The USC Trojans season has derailed over the past three weeks, leading to Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley making a huge coaching decision. The USC Trojans have fired defensive coordinator Alex Grinch.
The USC Trojans have had no shortage of talent, with several defensive stars being highly ranked, one of the best-receiving corps in the nation, and the defending Heisman trophy winner. The Trojans entered 2023 with high hopes: Win the Pac-12, and make the college football playoffs, and quarterback Caleb Williams had hopes of becoming the second-ever two-time Heisman Trophy winner. USC started the season with six straight wins, and Caleb Williams was the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy. Then, their season came crashing down as they lost three of their last four games. Notre Dame, Utah, and now Washington have all defeated the Trojans.
USC's offense has not been the issue, with the Trojans scoring 31.3 points per game over their three losses. Instead, the Trojans defense has been the issue, surrendering 44.7 points per game. USC has the 119th-ranked defense in FBS, the fifth worst among all Power 5 schools. USC has allowed 436 yards per game and 34.5 points per game. The Trojans chose to fire their defensive coordinator Alex Grinch after USC surrendered 52 points in a home loss to the Washington Huskies.
USC has dismissed defensive coordinator Alex Grinch, sources tell @YahooSports.
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) November 5, 2023
After the Trojans fired Grinch, they promoted Defensive Line Coach Shaun Nua and Inside Linebacker Coach/Associate Head Coach for Defense Brian Odom to interim Co-defensive coordinators. A tough season for the Trojans defense won't let up over the final two games of the season, with the Trojans playing the Oregon Ducks on Saturday, November 11 and the UCLA Bruins in the final game of the regular season on November 18. The Ducks have a Heisman Trophy candidate at quarterback in Bo Nix leading the second-ranked offense in the country, and UCLA is the 26th-ranked offense in the country.
