A reunited trio of coaches with TCU connections is working with a willing, competitive group of Trojans
USC’s Carrington Pierce (28) runs a drill with fellow CB Elbert ‘Rock” Hill IV during training camp on Tuesday, Aug. 4 at Howard Jones Field. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram/SCNG)
Haley Sawyer (OC Register) — LOS ANGELES — Assistant secondary coach Sam Carter walked the rows of USC football players during warmups, dishing out high-fives or custom-made handshakes as players stretched.
He wore a black jersey with No. 25 printed in white – a mismatch from the No. 17 he wore as a second-team All-American safety at TCU. The next day, that jersey number will be 24, continuing a countdown until the Aug. 29 season opener against San Jose State at the Coliseum.
“We just got to make sure we get a jersey for him each day,” head coach Lincoln Riley said with a laugh. “It’s a good reminder for the guys of how close this is, and making every day count and understanding that the season’s close and we’ve got to be ready to roll.”
On Tuesday morning, Carter was coaching alongside defensive coordinator Gary Patterson and safeties coach/defensive passing game coordinator Paul Gonzales during an individual period. The three created a small Horned Frogs reunion that’s working to build a formidable secondary.
Carter played for Patterson from 2010-14 at TCU, culminating with a 12-1 record and a Peach Bowl victory while outscoring opponents 604-247 in 2014.
“He’s high energy,” Riley said of Carter. “He’s got a lot of experience in Coach Patterson’s system both as a player and a coach and has been a really good addition to our defensive staff, our secondary. He fits really well with Coach Gonzales, with (cornerbacks) Coach (Trovon) Reed and, obviously, Coach Patterson. That group really works well together.”
USC ranked in the middle of the Big Ten in terms of pass defense last season, giving up 207.5 passing yards per game, and allowed 22 touchdowns through the air.
All three former Frogs take a hands-on teaching approach to working with the secondary, which was evident Tuesday, the fourth day of camp. A new defensive scheme under Patterson has equalized players and made them willing learners.
“We have a really mature group that came in this year,” redshirt senior cornerback Prophet Brown (16) said. “We all just feed off of each other. We’re all learning. This is all our first year under this system together, so nobody’s more experienced or anything, but I feel like everybody’s learning and picking it up together.”
Older players offer advice to younger players, and younger players give their own feedback in return while in the meeting room.
“It’s encouraging (words),” Reed (sunglasses) said. “Showing them where they went wrong or if they did it right; if they made a PBU, how you could’ve got the pick. Holding a higher standard and never lowering the bar no matter the situation.”
The primary drill during the media viewing period on Tuesday appeared to focus on leverage and vision in the secondary. Players lined up and ran a designated route toward simulated quarterback play.
Work like this done during fall camp could increase the amount of pass breakups this season. The Trojans had the third fewest in the conference last season (30), but their 12 interceptions ranked sixth out of 18 teams.
Safeties Christian Pierce and Kennedy Urlacher, as well as Brown, comprised the first group to complete the drill, but the order of participation might not mean much on a team rife with position battles that could continue after Carter’s jersey countdown expires.
“The fun thing for me,” Riley said, “is I can go through most of the positions and make a pretty fair argument there that we’re gonna have a lot of guys play and we’re gonna be able to rotate. That matters for competition. Iron truly does sharpen iron at this level.”
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Right before I watched the USC training camp show on B1G Network they had the ’25 USC-UCLA as a USC Classic. You call that a classic?! Trojans sleep walk for nearly 3 quarters down 10-7 most of the game. Two make able FGs missed. Finally they pull ahead thanks to Ruin meltdown. USC better look a helluva lot better than they did last November if they hope to do better than 7-5.
Just to clarify the Purdue/Indiana relationship………..Just a few days after Cignetti was hired by Indiana…….he attended an Indiana basketball game and during a timeout he grabbed a mic and said to the crowd…….Purdue Sucks…..but so does Michigan and Ohio State. Later claiming he lost his filter and was just trying to get a dead crowd worked up.
Purdue and Indiana are sort of like the Ruins and USC.
No love lost. ]
I have had family living in Indiana for 40+ years, so am a bit familiar with the rivalry. However, attending my first Purdue football game last Fall when my Trojans went to West Lafayette offered some deeper insight into their rivalry.
