Shane Lee addresses USC's disconnect on defense

It was not a great Cotton Bowl experience for the USC Trojans and star linebacker Shane Lee. The Trojans’ defense could not stop Tulane’s offense down the stretch, allowing them to take a 46-45 lead with seconds left on the clock. USC would go on to lose by that score, despite a stellar performance by Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Caleb Williams. After the disappointing loss, Lee addressed what was the disconnect on defense for the Trojans.

“I would say, probably just trusting our scheme, trusting fundamentals, and trusting everything that we need to do. In year one, you obviously want to accomplish everything, but you only have so much time. It’s hard to get everything done at first. We have something that we can build off of, and obviously, we have stuff that we know that we need to work on. And moving forward, that’s going to be our focus.

Lee and the Trojans’ defense allowed the Gree Wave offense to put up 539 yards of total offense. Most of that came on the ground, with Tulane rushing for 305 yards on 34 attempts. The star of the show was Tulane’s running back Tyjae Spears, who had 17 carries for 205 yards and four of the six Green Wave touchdowns.

With this being USC’s defensive coordinator Alex Grinch’s first year beating the defense, their growing pains were evident throughout the season. As the Trojans head into the offseason, their defense, along with Lee, will have plenty of time to work on their trust and figure things out before they start year two in 2023.

Joel Klatt: USC ‘cannot waste’ QB Caleb Williams

Williams won a Heisman Trophy but his USC Trojans ended the season with two straight losses on the biggest stage. Sure it’s a team sport, but Fox Sports’ Joel Klatt pointed out that the team under Lincoln Riley “cannot waste” the talented quarterback in a national title window.

“This is the scary part for USC, and I really believe in what Lincoln Riley is doing there,” Klatt said. “I think Lincoln Riley is a heck of a coach. The scary part for USC is that you’ve got this guy that now we’re all starting to realize in particular after winning the Heisman trophy after seeing him play in the back half of the season. 

“What we’re realizing is this guy is a generational talent. We might be watching Mahomes 2.0. Even better than Mahomes was in college when he was at Texas Tech. This guy’s ability is staggering, staggering. You can’t waste it. You got one season left with this guy. You cannot waste Caleb Williams.”

USC saw its defense cough up way too many points against Utah in the Pac-12 Championship Game and the Cotton Bowl versus Tulane. While Williams was hampered by a hamstring injury, the defense had its many flaws throughout the season.