Program rebuilders exchange mutual respect ahead of USC-Colorado game
Deion Sanders complimented Lincoln Riley profusely on Monday, and Riley returned the sentiment after USC’s practice on Tuesday
Arms folded, Lincoln Riley and Deion Sanders check out their totally rebuilt teams. They square off on Saturday in Boulder, Colo, in front of a Big Noon Kickoff crowd on Fox at 9 a.m. PT. (Photos by Getty Images)
Luca Evans (OC Register) — LOS ANGELES — There would be no fuel added to the fire here. No potshots taken from the cheap seats at a media podium. No war of thinly veiled sound bites that could give the most visible coach in college football a spur to a hungry Colorado program.
On Monday, before one of the most highly-anticipated games of the early college football season between USC (4-0 overall, 2-0 Pac-12) and Colorado (3-1, 0-1), Deion Sanders settled into his pregame press conference in his customary white hat and dark shades and waxed poetic about Lincoln Riley. Unprompted. First and foremost, Sanders gushed in an opening statement after a few verbal bullet points: he had the “utmost respect and love, and appreciation, for (USC’s) head coach.”
The kingmaker spoke firmly, emphasizing every few words as if to drive his message home, speaking of watching Riley’s coaching climb from Texas Tech to USC.
“He is one of the upper-tier coaches,” Sanders said Monday. “And I admire him tremendously.”
When asked Tuesday, Riley said he hadn’t seen the comments. He was holed up, in preparation for the game, but when USC’s coach was asked about Sanders, there was no hint of Oregon’s Dan Lanning’s “fighting for clicks,” or Colorado State’s Jay Norvell saying, “When I talk to grown-ups I take my hat and glasses off” that so spurred Sanders and Colorado – nothing but courtesy in return.
And, in the process, it sent a clear, underlying message: there was no time for pointing fingers at Colorado’s unprecedented transfer portal-driven overhaul. No media shenanigans ahead of eighth-ranked USC’s first true test of the year.
“There’s a lot more similarities in the transformation here and what Coach has done at Colorado than there’s not – I see right where he’s coming from,” Riley said Tuesday, referring to USC’s own transfer portal improvements.
“He seems to be very genuine in his approach,” Riley continued, on Sanders. “Listen, everybody is different, everybody has got different personalities … regardless of what your characteristics are of your personality, if you’re yourself, you can be a great leader.”
DEFENSIVE OPPORTUNITY SHRINKING
After Riley said last week that he expected to see all of USC’s five-deep linebacker group against Arizona State, two of them – Raesjon Davis (9) and Shane Lee – didn’t earn a single snap, while the returning Mason Cobb had a tough day with just one tackle in 74 snaps.
Davis, in particular, made a strong impression while Cobb was sidelined, and Riley said Tuesday of Davis that “if he continues to keep the great attitude like he always has, he’s going to play a big part.”
Senior Kyon Barrs, too, seemed like he would be a major part of the defensive line after transferring from Arizona, but has seen his snap count steadily fall through USC’s first four games.
“Probably more of a credit to some of the other guys, as opposed to a scarlet letter against him,” defensive coordinator Alex Grinch said Tuesday.
TACKLING PROBLEMS PERSIST
USC missed 146 tackles in 2022, according to Pro Football Focus, and the Trojans have racked up 42 through four weeks this season. None, perhaps, have been more glaring than ASU running back Cam Skattebo’s bruising fourth-quarter touchdown Saturday night, where Eric Gentry and Max Williams had prime one-on-one shots at him and just … whiffed.
“I mean, it didn’t look like guys were really trying to wrap up and do the technique,” Cobb said generally of USC’s defense in the 42-28 victory over the Sun Devils.
It was all fine, ultimately, to eke out a sloppy win. But against Colorado’s army of playmakers, that same effort won’t fly.
