Previewing LSU Football's Week One Opponent the USC Trojans

Previewing the USC Trojans' Defense

The Trojans were just as bad if not worse than LSU on defense in 2023 which was their Achillies heel. Lincoln Riley fired his longtime defensive coordinator Alex Grinch and brought in D'Anton Lynn who did an excellent job against USC as the defensive coordinator of the UCLA Bruins. The Trojans brought in several transfers on the back end in hopes of fixing this defense.

On the defensive line, Bear Alexander is the biggest name while transfer Nate Clifton, Anthony Lucas, and Jamil Muhammad round out the starting rotation. The Trojans' defensive line faces an up against one of the best offensive lines in the country. The Trojans will likely deploy Alexander against DJ Chester as the freshman gets his feet wet in the NFL. The concern is the depth up front for USC which is why the Tigers should lean on USC's offensive line early on in the game.

At linebacker, USC will have Oregon State transfer Easton Mascarenas-Arnold in the middle while Mason Cobb should start at weakside linebacker. Mascarenas-Arnold was a tackling machine racking up 106 tackles adding two interceptions and two sacks. Cobb is experienced as well recording 85 tackles in 2023. The goal for LSU up front will be getting to the linebackers in the rushing game given USC's troubles tackling in the secondary.

The secondary should be led by a ton of transfers as well after USC's struggles added with losses in the transfer portal. The Trojans lost Cornerback Domani Jackson but, they bring in Kamari Ramsey, John Humphrey, and Akili Arnold to start in the secondary. The Trojans have a ton of turnover in their secondary which should help the LSU passing attack, especially as Garrett Nussmeier and the receiving core gets its first time as true starters.

The Trojans bring in Georgia Southern transfer Michael Lantz at kicker after he went 23-28 with a long of 48 on field goals and a perfect 42-42 on extra points. The Trojans return punter Eddie Czaplicki who averaged 43.3 yards per punt in 2023 with a long of 57.

Note: All stats via ESPN