Who is the USC defense coordinator for 2023? Exploring the Trojans' coaching staff amid defensive struggles
Who is the USC defense coordinator for 2023? This is one question Trojans fans need answered quickly, considering how their team's defense regressed severely last year.
We will look at who's helming the defense for USC in the upcoming college football season.
Who is the USC defense coordinator for 2023?
Alex Grinch is the defense coordinator for the Trojans. After spending three years with the Oklahoma Sooners, he is entering his second season in SoCal.
The Trojans' offense is almost always explosive since they have Heisman frontrunner Caleb Williams on the field. But even if Grinch himself did have his laurels as a four-time nominee and two-time semifinalist for the Broyles Assistant Coach award, this still didn't translate to USC's defense in-game.
The Trojans recently beat San Jose State in Week 0 for 56-28. But their defense was, once again, slow out of the gate. The team was down seven at halftime after allowing a late second-quarter touchdown. But come the second half, they managed to up the ante, and their offense was able to pick up the slack.
USC's defense at a glance
Last year, the Trojans allowed a disappointing 29.2 opponent PPG, which was 94th out of 131 teams. They also gave up 159.8 rush yards per game and had glaring tackling issues. Their poor defense was exposed in the Cotton Bowl against Tulane in a 45-46 meltdown.
For a team almost always considered a championship contender, USC must understand that attack isn't always the best defense. They did lose Tuli Tuipulotu (13.5 sacks in 2022) and Mekhi Blackmon (12 pass breakups) to the NFL draft, but that should be no excuse.
The strengthened defensive corps
Alex Grinch does have reinforcements to try and turn things around for the Trojans this season on the defensive end. This includes incoming senior transfer Mason Cobb, who recorded 96 tackles last year with the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Incoming junior Eric Gentry is also present in the team as one of the primary inside linebackers, though he does have injury problems that need addressing.