“Gotta practice like you play, and maybe we didn’t practice as hard last week,” Cobb said Tuesday. “But, you know, I’m not gon’ let that happen again.”
ocregister.com
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A couple of small nitpicks. USC is going to be playing at 5400 feet of elevation. We have a younger roster, most never experienced this before. USC is playing its second road game in a row. USC is traveling USC is traveling for its second longest road trip, and in some years its longest. USC played late last week, game ended at 11:30 pm PST on the road, and is playing early this week, 9:00 am PST on the road, basically cutting a day of rest……and for our guys the game is in the morning. Most of the time all… Read more »
LAT — Saturday will start with USC’s earliest kickoff since 2020, a unique time that required approval from both teams. The short turnaround between a late kickoff in Tempe last Saturday and this week’s early game in Boulder was the only thing that gave Lincoln Riley pause when considering whether to accept Fox’s “Big Noon” TV slot, which is earlier than the Pac-12’s typical TV window that starts at noon Pacific. Riley wanted to ensure players had enough time to recover between the two road games. But the Trojans were also coming off a bye before last week’s game at Arizona State, and… Read more »
Thanks for the comments. LOL……fun…..hope they eat lite. The pros do this stuff all the time, just wondering if it will hurt us in the 4th quarter……although I expect our second string to play the 4th quarter.
Green Bay — Amon-Ra St. Brown just caught a nice TD vs the Packers to give Detroit a 7-3 lead. Great hands!
So SI has an article up that says ND had only 10 defenders on the field for a play against Tenn. St. in early Sept. as well. Of course, is this a product of their lazy as**s looking at film to learn of this? No, SI just finally located a tweet from Tyler Horka from way back on Sept. 4 that pointed this out (before the OSU debacle), and said that it “can’t happen against better teams.” Of course, it did. I am glad Horka is paying attention, because SI, ESPN, and seemingly every other news outlet are not. I… Read more »
Deion Sanders and Colorado are basking in the spotlight — but Pete Carroll and USC did it first Bruce Feldman (The Athletic) — With his infectious energy and enthusiasm, Pete Carroll hit his stride on the recruiting trail and blue-chip talent flocked to USC. He’d also put together a shrewd staff that invigorated the talent he inherited, most notably strong-armed quarterback Carson Palmer. Palmer blossomed into a Heisman Trophy winner in Carroll’s second season, when a 6-6 team jumped to 11-2. Top recruits then bought in. USC was relevant again, and college football took notice. So did the rest of… Read more »
How the ‘Coach Prime’ effect is radically changing life in Boulder, Colorado Tickets for Saturday’s USC-Colorado game sold out so fast that the mayor of Boulder, Aaron Brockett, couldn’t even get one, and Deion Sanders has brought a wave of Black interest to a predominantly-white town. Hope springs eternal, now, in Boulder, after a decade-plus of desolation and exactly two Colorado seasons with winning records since 2006. A swath of people come through on gamedays who don’t even have tickets, Brockett said, just to tailgate. The Boulder hotspot bar-and-grill Dark Horse is packed quite literally to its 400-person capacity for… Read more »
The Athletic’s Mailbag Q — Is it better for USC to fire Alex Grinch now in-season and get a head start on finding a great defensive coordinator? (Hello, Jim Leonhard?) Or is it better to ride it out and fire Grinch after the season? Stewart Mandel — Firing a head coach in-season might give you a head start on the next one — for example, USC’s brass did a lot of work after Clay Helton’s early firing to be ready to pounce on Lincoln Riley when they did — but firing a coordinator in-season is not the same thing.… Read more »
I made a joke out of a while back saying give Alex special teams (If Riley just cannot part with him)
But the big question is who gets promoted? If there’s a good match available now, make the move it won’t be any worse.
I think we are all coming to grips (I’ve definitely been a little slow to accepting this) with the fact that LR has always had a problem with his defenses, and this continues to be this offensive genius’s Achilles heel. I don’t think there’s anybody on Lincoln’s staff who is equipped to step in and be the new voice and call plays while Grinch takes a demotion but continues to collect a paycheck. Does anybody here have any recommendations? As Stewart Mandel asked, Does Lincoln Riley have a Plan B? As of now, I don’t think so because I believe… Read more »
Yes, that is a question Coach Riley has to answer. Is he a great OC in the disguise of a HC? It was the same at Oklahoma.
Right now very happy with Coach Riley, but would like to see more production from the defensive side. It has been 68 in nation for two years.
An improvement over Helton but by only 20 spots.
