D'Anton Lynn on scheme, versatility, coaching influences and where USC's defense needs to improve

USC defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn spoke to the media on Tuesday and answered a wide range of questions, from the scheme he’ll run with the Trojans, to how to improve tackling, to his recruiting pitch and plenty in between. Here’s a look at everything Lynn said.

Lynn on his recruiting pitch right now to USC targets

“Right now, when I’m on the road, the main thing I’m really trying to do is start to build our relationship with these guys. I’m behind the eight ball. There are some kids that I was recruiting when I was at UCLA, so now it’s just about continuing that relationship. But for the guys who I have not met yet, I really just want them to get to know me and just try to build a relationship with them as fast as I can.”

Lynn on what he learned last year

Lynn was asked what he learned from last season, it being his first as a defensive coordinator and needing to rebuild a UCLA defense, and how he can apply that to USC.

“You know, last year was a big learning curve for me. It’s my first time in college. There were a lot of things in spring I was seeing for the first time. I just think going through this now, second year in college, a little bit more experience, I think that I’m excited about the opportunity, excited about the process. But I also know that it’s not gonna be the exact same that it was last year. It’s a different group of guys. It’s a different staff. So it’s not gonna be the exact same. We just have to figure out the best way to try to duplicate that year.”

Lynn on what needs to change with the USC defense

“From a schematic standpoint, my thing is that it’s all about the players. Everything’s about the players. You want to put them in the best position to play fast, in the best position to make plays. And I think that that looks a little bit different every year depending on how your team looks. So just really excited to get this next recruiting class in, to see what this team’s gonna look like this spring, and then try to see, okay with this USC team 2024, what is the best way to put this team in the best position?”

Lynn on how to improve USC’s tackling

Lynn was given USC’s missed tackle numbers over the past year and asked how he plans to attack tackling when it appears it’s been a systemic issue for the Trojans.

“Tackling is always a thing you always have to emphasize. I haven’t been here so I’m not exactly sure why that is. But I’m just a big believer in, you have to emphasize fundamentals over and over and over and over again. And at all positions. And it’s all throughout the year. Whether it’s drills, whether it’s showing guys good examples and bad examples on tape, it’s just something that has to be emphasized. And then your team has to have that attitude too, where they want to tackle. So again, I’m just excited to see what this new group is going to look like, the 2024 team and see what we can do with it.”

Lynn on making the move to college coaching and his coaching influences

“As far as making the jump, when I got the opportunity from Coach Kelly, it came out of the blue. I really felt like it was an opportunity, personally, for a lot of growth. Getting a chance to call plays, getting a chance to coordinate a defense, getting a chance to manage a staff. So just the opportunity for growth and then working with the age range. My only experience with college kids prior to that was interviewing them at the combine. And then I got a chance to coach the East-West game a couple of times. And just coaching the East-West game and being around the college kids, I just had so much fun. It’s different than NFL players. So I was excited about the opportunity and about the growth.”

“And then as far as coaches who have impacted me, I’ve been very, very fortunate to be exposed to a lot of very good coaches. You know, the first coach offhand, I have to say, Rex Ryan. I played for Rex. I was a scout for Rex. And I was a coach for Rex. So he kind of got me into the league, and a lot of the things that I do, a lot of the way I see the game always comes back to him. Gus Bradley is someone who had a huge impact. I think he’s just a phenomenal teacher — super, super detailed. I was only with him for a year, but that year I was with him I grew a lot. And then, you know, Romeo Crennel, Wink Martindale and Mike Macdonald. Those are the next DCs I was with and I feel like each of them had a different impact on me. And you know, I take a little bit from everywhere I’ve been and, just very, very thankful and grateful to have been exposed to those types of coaches.”

Lynn on important factors for players at each position group

“The biggest thing across all positions is versatility. It’s hard, I think in the way that the game is played now at college and the NFL, to have guys that just do one thing. You know, you want versatile guys up front who can align in different spots. That way you can get into different fronts without having to sub. You need certain types of bodies on the edge. You need certain types of bodies on the inside where you can move those guys around. So if we want to go from a four-down front to a five-down front, we don’t need to sub to put a bigger guy in. We have the personnel where we can just go ahead and do that with the guys we have on the field. And then from a linebacker and secondary standpoint, same thing. Versatility, football instincts, guys who are very passionate and love football.”

