Lincoln Riley discusses Solomon Byrd's rapid rise on USC's depth chart

USC has quickly flipped the switch. Lincoln Riley was largely able to do this by dipping into the transfer portal during his first season. However, transfers on the defensive side of the ball have been largely overlooked. One of those players, defensive lineman Solomon Byrd, was able to earn his playing time on the field and begin to dominate for the Trojans.

During USC’s postgame press conference Lincoln Riley was asked about the benefit that’s come from having Solomon Byrd emerge on the defensive line.

“It’s huge,” Lincoln Riley said. “I mean, we gave him a game ball in there, which was very much deserved. I mean, two weeks ago he was a three. You know, he wasn’t getting very many reps.”

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Lincoln Riley then turned to Solomon Byrd, who was sitting next to him during the press conference, and asked him how many reps he got against Rice. The answer was five.

“That’s what we’re trying to build, right,” Lincoln Riley said. “A guy that first game of the season takes five reps and is a three, gets an opportunity, keeps working, and then now, now at him. You know, I mean, now’s a starter. Came in and really impacted the last two weeks–was even better this week than he was last week from what I saw on the field, and we would expect him to continue to get better, but it’s been huge.”

Later in the press conference, Solomon Byrd was asked about his mentality from the time that he was third on the depth chart.

“It’s hard, I’m not gonna lie because I came from Wyoming and I was a starter. Big name up there. So, when I came down here, you know, there’s a lot of talent. I just had to keep working, keep doing what I’ve been doing, and it’s starting to pay off.”

As Solomon Byrd referenced, he transferred to USC from Wyoming. There, he had played three seasons and was on campus for four. He ended up at Wyoming after being an underrecruited three-star recruit out of high school in the Class of 2018. He already has three sacks and four tackles for loss in 2022.