Bear Alexander reveals what about USC's defense made it the perfect fit for him

It was a surprise to much of the college football world when former Georgia Bulldogs freshman defensive lineman Bear Alexander decided to leave the program after capturing the 2022 national championship and enter the transfer portal. With the level of talent Alexander possessed, he had his choice of destinations across the country. In the end, he decided to hop across the country and join the USC Trojans in Los Angeles, CA.

From the outside looking in, it would be hard to decipher why the former top 50 recruit in the 2022 class would leave the Bulldogs’ dominating defense and join the Trojans, who had their fair share of struggles last year. But recently, during a sit-down interview with the team over at WeAreSC, Alexander revealed the reasons why he committed to USC.

“Yeah, I think that they allow defensive linemen to get loose here. And we’re going to vertical penetrating, and we’re going to hunt,” said Alexander. “I feel like there is a lot of flexibility. Me, Ky, Jack, and Solo. It’s a lot of depth.”

Last season in Georgia’s national championship run, Alexander saw the field in eight of Georgia’s fifteen wins. He finished the year with nine total tackles, five solo, and two sacks, one coming in the national championship game against the TCU Horn Frogs.

With USC, Alexander will have a much more significant role and spotlight on him within their defensive front seven. He is coming in to help bolster a defense that was the Achilles heel of the Trojans last season. With him and the rest of the depth and talent that USC has along their defensive line now, the Trojans could be in for a deep postseason run to a national championship.

Alexander recaps whirlwind transfer from UGA, why USC commitment was a ‘no-brainer’

Alexander also revealed that when it came to his decision on where to play in 2023 there was never another choice. Back in April, the defensive lineman entered the transfer portal. Just a week later, Alexander was a Trojan. The 6-foot-3, 320-pounder recently discussed his decision to join USC.

“[There are] more significant snaps and just being a first, second, third down player. I knew I was coming here. It was kind of a no-brainer,” Alexander said.

Offering Alexander was a no-brainer for USC, as well. The sophomore was a four-star recruit in high school and the No. 43 overall player in the Class of 2022. Furthermore, Alexander saw the field in 12 games as a true freshman at Georgia.

With his limited time, Alexander recorded two sacks and nine total tackles. Despite his success with the Bulldogs, Alexander wanted to find a new home. Head coach Lincoln Riley was a familiar face. The 39-year-old coach nearly secured Alexander when he was at the helm of the Oklahoma program. In fact, Riley had the big man locked down until the last second.

“I was actually secretly committed [to Oklahoma],” Alexander admitted. “I ended up going to Georgia, but it was close.”