To get to where he says he wants to go he also needs a good defense.
Look at Georgia, OS, Mich, Bama. They all have for a long time very good to great defenses.
USC 50, I call this the Grinch narrative. It is not going away as long as Grinch in the DC. LR probably needs to hire a well respected DC (like Leonard) and let him pick his staff. But that will not work this year. He had to do it last January.
I agree with Volunteer Trojan below. The defensive analyst LR brought in probably perhaps could take over the position on an interim basis. But, I think that will happen only if things get really bad. And with this schedule, things can go south REALLY quickly. What happens if the PAC has four or five teams at 10-2 at the end of the season? (That would mean that ASU, AZ, Cal and Stanford win only league game amongst themselves and each have 3 league wins). IF that happens, the Grinch narrative will probably eliminate SC from the final 4. I know… Read more »
What has become of that defensive advisor or analyst that was hired during the off season? That move was supposed to add perspective, experience and input to Grinch. I see no difference last year to this other than raw talent.
Is he no longer on staff? Is he also ineffective? Is Grinch not listening?
Greg Brown Joins USC Football Staff as Senior Defensive Analyst
LOS ANGELES—Greg Brown, an accomplished defensive mind who has coached in the NFL, Pac-12, SEC and Big Ten, has been named a senior defensive analyst, head coach Lincoln Riley announced today (March 22).
“We’re thrilled to bring Coach Brown onto our staff,” said Riley. “With a coaching career that has spanned five decades and experience in both college football and the NFL, he will bring a wealth of knowledge to our program.”
Brown remains listed as Senior Defensive Analyst on the USC staff.
Yes, him.
Alex is becoming “The Grinch who stole the 2023 SC Season.” The Grinch narrative is now dominating the conversation about SC football nationwide. It is a shame. And, it is not going away. Remember, the last two SC games with a large national audience were the Cotton Bowl (a Grinch disaster) and ASU (where Grinch laid an egg). I wonder what LR will do if CO lights up the SC D? After Oregon held them to 6?
It truly is the national narrative on USC football. It’s on the tip of every college football analyst’s tongue before they can get 50 words out about the Trojans. “It’s a one-sided team. All offense. No defense.”
LR’s gonna have to deal with this if Grinch can’t. Kind of like a ticking time bomb. Grinch lit the fuse already. Can he pull it out before it explodes?
Well, we are going to find out. I sure hope LR learned from this. By returning Grinch, he managed to move Grinch (rather than Caleb) to the poster boy for SC football. I am willing to bet that LR had no idea this was coming. Never happened in Norman, but (as LR is finding out) LA media is NOT Norman media.
I spoke to some people who know Grinch and they tell me that Grinch is an intellectual coach and that he came to be a DC too way too early in his career. He is also very loyal to Riley and has no willingness to offer any dissenting opinion to him. Riley’s one dimensional way of planning the game is that the offense will carry the day and he never considers the position he leaves his defensive unit in with his offensive plan. Riley now has a high quality back (Lynch) who can help control the tempo and offset a… Read more »
John, Thanks for the great info. It makes a lot of sense. There is no easy way out of the box LR put himself and SC football in by retaining Grinch. I agree Grinch is NOT the answer NOW at DC (meaning we most likely will not win the PAC this year or make the Final 4). Whether LR has another solution to this mess, I have no idea. And I also agree that Grinch simply cannot return. My guess is the new AD will handle this at season’s end if LR does not. I cannot believe a competent AD… Read more »
That was Colorado’s first road trip of the season and it was to a very hostile environment. If that game was played at Folsom Field, Colorado would have scored more on the Ducks but the Ducks would still have won by at least 2 to 3 touchdowns. Now we travel to play the Buffs at their home and at 5,000 foot elevation so I automatically expect the Buffs to play better and score 21-28 points against us. In my opinion, it is hard to compare the Ducks defensive performance to our upcoming defensive performance.
John, Not to be picky, it was there second (first was to TCU). But, point regarding playing on the road via at home it well taken. I would think playing a Grinch lead D versus a competently lead D (like Utah or Oregon) would also matter.
