query. How they reply out of this week’s bye, with key matchups towards Michigan and Notre Dame forward, would possibly finally decide the course of USC’s season.
“Confidence, you possibly can’t faux that,” Riley mentioned. “We’re doing sufficient good issues that it ought to present up and there must be confidence from that, but when we hold making a number of the errors that we’ve made, whether or not it’s a busted protection, or like not leveraging the soccer — these are controllable on us. Different folks aren’t even having to make performs that method.”
Three consequential moments within the second half final Saturday have been straight correlated to crippling errors from USC defensive backs. An Illinois swing go within the third quarter went for a 64-yard rating after security Bishop Fitzgerald took a nasty angle on operating again Justin Feagin, and two corners within the space did not shed blocks. Then, within the fourth quarter, one other cornerback, Braylon Conley, was burned twice on explosive go performs — first, when he was beat for a landing on a slant over the center, after which, on the following possession, when he fell down defending a hitch route that exploded for 61 yards.
A lot of the group’s most obtrusive errors on massive performs this season have been attributed to breakdowns in communication. These points have been solely exacerbated final week within the absence of security Kamari Ramsey, who had not too long ago taken over relaying calls from the sideline to the secondary.
Ramsey ought to return subsequent week, however Riley mentioned this week that communication on protection has been a main focus for USC.
To Fitzgerald, the week off was an opportunity to “absolutely reset every little thing” within the secondary.
“It’s actually simply focusing extra on the identical issues and making an attempt to execute as an entire,” Fitzgerald mentioned. “As a protection, if 10 guys do one factor however one individual does the flawed factor, it’s a busted play. We are able to’t afford that. So we’re simply making an attempt to get all people on the identical web page.”
Because the Trojans enter probably the most troublesome stretch of their schedule, it’s not clear who the coaches will belief most at nook going ahead.
Accidents early this season robbed USC of two of its most skilled cornerbacks, Prophet Brown and Chasen Johnson. Then final week, as USC’s secondary unraveled within the loss to Illinois, redshirt senior DeCarlos Nicholson was out and in of the lineup with what seemed to be a nagging hamstring.
Nicholson, nonetheless, has been USC’s most constant cowl nook by way of 5 weeks. Throughout from him, redshirt freshman Marcelles Williams has began the final three video games, however hasn’t by any means run away with the job.
Senior DJ Harvey was introduced in from the switch portal to be a significant contributor at nook, however he has fallen far wanting these expectations. He performed solely 5 snaps final Saturday, regardless of the staff’s dire depth at nook, however a type of performs resulted in a devastating go interference name on Illinois’ game-winning drive.
“We’re fairly younger on the market on the perimeter proper now, with out having Prophet and Chasen,” Riley mentioned. “We want [Harvey’s] expertise to indicate up. His emergence on this subsequent part of the season might be essential for us, and he’s going to get each alternative to do it.”
Essentially the most unsure spot within the secondary has been within the slot, the place Riley has but to discover a succesful substitute for Brown. However USC may need a solution on the way in which within the type of true freshman Alex Graham.
Graham was an early standout throughout USC’s preseason camp however has been on the shelf since. Coaches have prompt he may return as quickly as subsequent week towards Michigan and doubtlessly step into a big position straight away within the slot, the place, thus far, USC has relied on Ramsey taking part in out of place.
There’s not a lot depth at defensive again for USC to mine after that. True freshman RJ Sermons was one of many extra coveted cornerback prospects in America, when he reclassified within the spring to enroll at USC a yr early.
Riley didn’t rule out the chance that Sermons, who must be a senior in highschool, may play a vital position down the stretch. He mentioned USC was “pushing it” with each he and Graham in hopes that they’d be prepared “earlier than later.”
“They’re two guys which are proficient sufficient to contribute for us proper now,” Riley mentioned. “You’re on only a race towards time to get them prepared, to pump as many reps into these guys. As a result of they clearly have the power.”
Regardless, it’s going to take greater than two true freshmen to regular USC’s secondary. The extra urgent query now, after a suspect begin this season, is whether or not the remainder of the group is ready to proper the ship from right here.
“One sport doesn’t outline them as a participant, doesn’t outline us as a protection,” security Christian Pierce mentioned. “We simply hold our heads excessive and put the perfect foot ahead.”
