USC vs Alabama Report Card: Grading the Trojan Defense

With a score of 52-6, USC vs Alabama might seem like a terrible day for the defense, however, there were some bright performances despite the scoreline.

Clancy Pendergast certainly hoped his return to USC would have been announced with a better final score, but it wasn’t quite as bad as it seemed for the Trojan defensive coordinator.

USC’s defense was actually stout for a half against the Tide before the wheels fell off in the third quarter.

SEE ALSO: Offensive Grades vs. Alabama

Here’s how each defensive unit graded out against the Crimson Tide:

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B-

Going into the game, the big question was whether or not USC’s rebuilt defensive line could hang with Alabama’s offensive front.

The short answer? Yes. The Trojans held their own in the trenches.

Nose tackle Stevie Tu’ikolovatu anchored the line, proving up to the task against a powerful offensive front. Rasheem Green led all defensive linemen with five tackles and one tackle for loss, including a half sack. Noah Jefferson was bright before leaving with an injury as well.

The Tide had 242 yards rushing but the vaunted Bo Scarbrough was limited to 36 yards on 11 rushes, while Damien Harris amassed 118 of his 140 yards on two rushes of 73 and 45 yards.

Still, the line became less and less effective as the game wore on and the defense as a whole still gave up 45 offensive points.