The end of the USC Trojans’ 2023 season had a familiar theme. Every game, every opponent, a defense struggling to prevent points on the board, and an offense with a lot of catching up! HC Lincoln Riley didn’t wait for the season to finish before changing his defensive coordinator. When USC hired D’Anton Lynn as their defensive coordinator, the question on everyone’s mind was simple: can the USC defense play tough? Can they stop their opponents from literally running through them? Although we are just 2 games in, the signs are good. 

Even Joel Klatt chimed in on The Herd on YouTube, saying, “USC needed to answer for me one specific question: “Could you play average defense?”  As per Klatt, even an average defense would make USC “a pretty good football team” considering the offensive genius that Lincoln Riley is. Lynn’s scheme based on the aggressive, structured style of the Baltimore Ravens introduced their fangs in their Week one victory over the LSU. The USC defense went on to limit LSU to 117 yards on the ground, while a year ago, the team had been allowing 186 rushing yards per game.

And if it was not for Week 1 upsets to No. 5 Michigan and other ranked teams, USC’s defense would have been tops in Week 2 as well after annihilating Utah State 48-0. The Trojans only allowed 112 total yards, shut down the run and completely stifled the Aggies passing game. The difference? This is a defense reminiscent of the Ravens in that it is designed to limit the opposition’s ability for the run game, but more so, it’s about pressuring the offense, sacking it, and forcing a turnover, while doing so with a crispness that Lynn loves.

People such as Anthony Lucas and Eric Gentry are performing well in such a system, and the confidence is spreading. Klatt also said, “D’Anton Lynn has made defense a strength of theirs,” and should this continue, they have the capacity and capability to build a decent playoff defense.

D’Anton Lynn’s defense: a new era for USC

It’s completely different; Lynn has that background of working with the Ravens to bring to the table for USC. He has delivered, in terms of the defensive set-up, what is brutally physical and disciplinarian in nature. Before coming to Baylor, Lynn was able to study under some of the finest defensive coordinators in the NFL, including Jesse Minter and Mike MacDonald. That experience shows. He is perhaps a very good defender since he does not just wait for teams to attack but goes on the attack himself, causing teams to make many blunders.

Consider the game against LSU. In their first drive, LSU was in the Trojans’ territory, and they had the opportunity to score a touchdown. But Lynn decided to call a blitz on fourth down that made LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier scurry. He threw it away, and the Trojans just got up and wandered off. It is the kind of decision-making that proves Lynn has confidence in his defense, something that the USC fans have not had the pleasure of seeing in the past years.

Lynn’s D-line was a force. Linebacker Easton Mascarenas-Arnold went on to pump up his unit, saying: “That just shows you how dominant our D-line is. They’re a force to be reckoned with. ” And he isn’t wrong. The Trojans clamped down on 22 other carries, giving up only 46 yards on the same. It’s a huge difference from last year, which was the team’s cataclysm.

USC’s defensive resurgence under D’Anton Lynn sends a clear message to Sherrone Moore and Michigan: it will not be possible to simplify the Trojans as some kind of a one-dimensional team anymore. With their Ravens-style defense bullying opponents and forcing offenses into turnovers, the Wolverines’ high-octane offense is up for the challenge. It doesn’t help that Michigan is coming into the game with an ‘identity crisis’ due to Moore’s mishandling of the quarterback position. 

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