When the opening kickoff was in play, all the Purdue fans simultaneously yelled “IU sucks!”. I didn’t know what they said, it was so unexpected, but my brother set me straight.
And they did it with every kickoff. Funny tradition.
Nice to know you’ve got a Hoosier blood. It’s all in fun…..although I live on a street with 10 Purdue grads and understandable they are very proud of their school…..even after 50 years. Funny thing…..they were all glued to the TV when Indiana beat Miami…..and the Tee shirts were all over the place. Nobody does that when Notre Dame wins.
Never before in my entire life have I so suddenly become a fan of a team than I have Cignetti’s Hoosiers. I know I’m just a front runner jumping on the bandwagon of a historically miserable team that suddenly struck it rich under the right guy. But I can’t help it. I’ll be pulling for IU in every game except against the Trojans. The Hoosiers single-handedly changed the game of CFB. Sure they needed NIL. Sure they needed Mark Cuban. Good for them. They took advantage of both and went 16-0 to win a NC. Lots of teams can’t figure… Read more »
What the heck….we all jump on a winner. Even Hoosiers can’t believe what happened. It’s a lot of fun! Frankly just watching the faces of those Ohio State fans when they get whooped is worth millions to me. Can’t you just wait til Elon Musk who graduated from the U of Penn decides to support them……it will never happen since he has publicly stated his distaste for formal schooling…..all the same…..U of Penn becomes the NC for 5 straight years. Knight shoots himself out of frustration. Cuban provided the U of Indiana Rugby team over 6 million so it seems… Read more »
Right now the big question remains Riley. He’s in year five, we just lost our starting center and now we have to again worry about OL depth, like always. 2026 should be a great season. We’ll see how it turns out. People expect less out of USC football because the program has delivered less and less over the years. We’ve got some big games we need to win and there’s no reason USC shouldn’t at least make the playoffs — unless we’re still simply not good enough. Are we? I honestly don’t know. I’m not convinced the USC football culture… Read more »
All I’ve been hearing from the Trojans is the depth at OL and DL. Next man up. One guy lost in August should not be a problem if you have so much depth. No Excuses!
Words come cheap these days at USC. I think you believe much more of what’s said than than I do. Just looking at USC under LR shows me that’s a big risk based on what really happens when the season comes around.
Center is a key position. He’s the signal caller of the O-Line. They can convert Tobias Raymond but they converted Justin Dedich and Toa Lobendahn in the past and I don’t think that this worked out well. They should take a good look at Willie Wascher. If you watch his film in high school he was a mauler on the run
Poor Toa. Remember him trying to snap, or even stay onsides as a center? Not happening. He had really short arms and a lack of core strength. To his credit, he tried to handle the center spot when it obviously wasn’t his bag. Fight On Toa. You were a trooper!
You have to like Cignetti’s demeanor in creating a standard of team play “and sticking to it” with no excuses given. Of course he purposely recruits 4th & 5 th year players and doesn’t have to baby anyone in getting the message across this is how it’s done or you will be on the sidelines. Don’t think I ever heard Riley say that?
New Purdue AD says in his intro news conference, “If you don’t want to win championships, go to Indiana.”
Where’s this guy been the last year? Nothing like giving your most hated rival some bulletin board material. I’m going to make a note to self to try to watch the Indiana – Purdue game on Nov. 28th in Bloomington. I’m sure this quote will not be forgotten.
It’s a true story. Thanks for bringing it up vT. I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t read your comment.
“Every recruit, every current student athlete will hear this message repeatedly — we are here to win championships,” new PUR AD Tommy McClelland said Thursday during his intro presser. “If you don’t want to win championships, go to Indiana.”
Wow. Just wow.
This game is can’t miss TV on Nov. 28. PUR already lost to Cignetti last season 56-3.
