USC training camp preview: Defensive evolution continues under Gary Patterson
The foundation for the Trojans’ defense began with new coaches and transfers, making the next month a critical proving ground
Trojan LB Desman Stephens II celebrates against IOWA in the second half Nov. 15, 2025, at the L.A. Coliseum. USC won 26-21. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)
Haley Sawyer (OC Register) — USC’s defensive overhaul began in the spring and continued in the summer.
When training camp gets underway, the Trojans will see if the changes will be effective enough to create a defense that complements the offense and helps get them to their first College Football Playoff appearance.
New defensive coordinator Gary Patterson and two new position coaches were tasked with shaking up a defense that allowed an average of 350.8 yards per game last season. By the end of spring practice, Patterson had expected to start breaking down the first eight opponents of the season so that preparation can be more intentional in the fall.
Patterson has made simple changes in language to help players learn play calls and added a white vertical stripe to helmets to track eye movement. The building blocks are there, and fall is the time when USC will see if it’s leading to success.
“It’s a mix of a bunch of things,” linebacker Desman Stephens II told reporters after a spring practice. “Coach Patterson, constant drill work with (linebackers) Coach (Mike Ekeler) coming in as well, just nailing down the basics. That’s been great for us. I feel like all that has helped our eye discipline and technique.”
Developing talent to create depth will also be critical to the Trojans’ defense this season. They already loaded up with some key transfers to pair up with returners at the top of the depth chart.
Redshirt senior defensive tackle Alex VanSumeran transferred from Michigan State and brings experience as well as grittiness. Redshirt junior linebacker Deven Bryant came in from Washington and brings consistency, and Penn State transfer Zuriah Fisher, a redshirt senior defensive end, adds aggression.
Kam Crawford (#1) and Braylan Shelby return as flourishing pass rushers and Jide Abisiri is primed for a standout season in the trenches after playing in 13 games, with nine starts, and recording 26 total tackles, four tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks as a sophomore.
Sophomore defensive lineman Jahkeem Stewart (97) is also expected to be healthy for fall camp after playing with a broken foot as a hotly recruited freshman last season.
USC has two former five-star recruits on defense to refine before its Aug. 29 season opener against San Jose State: 6-foot-6, 265-pound edge rusher Luke Wafle and 6-3, 320-pound defensive lineman Jaimeon Winfield.
If it all comes together, USC will be able to stop the run much better than it has in recent years. The Trojans ranked 12th out of 18 Big Ten teams in rushing defense last season, allowing 143.2 yards on the ground per game.
“We have a lot of checks and just different things that we get into when we think that they’re about to run the ball to just give us the best odds to go against the run,” Stephens said. “I’ve been liking the new scheme and how he’s been doing things.”
The secondary wasn’t neglected in USC’s defensive makeover, either. The Trojans brought in eight new cornerbacks through the transfer portal and the 2026 signing class combined and added a new safeties/defensive passing game coordinator in Paul Gonzales.
Gonzales was a graduate assistant to Patterson at TCU for three years and a full-time assistant for 10 years. That synchronization between the two coaches could create harmony between the trenches and the secondary in a conference that loves to run the ball – and hard.
“The No. 1 thing with Coach is we’ve got to have guys that can run, that can cover,” Gonzales told reporters in mid-February. “They’re going to be physical because that’s what’s going to be asked of them.”
The Trojans will get a boost in the cornerback room now that Prophet Brown and Chasen Johnson are healthy. The addition of redshirt senior Iowa State transfer Jontez Williams could create an interesting position battle.
Christian Pierce and Kennedy Urlacher are the upperclassmen in the safety room and strong contenders to be at the top of the depth chart, regardless of which defensive scheme Patterson chooses.
Patterson is known for creating the 4-2-5 defense, but he’s insisted that the scheme doesn’t define him. He hasn’t coached a game since 2021, serving as a consultant for Texas and Baylor since then, and has had plenty of time to dream up new combinations and tricks.
In what absloutely needs to be a pivotal season for the USC defense, hard work and a little imagination could be the main ingredients of fall camp.
“I laugh because people go online and they see my teaching tapes,” Patterson said. “Well, I made those in 1998.
“Everybody says, ‘Well, we know how Coach P plays the 4-2-5.’ No, not really. There’s some things that are a little bit the same … but when you stay somewhere 25 years, you have to be able to evolve. And so, we’ve evolved.”
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