USC vs. Notre Dame Report Card: Grading the Trojan Defense

USC’s defensive line had a weird game to judge. They gave up 143 yards to C.J. Prosise and were bullied in both the first and fourth quarters, when Notre Dame scored 38 of their 41 points. Yet they were very much the hammer –not the nail– in the middle quarters, when they were the main reason for the Irish having just 14 total yards during USC’s 21-0 run to take the lead. During that time, they sacked Kizer four times and were winning one-on-one battles up front. But it didn’t last long. Edge rusher Scott Felix fanned on a tackle of Kizer to start a 90-yard drive to tie the game and the defense was toast from then on out, especially up front. Plus, as 

Osa Masina. LINEBACKER. B. If there was one position group where the Trojans really succeeded on Saturday night, it was at linebacker. The game was a changing of the guard in a lot ways for USC, as the middle quarter success coincided with the freshman trio of Osa Masina, Cameron Smith and Porter Gustin getting time as a unit, alongside Su’a Cravens. All four were solid contributors, including Smith and Cravens combining for a whopping 21 tackles. Then there was Masina, who recorded five tackles and just might have unseated Anthony Sarao as USC’s No. 1 weakside outside linebacker.. Standout

Standout. Adoree' Jackson. SECONDARY. D. The Trojans faced the best wide receiver they’ll face all year in Notre Dame’s Will Fuller, and they’ll be glad they’ll never have to do that again. USC’s defensive backs struggled to guard him all night, including on a 75-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the game that saw Fuller get well behind speedster Adoree’ Jackson. With the Trojans needing to rely on Jackson on offense, Kevon Seymour got ample playing time, as did freshman Iman Marshall. Neither stood out. The game’s biggest defensive play of the game however, came when Jackson stripped Torii Hunter Jr. at the goal line, which turned momentum in USC’s favor.

D. As stated, USC’s defensive performance against the Irish was all about inconsistency. And because of that, there’s both positive and negative takeaways to Wilcox’s coaching performance. For starters, the Trojans’ inability to establish any sort of pass rush early in the game allowed Kizer to get into a rhythm and ultimately open running lates for Prosise. This was more than evident when Wilcox finally did make adjustments in the middle of the game, primarily via personnel adjustments, which saw how beneficial a steady pass rush could be against Notre Dame’s youthful playmakers. But the Trojans still blew a fourth quarter lead and couldn’t stop the Irish on two 90-yard drives to put the game away. After last year’s late game struggles, that’s unacceptable, especially after briefly dominating both before and after halftime.. Standout. Justin Wilcox. COACHING