USC football was not in the top four of a preseason Big Ten poll released earlier this week. The Trojans are not viewed by Big Ten or national media as an elite team or a conference championship contender. There is enduring skepticism about the Trojans’ ability to field an elite defense. There is a continued national narrative that Lincoln Riley still doesn’t take defense seriously, despite the fact that he hired a brand-new defensive coaching staff with strong credentials. He didn’t just hire a new defensive coordinator, either. In addition to D’Anton Lynn, Riley hired a new defensive line coach, Eric Henderson. He hired a new linebacker coach, Matt Entz. He hired a new secondary coach, Doug Belk. He retained Taylor Mays, who did such a brilliant job coaching the secondary on an interim basis in the Holiday Bowl. Yet, Big Ten analysts and pundits who vote in polls do not think USC belongs with the big boys right now.
At the 6:12 mark in our recent call-in show at The Voice of College Football, a caller asked for our reaction to USC being ranked sixth in the 2024 Big Ten Media Poll.
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