USC defensive coordinator D'Anton Lynn spoke to reporters Wednesday for the first time since his compelling Trojans debut in the 27-20 win against LSU and a potent Tigers offense.
Lynn said about what one would expect a coach to say, acknowledging the positives of the performance while emphasizing the need to get better.
“I thought the guys did some good things. There was some good things that we’d done in the offseason, in camp, was good to see it on display. And then there was plenty of things we need to correct from a schematic standpoint, from a technique," he said. "So, just like any other game, you try to build off the good things and try to correct and learn from the bad things.”
Lynn did expound a little more on one positive when asked about the red zone defense, which included a four-down stand on the 3-yard line to start the game and later a key stop late to force LSU to settle for a game-tying field goal before the Trojans offense drove the other way for the win.
"I felt like they were resilient. We obviously didn't want to let them in down there, but when they got down there we played hard. They did a good job responding no matter what happened in that drive, and I think as a defense that's important," Lynn said. "No matter what happens on the drive, you just have to make them earn it all the way down. I don't care if it's a 10-play drive or if they got down there in one explosive play, they're not in the end zone yet."
Lynn also touched on the emergence of versatile defensive lineman Devan Thompkins, defensive tackle Bear Alexander's workload, why defensive tackle Elijah Hughes wasn't involved, the rotation in the secondary, having all of the assistant coaches on the field rather than any up in the coaches box and more.
Watch the full interview here and scroll for a complete transcript of Lynn's comments.
How did you evaluate the first game?
“I thought the guys did some good things. There was some good things that we’d done in the offseason, in camp, was good to see it on display. And then there was plenty of things we need to correct from a schematic standpoint, from a technique. So, just like any other game, you try to build off the good things and try to correct and learn from the bad things.”
Eric Gentry, where’d he impressed you?
“Just with his versatility. He’s a guy that can do a lot of things, so each week it might look a little bit different, but you can do just about anything with the guy, his size and speed.”
What’d you do to slow down Kyren Lacy second half?
“The guys just, went out and they were just locked into their keys, to the splits, and were just playing at a high level.”
Sense of the interior DL?
“Consistent. When the guys are playing consistent in there, that affects the way the ‘backers play, that affects the way the DBs play. So the more consistency we can get in there, the better. Now, was it perfect? No. There’s plenty of stuff to correct. But it’s going in the right direction.”