Lynn on the biggest need for the USC defense

“Coach Riley addressed it. It was the size up front, especially going into the big 10. I played in the Big 10. The Big 10 is big bodies on the offensive and defensive line. That’s something that, we need to get bigger up front. And then outside of that, I’m still going through the roster. I’m out recruiting right now, but in between recruits I’m trying to watch games from this past year, just so I can see the players. Because right now I don’t really have a great feel for the team, just because when I got the job I hit the road and I’ve been recruiting since.”

Lynn on what stands out when he looks at the tape of USC’s defense and the explosive plays allowed

“The first thing that sticks out is the team’s not that far away. You know, you see a lot of good things on tape. As far as the explosive plays, that’s something as I watch more tape, dive into. I want to dive into their playbook. That’s something that I did at UCLA when I first got there. I’ve watched the tape, but I also wanted to know what they were doing, why, and what their scheme was. Because there might be some schematic stuff that they did that was good that we might keep. There might be some stuff that we change. I think to do all that you know, you kind of just need a little bit more information, which I’m trying to gather right now.”

Lynn on how he’ll evaluate and build his defensive staff

“I haven’t even got a chance to meet everybody on staff yet. I was recruiting in LA for a day. I’m in Atlanta now, Connecticut tomorrow, so just really focused on seeing the commits, seeing the guys we’re going after, these transfer portal guys. And then I’m looking forward to meeting the staff, but it’s not even something I’m really thinking about right now.”

Lynn on the challenges he faced last year in his first year as a coordinator

“You notice each week is different. In college football, you play a bunch of different types of offenses. From a Washington State team that’s going to be spread air raid to an Oregon State or Utah team. So you just have to prepare for a lot. And you know, it was just very fun for me to get a chance to coach the college kids and really to see their growth from spring to fall. And I learned a lot from them I think. I’ve only really taught NFL players before this. So being able to teach college kids has made me a better teacher. Because you know, you can’t assume anything. That’s something that I learned very early on, really building the foundation for some of these kids.”

Lynn on his coaching goals

“I just want to play the best defense possible. I think that we have every reason to. I think that one of the reasons I was excited about this job is because I felt like, after my conversations with Coach Riley and Jen Cohen, that they’re passionate about playing elite defense here at SC by any means necessary.”

Lynn on differences in Pac-12 and Big Ten

“I mean, we’re going to see even different styles in the Big 10. And that’s something where we have to do a good job in the spring, making sure that we’re seeing the stuff that we’re gonna see in the fall as far as, we’re going to see some two-back formations, we’re going to see certain run schemes that we didn’t see in the Pac-12, we’re going to see more 12, 13, 22 personnel. So that’s stuff that we have to make sure that we’re preparing our guys for all throughout the spring. That way, week three, Michigan, we’re not showing them this for the very first time.”

Lynn on how he can use his NFL experience in coaching college players

“I think just their overall preparation into the NFL. From a schematic standpoint, from a terminology standpoint, to how we teach it, to how we’ll do walkthroughs, I just think it’s going to prepare guys for the next level. So that when they go to the NFL…There’s always going to be differences with each team. There’s always going to be things you need to learn that are a little new. But I do think that between the scheme, between the way we coach, between the way we do things, it’s very NFL-like and it just prepares those guys for the next level. And there’s a difference between you know, having good players and winning football games, which is the ultimate goal. But our goal is to do that while also preparing them for the next level.”

Lynn on what the difference will look like between Alex Grinch’s defense and his

“Again, I don’t know enough about USC’s defense. I’ve watched two games. I’ve watched a practice. I’m looking forward to watching the entire year. But as far as our defense, I’m not a guy who has like a, ‘Hey, this is my scheme. This is what I do.’ Again, it’s all about the players. I think you have to be flexible, you have to be able to adapt, and you need a scheme that has been built that way. And with the rest of the coaching staff and myself this past year, we were able to do that. We had a very flexible scheme that not only fit our personnel, but allowed us to be a little bit different each week depending on the offense that we were playing. We’re not gonna be able to do that exact same thing here at SC because there are different pieces, different players, different staff, but we want to still try to do that same thing in our own way this year.”

Lynn on if he talked to Riley about how his defense could help the USC offense

“It actually did not come up, but I’m sure it will at some point, especially as we get closer to spring ball and we start competing against each other.”