‘Madden’ Biopic Sets Fall Release Date, With Nicolas Cage Teasing Role as “Highlight for Me” Ryan Gajewski (Hollywood Reporter) — Nicolas Cage is ready to let the games begin as John Madden in director David O. Russell’s forthcoming biopic about the NFL legend. Amazon MGM Studios announced Thursday that its film Madden will begin streaming worldwide via Prime Video on Nov. 18. Christian Bale co-stars as Raiders owner Al Davis, while Kathryn Hahn, Sienna Miller, John Mulaney and Shane Gillis round out the cast. Russell, who is known for such films as The Fighter and American Hustle, helmed Madden from… Read more »
Just how good does Jayden Maiava need to be this season? In the minds of many Trojan fans, so much of what happens with the Trojans in Lincoln Riley’s fifth year at USC seems to hinge on the continued improvement of Maiava. Does he need to be “great” for USC to finally get into the playoffs? Or can he just be “good” like last year because USC is supposed to be so much better on defense and special teams? Of course, we don’t expect Maiava to be as good as two-time Super Bowl winner John Elway, who was also arguably… Read more »
That is an interesting question. Riley is supposed to be the quarterback whisperer, but at times I think he’s been burping in Maiava’s ear. At times Maiava looks like he’s good, and other times he’s a head scratching choice maker.
The real question is can Riley finally concentrate on what he does well because the defense should be better, or will continue to look like Clay Helton?
(Hands on knees mouth open wondering what just happened)
My answer to your question is yes Maiava will have to be better or benched.
Dan Lanning has chosen not to speak to the media about his staff member’s attempted cover-up DUI/Hit&Run back on 4/12/26. He became aware of it on the same day it happened and now the cat’s publicly all the way out of the bag.
His silence says it all. Down Duck. Let the athletic department handle it.
The ORE athletic department has declined to address any specific punishments or details regarding Ra’Shaad Samples’ drunken incident. They do claim to take these “matters seriously,” however.
This guy should be toast. People still don’t understand that DUI is serious. Have you not heard of Uber and Lyft? If you are drunk call them. Will the DA of Lane County press charges? Does Uof O have the clout over the DA?
You say “Will the DA of Lane County press charges?” If they do, Samples will get hammered with a slap on the hand. The Oregonians worship the Oregon football team. What DA is going to want to do anything to possibly slow down that program. My guess is that the whole thing will just fade into oblivion.
Samples has already been charged with DUI and reckless driving. Now comes the time for cutting a deal.
As a first-time offender, he’ll get one for sure by entering some heavily supervised, semi-burdensome diversion program of some sort, resulting in a loss of license for awhile and an eventual dismissal of the charges upon completion of probation. Pretty standard stuff actually and basically dictated by statute in many states.
If you say so. You’re a former lawyer so you would know more about it than I would. All I’m saying is that if I did that it would probably be “Welcome to Hotel California…such a lovely place”.Make that Hotel Oregon
I haven’t practiced law in more than 40 years so being a lawyer really has nothing to do with it. This is all a matter of public record and can be AI’d in about 30 seconds. ✌
I practiced for eight boring years and that was damn long enough, so I quit to start SuperPrep in 1985. That picture was current when I co-started this site in Jan 2018.
Now I’m 74, and the TDB as well as the latest versions of Trojan football have really aged me! 😂 😂
True! When you get this age, knock on wood. But if you just eat right, light exercise(walking is great), you can stay healthy for a pretty long time. After a certain age everyone starts to experience stiffness but stiffness is not sickness.
I’m wondering what caused LR’s significant drop in HC rankings in CFB, and specifically the B1G. Was it his limited understanding of defense and it’s mandatory to win the ring; was it his focused recruiting 2000 miles away when the top high school football programs in the nation were an hour down the 405; was it staying married to an outdated offense that lacks the necessary sophistication and power to compete with the top programs? Head scratcher.
The truth is, I’d take every single coach listed 1-5 in the ranking over Lincoln Riley to be USC’s coach: Curt Cignetti, Ryan Day, Dan Lanning, Kyle Whittingham and Matt Campbell.
I think LR is very fairly placed at #6 amongst this group of 10, most all of whom are very well-regarded and respected.
The B1G has many excellent coaches. some of whom haven’t even made this top 10 list.