You are correct! My brain was trying to fit my narrative to the situation. 🙂
When I ask myself the question of whether or not we will hold Utah to 14, or UCLA to 7, or CO to 6, I have to say no way at this point.
Trojans, prove me wrong, and Fight On!
So Mel is officially fired as of today. MI St was smart to use “with cause” rule and he does not get a buyout.
I cannot believe just how stupid Mel was. A couple of phone sex sessions with the wrong woman cost him about $90 million. I think Jonathan Smith would be a perfect fit for MSU. He runs a classic B1G O and D. Friday’s game between Utah and Oregon State is going to be a match up with two teams structured identically – tough D and O centered on the OL and running game, with both QBs (assuming Rising plays) being more a threat as a runner than a passer.
Sexually harassing the school’s sexual harassment consultant … good god
Wrong head made that decision, you can’t make this up! 😫
A true Spartan comeuppance! 😉
One expensive hand job for sure
You’re right, but then we’d be back to facing him every few years, and his teams have been tough outs for us.
Read an article yesterday that his lawyers are not letting it slide on moral turpitude. They claim the “phone sex” was consensual and not covered by such a clause. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a settlement equal to or greater than half of his buy out. (BTW, how does that phone sex thing work? Is it an attachment, or an app, or does it involve the charging port? I’m asking for a friend)
Oh, Mel will manage to come up with some settlement money for sure. That’s a given, but I don’t think he’s in any position to play hardball unless MICH ST officials really have something to fear or hide, like they were angling to get Mel out before this obviously one-sided phone sex stuff was even discovered.
Mel’s likely to also want to avoid discovery in this case where his sexual escapades would be open season, under oath, and subject to X-exam.
Hate to be so cynical, but if Sparty had won a natty last year, the difference would be that the settlement would only be with the alleged victim, and right now Tucker would be preparing for Iowa this weekend.
The 2022 National Champion MICH ST Masterbaters! Has a nice ring (pun intended) to it, don’t you think?
Ha!
This is all explained in Van Halen’s song “1-800-SPANKED”!
EDIT: I guess it is just called “Spanked.” The real operators of that line must have sued, ha!
Men like Mel Tucker need to know that you don’t treat a woman like a sex object in the work environment. Pretty basic stuff but there are a number of men who forget that.
It’s so perplexing and stunning that reviled and humiliated Pac-12 football is now the best it has ever been — and the best in the country this year. How weird is it that somehow, some way, on the very cusp of the final Pac-12 games to ever be played between members all headed elsewhere now except ORE ST and WSU (the two leftovers who are also very good this year), the Pac-12 dominates CFB with both its depth and elite top 10 teams? Who will ORE ST and WSU unite with to keep the Pac-12 brand alive? After this remarkable… Read more »
It is absolutely amazing. This is a magical year for the PAC. It is very hard to screw something this good up so badly that is disappears. There is a bit of delight in forcing Stanford and Cal to join the ACC, with the closest member being about 1800 miles away (and maybe forcing them to play their home games in DFW). I do think the MW and some other quality non-Power Five programs will attempt to merge into the PAC. The question will be whether such a conference will be economically viable. And, I realize for the strength of… Read more »
Any prediction about when Cam Rising returns for the Utes? He and Nate Jonson are still splitting practice reps.
As far as STAN and CAL go, what’s that they say about making your own bed?
My guess is Rising returns this week. I doubt the Utes can beat the Beavs in Corvallis with Johnson as the QB. Willingham may play Johnson for a series or two to see how it goes, but if it goes as it did in SLC against UCLA, then look for Rising to play. By the way, I think Rising might have played against UCLA if needed. He was not because Moore self-destructed. The Utes are playing for NC; they cannot afford two losses. Willingham knows that is trying to nurse Rising accordingly. If Rising does not play in Corvallis, he… Read more »
Speaking of UTAH beating UCLA. Bruin rushing = 9 yds.
A stat that will happily live in my mind for weeks, maybe even months to come if I’m lucky.
UTAH can play some D! Thank god we get them in L.A. this year.
Are you serious? All the Bruin rushing yards put together wouldn’t even earn a first down?!!! What a bad week for our rivals. That makes Saturday’s “perfect day” even better.
