SAN ANTONIO, Texasย โย Two years ago, a day after he decided to fire Alex Grinch as USCโs defensive coordinator, Lincoln Riley made a promise to those concerned about the future of the Trojansโ defense.
โI have complete belief, conviction. We will play great defense here,โ the coach said in November 2023. โIt is going to happen. Thereโs not a reason in the world why it canโt.โ
Two years later, another defensive coordinator is out the door at USC. The day after Grinchโs replacement, DโAnton Lynn, left to take the same job at Penn State, Riley stood in front of reporters, assuring everyone once again that soon enough, USC would be great on that side of the ball.
โThe arrow,โ he said Tuesday, โis pointing straight up.โ
โThe opportunity for us to make a hire, to continue to make us better and to go from being a very good defense to being a great defense is the goal.โ
Yet patience on that promise is wearing thin, especially given how the season had ended less than an hour before. USC blew a 10-point lead in the final five minutes against Texas Christian on Tuesday, a team playing without its star quarterback, before missing four tackles on a third-and-20 walk-off touchdown in overtime. The disastrous Alamo Bowl defeat would serve as an especially sobering reminder that while USC made progress under Lynn, itโs still a ways from heeding Rileyโs guarantee.
And now, the defense will have to start again, with a new direction, a new scheme and a new coordinator, who will be Rileyโs third hire in five seasons at USC.
In spite of all that, Riley was upbeat when asked about the unitโs future Tuesday night. He felt โfantastic,โ he said, about where USCโs defense was headed.
โWe have the personnel,โ Riley said of becoming a great defensive unit. โWeโre on an upward trend. And, you know, thereโs going to be a lot of interest in this job.โฉI mean, this will be an extremely, extremely coveted job, and I can already tell by the nature of what my phoneโs been like the last couple of days.โ
Several potential candidates with deep experience, as well as close ties to USC athletics officials, are expected to be available.
Former Texas defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski, who worked at Washington under current USC athletic director Jennifer Cohen, was let go by the Longhorns earlier this month. Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator Al Golden, meanwhile, worked closely with USC general manager Chad Bowden at Notre Dame and could be looking for a job as soon as next week.
Both coached college defenses that ranked in the top four in the nation in points allowed during the 2024 season.
USC appeared bound for a similar trajectory after Year 1 with Lynn. The Trojans allowed 10 fewer points per game, leaping from 121st in scoring defense under Grinch to 56th in his first season at USC. They got stingier on third down โ 106th nationally to 21st โ and in the red zone โ 119th to 69th. Lynn was even named candidate for the Broyles Award, given to the nationโs top assistant.
In some respects, USCโs defense continued to take steps forward in Year 2 under Lynn. It gave up fewer points and fewer yards per game. The pass rush improved, adding 10 sacks to its season total in 2025.
But the personnel on defense was less proven this season โ and more prone to mistakes. The secondary struggled through stretches. A thin group of linebackers was often overwhelmed. The defensive interior was manhandled for most of the season, and in each of their three regular-season losses, the Trojans were trampled on the ground.
Last month, when asked about the groupโs inconsistency, Lynn said that USCโs youth forced him to โscale backโ significantly on defense. He actually wondered, in the wake of USCโs loss to Oregon, if he shouldnโt have scaled back the defense even more this season.
โItโs different when youโre teaching an 18-year-old versus teaching a guy who has been at two to three schools who has already played a bunch of college ball,โ Lynn said.
Lynn, nonetheless, leaves USC in a better place than when he arrived. The nationโs No. 1 recruiting class lands on campus next week, with plenty of highly ranked reinforcements on the way. Talented freshmen like defensive linemen Jahkeem Stewart and Floyd Boucard as well as defensive back Alex Graham are rising stars who should be ready to step into significant roles.
But USC will have to replace three starters in the secondary, including Kamari Ramsey, its best linebacker [Eric Gentry] and its top run stopper on the defensive line [Anthony Lucas]. Whomever takes over as coordinator will be expected to take a significant step forward immediately, up against one of the nationโs toughest schedules in what should be a decisive season for the program.
Then thereโs the matter of Rileyโs job security, which could make any available top coordinator queasy.
Yet as far as the coach is concerned, the path to finding a great coordinator and fielding a great defense isnโt that far off from what USC has now.
โI definitely donโt want to press reset,โ Riley said. โIโm excited about the process, and I think itโs going to make us better, I know it will. So, weโll wake up tomorrow morning and weโll get on it.โ