Alex Grinch discusses importance of good practice environment

USC defensive coordinator Alex Grinch is putting his guys to the test in practice. In fact, he wants a practice environment so intense that his players can’t differentiate it from the actual game. So as the Trojans progress through fall camp and preseason practice, Grinch is giving them a sense of what opposing stadiums may sound like. And he continues to make practice like the real thing throughout the season.

He was recently asked about his aggressive crowd reinvention tactics at a press conference, where Grinch explained why he goes to such lengths to make practice sound real.

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“Yeah we don’t. The fog of war is kind of the — and this isn’t more but it’s that it’s that expression. We’re trying to create an intense environment,” Grinch said. “And really, that’s what this week has been all about for the guys. In particular, do we change when we get to game week? And the answer is no.”

He then moved on to explain his process for creating such intensity and why it pays dividends on Saturdays.

“There’s a way we practice. We believe in it, you know. We try to play the game on Tuesday and Wednesday,” Grinch said. “So the third time we play the game is on Saturday, you know. Some guys believe in practice, some guys don’t. Every coach says they do. The fact is: they don’t, we do. And you earn the right to have confidence walking into a stadium on Saturday. Your logo is not going to get it done. It’s kind of how you can prepare on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, specifically. That’s the physical work. And then the mental work beyond that.”

Alex Grinch wants his players to leave fear behind when entering stadiums with tens of thousands of opposing fans. And he’ll train them to do so by blaring stadium noise at practice in preparation.

“So no, we tried to simulate as if 85,000 people are going bonkers,” he continued. “That’s why I don’t have a voice. But if you have, you know, a sensitive reaction to one man barking at you after a play, how are you going to respond when 85,000 are doing it? And so we say it in the nicest form possible. But we’re trying to give them things to respond to over the course of game week.”