History repeats itself.
The Trojans in 1184 BCE and their historic walls, which kept their Greek attackers at bay for 10 years, however, do not follow this trend.
The USC Trojans boast a seasoned history in football, having been recently named a “blue blood” of the sport, which underscores their importance and dominance in the league’s history and among its players.
Recently, USC has come up short on several occasions while pursuing a title to reclaim their glory from 20 years ago. There have been numerous issues within the program since its glory days, but one thing has remained constant throughout the years.
The consistent problem? The defense.
Sure, there are some outstanding individuals from the Trojan defense, like redshirt senior linebacker Eric Gentry and redshirt senior safety Bishop Fitzgerald, who have been stars this year, but as a whole, it is abysmal.
In the recent game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, the Trojans were missing several key players due to injuries. Yet, they struggled to consistently stop the run against a weak passing offense, as freshman quarterback CJ Carr appeared very shaky throughout the game.
Junior running back Jeremiyah Love made a fool of the Trojan defense, and the other junior running back, Jadarian Price, did it twice as bad with a highlight reel-worthy 100-yard kick return where two Trojan defenders missed key tackles.
The Trojans later fully succumbed in the fourth quarter, losing 24-34 to their long-time rivals, after horrible play calls and full-on defensive detonation with no hope of the star-studded offense being able to make a resurgence.
Many Trojan fans and historic football Alumni were enraged with head coach Lincoln Riley for his playcalls and coaching style throughout the game, with a gutsy reversal flea-flicker having a receiver wearing gloves in the rain throw the ball 20-plus yards down the field.
https://x.com/MattLeinartQB/status/1979737811558531373?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1979737811558531373%7Ctwgr%5E5764dbe8630e7003c2c5e30c9550b469c612a1f7%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.si. com%2Fcollege%2Fusc%2Ffootball%2Fusc-trojans-lincoln-riley-stupid-call-led-game-changing-fumble-notre-da me-fighting-irish-makai-lemon
That’s not any of the players’ fault; they are following directions. Bad directions.
At least Riley is growing aware of his own confusing playcalls, as in a press conference following the loss, he cut off a question asking his decision to choose that play, saying, “stupid call.”
https://www.tiktok.com/@cfbonfox/video/7562785390835322142
However, the woes continue beyond Riley’s tenure, as USC’s defense has just been historically that inconsistent.
Currently, they are ranked 71 in total defense in the FBS. That’s behind UCLA, who lost to Northwestern, which is 70 in total offense in the FBS. Want to know USC’s rank in total offense? No. 1.
In 2023, still under Riley, USC ranked 121 in total defense out of 133.
In 2019, under head coach Clay Helton, USC was ranked 78 in total defense, then 65 in 2018, and then 60 in 2017. In 2016, the year the Trojans won the Rose Bowl, they were ranked 38 in total defense.
Do we see a pattern?
The Trojans finished 2013 with a 10-4 record, including a victory in the Las Vegas Bowl, despite undergoing coaching changes. They also held the 16 spot on defense that year, underscoring their success with a strong defensive unit.
There is obvious, warranted skepticism about basing defensive merit solely on stats, yet the numbers do not lie, and the success in line with a high-ranking defense cannot be a coincidence.
USC boasts a nuclear offense, but it is evident that its main focus should be its defense.
I’ll leave you with this: Defense wins championships.