True story. And it’s become a Bruin tradition —
SI.com — “On top of frosh Dante Moore’s pedestrian play, the run game was worse, as they only rushed for nine yards. The last time UCLA had less than nine rushing yards was ironically at Utah in 2016.
si.com
Charbonnet is rolling over in his grave, and he’s not even dead yet!
Rising will be 30 years old by then
The Pac schedule is crazy … Udub and Utah have a long way to go, their schedules are crazy tough, starting this week with a trip to desert for Huskies and at Corvallis for Utes.
Oregon seems to have best schedule. SC’s we know is tough.
ORE has to play at UW and UTAH within a three-week period, the other game being WSU in Eugene. There’s one loss for the Ducks for sure IMO, maybe two.
I don’t think anyone gets out of the Pac-12 undefeated prior to the championship game. Big revelation, huh?
What Lane Kiffin said about Michael Trigg’s departure from the OLE MISS football program OXFORD — News broke on Tuesday that Ole Miss football TE Michael Trigg and LB Reginald Hughes were no longer part of the Rebels’ program. Ole Miss did not list a reason for taking such an action. Coach Lane Kiffin was asked for comment on Trigg’s departure during the SEC Coaches Teleconference on Wednesday. “We wish him nothing but the best,” Kiffin said. “You know, that’s it. We wish him nothing but the best. He’s not part of our program, and that’s it.” Trigg, who transferred from USC before… Read more »
You get tossed out of a creepy Kiffin program … it was bad really bad
Joel Klatt’s Latest Top 10 (all undefeated)
1 GA
2 UW
3 MICH
4 OHIO ST
5 TEXAS
6 PSU
7 FSU
8 USC
9 ORE
10 UTAH
Close, but no cigar — ND, OU, ALA, WSU, DUKE
One interesting line of this article has me wondering if Eric Gentry is really ready to play football anymore. He was a star (in my mind) until he got hurt, but now he’s just another guy on the field. Another question from the article is why Shane Lee didn’t see the field. Was this a coaching error or a strategy to get other players up to speed? I can imagine a scenario where Grinch decides to give someone more reps because he’s been out for a while, but I can’t believe he’d leave an ineffective player in when he has… Read more »
To quote our illustrious head coach, “shitty coaching”!
Living through the Portal may prove more problematic than all the transfer-hype signals. You’re gonna win some and lose some.
Four games into the season, there are still a lot of unanswered questions, and this applies to many if not all teams. Maybe that’s one reason why CFB is more popular than ever, at least based on TV viewership numbers (and all these new CU Buff fans!).
In my opinion, Shane Lee is slow. They will try use him on downs where they expect a rush but they use him less when the QB is mobile.
John, I think you nailed it. Lee should see a lot of PT versus Utah and ND (and probably UCLA and Cal). He will hardly see the field against the spread/speed teams like WA, AZ, CO, OR.
“College football is the most petty, regional, hate-filled sport there is. It’s great, and it’s wonderful and there are rivalries. And it’s tribal. And it’s kooky. And fans are delusional. It’s insane how much everybody hates anybody that didn’t go to their school. It’s probably one of the great gems of the sport. Rivalries exist for that very reason. This is college football.” — Colin Cowherd
I hate losing to UCLA, I find Oregon tacky and Stanford arrogant, I have respect for and love to beat Notre Dame and Utah.
I really hate losing to ORE now more than I used to. They smartly transformed their brand with massive benefactor Phil Knight, which I admire. They were stuck forever as a crap program and over the last 25 years the Ducks became formidable and definitely took advantage of USC’s NCAA woes, while only getting slapped on the wrist for Chip Kelly’s blatant violations. Like you, losing to UCLA is a total bummer for me. But the Ducks support their football program much better than the Bruins, so I probably view ORE as more of a threat now, especially in Eugene… Read more »
The Nike bribe, gifting gear to all those other schools, was the bribe to NCAA … knowing they could get away with everything. And did.
I have no complaints with Nike or Phil Knight.
Any school in the country would use their very own Phil Knight to the max.
If he wants to pay for our new LR-inspired football complex, I say call him up and arrange for a meet.
Hey Phil, can you spare a dime?
