The good part about playing a soft schedule in the early part of a college football season is that coaches and players can find their bearings without a high risk of losing games. The bad part is that coaches and players won’t really know how good (or bad) they are until a tough test finally arrives.
So it is for USC football in 2023. We are highly unlikely to know just how good this defense is (or isn’t) until October 14 in South Bend against Notre Dame. We probably won’t encounter any truly defining moments for this defense in the next month and a half, if we’re being honest.
However, that doesn’t mean the path to accountability and responsibility starts in October. It starts Saturday with the August 26 opener against San Jose State.
If USC dominates San Jose State, that doesn’t mean the defense is on its way toward being better. However, if USC gets outplayed by San Jose State’s offense, then the alarm bells will ring and everyone will be concerned. It’s less about playing dominant defensive football on Saturday, and more about making sure San Jose State and other early-season opponents don’t make big plays.
The first half of the season will focus on limiting damage more than on establishing excellence. It’s in the second half of the season when this defense will be asked to do more. For now, learning well without paying a steep price describes USC’s task.
We talked to Mountain West Wire about the USC defense before the San Jose State opener:
“The attempt to improve the defense begins on the defensive line. The Trojans were bad against the run. They didn’t stuff the run up the middle and were therefore vulnerable to virtually everything else opposing offenses tried to do. Bear Alexander and Kyon Barrs are the two new additions to the interior of the defensive line.
“They are the merchants of muscle USC lacked in the middle of the D-line last season. If they prove to be as good as advertised, this defense should take the significant leap toward competence. The prevailing thought at USC, among fans and analysts, is that if this defense is a top-50 scoring defense, that will probably be enough to make the College Football Playoff with this offense.”
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