This is a CBS ranking which means nothing. Most of their CFB panel of experts I have never heard of. Just the same, if in fact this ranking is anywhere accurate in actual HC ability, then Riley should be outcoached by Cignetti, Day , Lanning & Campbell whose teams USC plays this season by game planning and game management. Does this lead to a 4- loss season? We could laugh off that possibility if Riley had gotten the team into the playoff at least once since coming here. It’s not the talent brought in that holds this program back, it’s… Read more »
The companion picture I saw with this article shows a white stripe on the helmet. At first I thought an AI mistake was posted as USC. Then I remembered reading that those stripes are there to see where the defensive eyes were focused. I don’t know if the idea works, but from the picture it sure looks like the players are concentrating on each other.
Ya, the stripe thing is an interesting concept and focal point technique that logically makes some real sense. I guess the more teams we play with stripes on their helmets, the better! 😉
When I played, we were told to focus on numbers. I think this was why O.J. was so hard to tackle.
Speaking of arrests, ORE’s got a major distraction now … Oregon asst coach Ra’Shaad Samples leaves scene of DUI crash, claims he is ‘DeSean Jackson’ in wild video Bridget Reilly (NY Post) — University of Oregon football asst coach Ra’Shaad Samples was charged with DUI and reckless driving from an incident in April. Samples reportedly backed his 2026 Ford F-150 into a parked car, a Dodge Ram, that belonged to Eugene resident Steven James Young, and claimed to be someone else when confronted for insurance information. The name? DeSean Jackson, the former Eagles star receiver. “After I pulled over… Read more »
They have a clear cut case of DUI, and hit and run. At USC, or any other reputable school, this is a termination. At Oregon, they will handle this ” internally”. That probably means extra pushups before practice. It’s not like I needed another reason to hate the Oregon Ducks.
We Trojans do seem to generally hate the Ducks, those web-footed weekly uniform changers who would seek to replace us Trojans as THE dominant football program in the West.
I sure would like to start beating those dudes again. A win on Sept. 26 at the Coliseum would do wonders for my concerns about LR’s ability to re-install a great and winning Trojan gridiron culture.
**** Dan Lanning is scheduled to address the media today as ORE kicks off its fall camp
A relative of mine was on the equipment squad as a freshman some years back. Came with a lot of nice perks. Then one Saturday night he was drinking a beer in front of the frat house and he made the mistake of stepping onto the sidewalk and got busted for under age drinking. He was off the team the next day. I also remember a story about some players getting pulled over in their car. It reeked of pot smoke when they rolled down the window. The cop asked where’s the pot, the response, “we smoked it!” Not sure… Read more »
“We have a really mature group that came in this year,” redshirt senior cornerback 
“It’s encouraging (words),” 
Right before I watched the USC training camp show on B1G Network they had the ’25 USC-UCLA as a USC Classic. You call that a classic?! Trojans sleep walk for nearly 3 quarters down 10-7 most of the game. Two make able FGs missed. Finally they pull ahead thanks to Ruin meltdown. USC better look a helluva lot better than they did last November if they hope to do better than 7-5.
Just to clarify the Purdue/Indiana relationship………..Just a few days after Cignetti was hired by Indiana…….he attended an Indiana basketball game and during a timeout he grabbed a mic and said to the crowd…….Purdue Sucks…..but so does Michigan and Ohio State. Later claiming he lost his filter and was just trying to get a dead crowd worked up.
Purdue and Indiana are sort of like the Ruins and USC.
No love lost. ]
I have had family living in Indiana for 40+ years, so am a bit familiar with the rivalry. However, attending my first Purdue football game last Fall when my Trojans went to West Lafayette offered some deeper insight into their rivalry.
When the opening kickoff was in play, all the Purdue fans simultaneously yelled “IU sucks!”. I didn’t know what they said, it was so unexpected, but my brother set me straight.
And they did it with every kickoff. Funny tradition.
Nice to know you’ve got a Hoosier blood. It’s all in fun…..although I live on a street with 10 Purdue grads and understandable they are very proud of their school…..even after 50 years. Funny thing…..they were all glued to the TV when Indiana beat Miami…..and the Tee shirts were all over the place. Nobody does that when Notre Dame wins.
I would rather see Indy play The Domers and kick the crap out of them to shut them up. Hoosier fanbase would rather see that game!
