Is Matt Entz the Marv Goux, Ed Orgeron-style enforcer Lincoln Riley needs?

Matt Zemek (Trojan Sportswire/Yahoo Sports)  —  The USC football program needs a lot of things. One is an enforcer, the guy on the coaching staff who ensures that players do things right and that they play with the requisite amount of toughness befitting a USC Trojan. When you put on that helmet and you wear the Cardinal and Gold, you are expected to fight on. You’re expected to be great. You’re expected to be physical. You’re expected to be a leader.

This is what John McKay and John Robinson did in the 1960s and 1970s. This is what Pete Carroll did in the early 2000s. This is what Howard Jones (at Bovard Field in 1927 with the “Noblest Trojan of Them All”, Morley Drury, who prepped at LB Poly) did in building USC football in the 1920s and 1930s.

All of those great USC football coaches had enforcers, men who commanded respect in the locker room and wouldn’t allow standards to slide. Enforcers maintain mindsets and serve as quality control staffers. They make sure everyone stays on task, remains mentally fresh, and plays winning football.

Pete Carroll had Ed Orgeron as his enforcer. Orgeron is not an X-and-O guy, but he definitely gets players to play with passion. That is his best skill as a football coach. It’s an important one. USC’s defenses were hungry with Coach O on the sideline. Carroll was a genius with his second-half corner blitzes and other tactical maneuvers, and he definitely related well to the young, modern athlete, but Orgeron was in the mix as a guy players didn’t want to let down. That presence on a coaching staff is so crucial. The enforcer goes a long way toward helping the head coach create and maintain the right culture.

For McKay and Robinson, that guy was Marv Goux, one of the greatest Trojans of all time. Goux was as tough as they come. He simply wouldn’t accept anything less than a player’s very best effort. He made sure USC football players always brought their A-game to the practice field and to game day. USC’s dynasty from 1967 through 1979 — a period in which the Trojans won four national titles, finished No. 2 in the rankings multiple other times, and won seven Rose Bowls — doesn’t happen without Marv Goux, USC’s greatest enforcer ever.

As we consider what new linebacker coach Matt Entz brings to USC, the biggest benefit he might bring to Los Angeles is his insistence on toughness. Entz has a chance to become the New Goux, the enforcer Lincoln Riley has long needed but never had up to now. If Entz does indeed become the New Goux, USC football will be playing for national championships before too long.  Yahoo Sports

New Trojan LB coach Matt Entz, “the king of Fargo”, pours glowing praise on the USC football program

The fact that a head coach with multiple national championships at a dynastic college sports program would leave to become a linebacker coach at another program is a striking story in itself. Being a national champion coach brings a certain amount of stature and prominence, even if that program is not at a high-profile school on par with Alabama or Ohio State. Being elite anywhere — even in North Dakota — is a special feeling and a unique experience.

Some people might laugh at being the king of Fargo, but let’s remember: It’s still a monarchy. Being a king anywhere — not having to pay for a meal or a drink because of championship success — is not something one easily leaves for something else. One has to be really impressed, and perceive a rich, profound opportunity, to leave a kingship for something else at a lower tier of employment. Going from head coach at North Dakota State to a linebacker coach anywhere else is not an upward move. It isn’t even a lateral move. It’s a downward move. That’s not a reflection on the program being joined; it’s a reflection of the movement from national championship head coach to a linebacker coach.

Matt Entz obviously perceived something really special at USC. Now we know why. Entz views USC as one of the top five college football programs in America. He said so himself. It’s a glowing review of the program and a great show of trust in Lincoln Riley. Entz is a man who truly believes in what USC can bring to him and his career. It’s quite a vote of confidence.

Entz also developed and produced a strong crop of assistants, including current Northwestern head coach David Braun. He left NDSU as the defensive coordinator earlier in 2023 to take over as Northwestern’s defensive coordinator and ended up earning the head-coaching job after being named interim coach.

“USC is lucky,” Braun told ESPN on Sunday night. “They’re getting a coach that cares about young people as people more than football players. They’re getting a coach, a mentor and a family man and someone who knows defensive football inside and out. It’s a home run hire.”

trojanswire.com

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