The USC football team’s spring camp came to a close this past weekend with a scrimmage at the Coliseum Saturday. There was a lot to take away from the first public glimpse of the Trojans since the spring game, including some true freshmen who impressed.
But there were also signs of positions that USC needs to shore up before its Week 0 game against San Jose State. And for a team with championship aspirations like USC, these are positions that USC would prefer to fill with veteran transfers and not rely on the rest of the incoming 2023 recruiting class.
With the transfer portal window open, here’s a look at three areas of need for USC to fill this off-season:
Defensive tackle
Head coach Lincoln Riley has been positive and optimistic about the size and strength increases he has seen on USC’s front seven, both by way of new players added to those positions and of the work returning players have done to transform their bodies.
Still, it was jarring to see the Trojan defensive line pushed around so easily by its offensive counterpart in the first half on Saturday, before USC’s starting o-line rested in the second half.
USC needs a couple more big bodies up front, especially at defensive tackle. Arizona transfer Kyon Barrs was a start, but USC still is relying on 265-pound senior Stanley Ta’ufo’ou, an able and eager soldier but not exactly the body type you’d expect at DT, nor the type Riley has expressed a desire for since watching in person Georgia’s domination of TCU in the national championship game.
But one of the Bulldogs Riley watched back in January became available on Saturday, an hour before USC’s spring game kicked off.
Bear Alexander, a 305-pound defensive tackle entered the transfer portal with three years of eligibility remaining. The former five-star prospect had two sacks against TCU, and reports quickly surfaced linking Alexander to USC.
That’s the type of instant-impact move that could quickly transform the Trojan defense…
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