Never before in my entire life have I so suddenly become a fan of a team than I have Cignetti’s Hoosiers. I know I’m just a front runner jumping on the bandwagon of a historically miserable team that suddenly struck it rich under the right guy. But I can’t help it. I’ll be pulling for IU in every game except against the Trojans. The Hoosiers single-handedly changed the game of CFB. Sure they needed NIL. Sure they needed Mark Cuban. Good for them. They took advantage of both and went 16-0 to win a NC. Lots of teams can’t figure… Read more »
What the heck….we all jump on a winner. Even Hoosiers can’t believe what happened. It’s a lot of fun! Frankly just watching the faces of those Ohio State fans when they get whooped is worth millions to me. Can’t you just wait til Elon Musk who graduated from the U of Penn decides to support them……it will never happen since he has publicly stated his distaste for formal schooling…..all the same…..U of Penn becomes the NC for 5 straight years. Knight shoots himself out of frustration. Cuban provided the U of Indiana Rugby team over 6 million so it seems… Read more »
Right now the big question remains Riley. He’s in year five, we just lost our starting center and now we have to again worry about OL depth, like always. 2026 should be a great season. We’ll see how it turns out. People expect less out of USC football because the program has delivered less and less over the years. We’ve got some big games we need to win and there’s no reason USC shouldn’t at least make the playoffs — unless we’re still simply not good enough. Are we? I honestly don’t know. I’m not convinced the USC football culture… Read more »
All I’ve been hearing from the Trojans is the depth at OL and DL. Next man up. One guy lost in August should not be a problem if you have so much depth. No Excuses!
Words come cheap these days at USC. I think you believe much more of what’s said than than I do. Just looking at USC under LR shows me that’s a big risk based on what really happens when the season comes around.
The Bullshit is not so bad…..it’s when it turns to hog shit that Riley really gets on my nerves. Farm boys know what I’am saying.
Center is a key position. He’s the signal caller of the O-Line. They can convert Tobias Raymond but they converted Justin Dedich and Toa Lobendahn in the past and I don’t think that this worked out well. They should take a good look at Willie Wascher. If you watch his film in high school he was a mauler on the run
Poor Toa. Remember him trying to snap, or even stay onsides as a center? Not happening. He had really short arms and a lack of core strength. To his credit, he tried to handle the center spot when it obviously wasn’t his bag. Fight On Toa. You were a trooper!
Maybe Tobias Raymond will work out. They say that will be his position in the pros.
You have to like Cignetti’s demeanor in creating a standard of team play “and sticking to it” with no excuses given. Of course he purposely recruits 4th & 5 th year players and doesn’t have to baby anyone in getting the message across this is how it’s done or you will be on the sidelines. Don’t think I ever heard Riley say that?
New Purdue AD says in his intro news conference, “If you don’t want to win championships, go to Indiana.”
Where’s this guy been the last year? Nothing like giving your most hated rival some bulletin board material. I’m going to make a note to self to try to watch the Indiana – Purdue game on Nov. 28th in Bloomington. I’m sure this quote will not be forgotten.
It’s a true story. Thanks for bringing it up vT. I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t read your comment.
“Every recruit, every current student athlete will hear this message repeatedly — we are here to win championships,” new PUR AD Tommy McClelland said Thursday during his intro presser. “If you don’t want to win championships, go to Indiana.”
Wow. Just wow.
This game is can’t miss TV on Nov. 28. PUR already lost to Cignetti last season 56-3.
Old Oaken Bucket
Allen if true, things for Maiava ( and us ) could be tough. Killian O’Connor injured is rumored not verified.
Let the excuses begin. 😉. 😉
Oh well. The Bloom Center looks fantastic!
It’s true. USC has lost oft-injured/redshirt SR starting center Kilian O’Connor (6-1, 300) for the season
The former walk-on will sit out the season after suffering a “freak” non-contact leg injury, Lincoln Riley just announced.
“A tough one for us, just from an emotional standpoint,” Riley said. “(He’s) certainly one the leaders and kind of heartbeats of this program.”
“We’re fortunate to have enough depth on the O-line that we’ve been working on and obviously be able to continue to push forward,” Riley said.
Damn I swear
Is this guy stuck in the way-back machine? When both Indiana and Purdue were on the bottom of the B1G it was a rivalry. Now not at all.
