Great teams need great players. No one would dispute this. However, great teams also need good players, in the sense that they have above-average personnel throughout their roster. There are 11 players on an offensive or defensive unit. Superstars won’t exist at all 11 positions, or even at a majority of those 11 positions. In many ways, the key to football success is to have players who won’t be liabilities at most of those positions.
Excellence in some areas, competence in all — that’s a realistic formula for success. Translated: solid, not spectacular. Avoid huge mistakes.
USC’s defense struggled in 2022 because there were too many positions where performance and production were mediocre. Lacking great players was a legitimate deficit, but lacking lots of good players — guys who were there, producing consistently every Saturday — was the more central reason the Trojan defense struggled.
As long as players are generally reliable, they don’t have to be spectacular. They just need to avoid being a bust.
New defensive lineman Anthony Lucas could become a star, but what matters more is that he seems likely to be a good, productive player. Lincoln Riley spoke to this over the weekend:
#USC HC Lincoln Riley on DL transfer Anthony Lucas: "You feel his impact on practice every day."
"I'm not saying he's a great player yet, but he's got a chance to be." https://t.co/P5Vp6aduiL
— Shotgun Spratling (@ShotgunSpr) April 8, 2023
Reliability, setting an example, becoming a constant, positive presence — that’s what USC needs up and down its roster. It would help if Lucas did become a great player, but having a good player never hurts.
USC appears to have a good player up front, a very encouraging sign for the Trojan defense.
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