Thank you to all of you who made the Bloom Center possible!
Unless my eyes deceive me, Jen looks like she has shed some pounds…..good for her. Hopefully some of that Eli Lilly GLP-1 made in Indy is helping.
It’s amazing how much slimmer a lot of people look.
Or maybe just healthier living in So Cal than Washington.
Congrats USC on the new Bloom Football Performance Center
Fight On!
‘Madden’ Biopic Sets Fall Release Date, With Nicolas Cage Teasing Role as “Highlight for Me” Ryan Gajewski (Hollywood Reporter) — Nicolas Cage is ready to let the games begin as John Madden in director David O. Russell’s forthcoming biopic about the NFL legend. Amazon MGM Studios announced Thursday that its film Madden will begin streaming worldwide via Prime Video on Nov. 18. Christian Bale co-stars as Raiders owner Al Davis, while Kathryn Hahn, Sienna Miller, John Mulaney and Shane Gillis round out the cast. Russell, who is known for such films as The Fighter and American Hustle, helmed Madden from… Read more »
Just how good does Jayden Maiava need to be this season? In the minds of many Trojan fans, so much of what happens with the Trojans in Lincoln Riley’s fifth year at USC seems to hinge on the continued improvement of Maiava. Does he need to be “great” for USC to finally get into the playoffs? Or can he just be “good” like last year because USC is supposed to be so much better on defense and special teams? Of course, we don’t expect Maiava to be as good as two-time Super Bowl winner John Elway, who was also arguably… Read more »
That is an interesting question. Riley is supposed to be the quarterback whisperer, but at times I think he’s been burping in Maiava’s ear. At times Maiava looks like he’s good, and other times he’s a head scratching choice maker.
The real question is can Riley finally concentrate on what he does well because the defense should be better, or will continue to look like Clay Helton?
(Hands on knees mouth open wondering what just happened)
My answer to your question is yes Maiava will have to be better or benched.
Riley “burping in Maiava’s ear.”
An all-time TDB classic. Congrats RT.
Dan Lanning has chosen not to speak to the media about his staff member’s attempted cover-up DUI/Hit&Run back on 4/12/26. He became aware of it on the same day it happened and now the cat’s publicly all the way out of the bag.
His silence says it all. Down Duck. Let the athletic department handle it.
The ORE athletic department has declined to address any specific punishments or details regarding Ra’Shaad Samples’ drunken incident. They do claim to take these “matters seriously,” however.
Maybe Phil Knight can issue a comment.
Ra’Shaad Samples — Dazed and Confused
This guy should be toast. People still don’t understand that DUI is serious. Have you not heard of Uber and Lyft? If you are drunk call them. Will the DA of Lane County press charges? Does Uof O have the clout over the DA?
You say “Will the DA of Lane County press charges?” If they do, Samples will get hammered with a slap on the hand. The Oregonians worship the Oregon football team. What DA is going to want to do anything to possibly slow down that program. My guess is that the whole thing will just fade into oblivion.
Samples has already been charged with DUI and reckless driving. Now comes the time for cutting a deal.
As a first-time offender, he’ll get one for sure by entering some heavily supervised, semi-burdensome diversion program of some sort, resulting in a loss of license for awhile and an eventual dismissal of the charges upon completion of probation. Pretty standard stuff actually and basically dictated by statute in many states.
If you say so. You’re a former lawyer so you would know more about it than I would. All I’m saying is that if I did that it would probably be “Welcome to Hotel California…such a lovely place”. Make that Hotel Oregon
I haven’t practiced law in more than 40 years so being a lawyer really has nothing to do with it. This is all a matter of public record and can be AI’d in about 30 seconds. ✌
You must have not practiced law very long. You don’t look very old in your picture.
I practiced for eight boring years and that was damn long enough, so I quit to start SuperPrep in 1985. That picture was current when I co-started this site in Jan 2018.
Now I’m 74, and the TDB as well as the latest versions of Trojan football have really aged me! 😂 😂
I’m 80 and I can tell from experience that age does have its negatives.
Congrats partner! Here’s to your health 007!
Fortunately I’ve been very lucky so far, but as you know, at this stage we’re all only an annual physical away from a change in circumstances. ✌
True! When you get this age, knock on wood. But if you just eat right, light exercise(walking is great), you can stay healthy for a pretty long time. After a certain age everyone starts to experience stiffness but stiffness is not sickness.
What would happen if you or I did the same thing? Whatever they would do to us, they should do to him. That’s only fair.
In 2020 Lincoln Riley would have been considered a top 5 coach but here in 2026 he is not even a top 5 coach in the Big Ten.
I’m wondering what caused LR’s significant drop in HC rankings in CFB, and specifically the B1G. Was it his limited understanding of defense and it’s mandatory to win the ring; was it his focused recruiting 2000 miles away when the top high school football programs in the nation were an hour down the 405; was it staying married to an outdated offense that lacks the necessary sophistication and power to compete with the top programs? Head scratcher.
The truth is, I’d take every single coach listed 1-5 in the ranking over Lincoln Riley to be USC’s coach: Curt Cignetti, Ryan Day, Dan Lanning, Kyle Whittingham and Matt Campbell.
I think LR is very fairly placed at #6 amongst this group of 10, most all of whom are very well-regarded and respected.
The B1G has many excellent coaches. some of whom haven’t even made this top 10 list.
David Braun….Northwestern…..excellent coach
That, and a whole lot more.
This is a CBS ranking which means nothing. Most of their CFB panel of experts I have never heard of. Just the same, if in fact this ranking is anywhere accurate in actual HC ability, then Riley should be outcoached by Cignetti, Day , Lanning & Campbell whose teams USC plays this season by game planning and game management. Does this lead to a 4- loss season? We could laugh off that possibility if Riley had gotten the team into the playoff at least once since coming here. It’s not the talent brought in that holds this program back, it’s… Read more »
How the mighty have fallen
The companion picture I saw with this article shows a white stripe on the helmet. At first I thought an AI mistake was posted as USC. Then I remembered reading that those stripes are there to see where the defensive eyes were focused. I don’t know if the idea works, but from the picture it sure looks like the players are concentrating on each other.
Ya, the stripe thing is an interesting concept and focal point technique that logically makes some real sense. I guess the more teams we play with stripes on their helmets, the better! 😉
When I played, we were told to focus on numbers. I think this was why O.J. was so hard to tackle.
August 6……3pm PST the BTN visits USC fall camp. Not much great information but maybe some views of the new facility and a few player interviews.
Speaking of arrests, ORE’s got a major distraction now … Oregon asst coach Ra’Shaad Samples leaves scene of DUI crash, claims he is ‘DeSean Jackson’ in wild video Bridget Reilly (NY Post) — University of Oregon football asst coach Ra’Shaad Samples was charged with DUI and reckless driving from an incident in April. Samples reportedly backed his 2026 Ford F-150 into a parked car, a Dodge Ram, that belonged to Eugene resident Steven James Young, and claimed to be someone else when confronted for insurance information. The name? DeSean Jackson, the former Eagles star receiver. “After I pulled over… Read more »
They have a clear cut case of DUI, and hit and run. At USC, or any other reputable school, this is a termination. At Oregon, they will handle this ” internally”. That probably means extra pushups before practice. It’s not like I needed another reason to hate the Oregon Ducks.
We Trojans do seem to generally hate the Ducks, those web-footed weekly uniform changers who would seek to replace us Trojans as THE dominant football program in the West.
I sure would like to start beating those dudes again. A win on Sept. 26 at the Coliseum would do wonders for my concerns about LR’s ability to re-install a great and winning Trojan gridiron culture.
**** Dan Lanning is scheduled to address the media today as ORE kicks off its fall camp
A relative of mine was on the equipment squad as a freshman some years back. Came with a lot of nice perks. Then one Saturday night he was drinking a beer in front of the frat house and he made the mistake of stepping onto the sidewalk and got busted for under age drinking. He was off the team the next day. I also remember a story about some players getting pulled over in their car. It reeked of pot smoke when they rolled down the window. The cop asked where’s the pot, the response, “we smoked it!” Not sure… Read more »
Ah, the preseason of college football…when every team is undefeated and the sky’s the limit!