First-and-10: The key critiques and criticisms from USC's loss at BYU

**Every Sunday, Tajwar Khandaker breaks down the 10 biggest takeaways, critiques and observations from USC's performance.**

In a game marred by ugliness throughout, nothing was uglier than the persistent inability of the Trojans defense to tackle. Before the game, I noted that it would be a struggle for USC to contain the mobile BYU QB Zach Wilson, and all game long Wilson scrambled every which way, slipping Trojan defenders and completing passes. In the run game, the Trojans seemed unable to wrap up and bring down the ball carrier – either allowing them to churn forward for extra yards or slipping off of the tackle altogether. Isaiah Pola-Mao and John Houston were notable culprits in this regard. USC’s tackling woes have been consistent through every game this season, and any questions of that being a matter of rust were put to rest after the loss at BYU. This team simply does not tackle well, and that’s been the case for at least two seasons now. The inability of the Trojans to put BYU ballcarriers on the ground cost them this game -- more than any other factor.

The Trojans defensive front had been subpar at best in creating pressure, and without Christian Rector, the pass rush Saturday was abysmal. For most of the game, the Trojans were completely stonewalled, giving Wilson all day to throw in the pocket. Drake Jackson was the only player who managed to create any pressure regularly, and once BYU decided to start double-teaming him, the entire pass rush was essentially nullified. Even when they managed to get to him after long, extended plays, more often than not the rushers failed to bring down Wilson. The defensive line was manhandled all game, and even if Rector was playing, I don’t think they would have been significantly better. Almost no one on the line seems to have any pass-rush moves, and the group gets erased from games entirely far too often.

For much of this game, the Trojans eschewed their normal zone coverages for man-to- man coverages, often with a single high safety. In the early stages of a passing play, man coverage makes things very difficult for a quarterback by reducing the size of throwing windows and often creating more traffic. However, when pressure doesn’t start getting to the quarterback, man coverages open up the defense for a quarterback as defenders lag off of their marks. With an ineffective pass rush, that’s exactly what we saw happen to the Trojans throughout the game. Time after time, Wilson was able to hang in the pocket and hit his pass catchers after they exploited man coverage to get open. The Trojans went back to the man coverage repeatedly through the game and got burned for it.

Pola-Mao, the redshirt sophomore safety, had an up-and-down first pair of games, with numerous mistakes mixed in with a handful of big plays. Against BYU however, Pola-Mao had a nightmare performance. He was lost in coverage often throughout the night and struggled mightily with his tackling. He missed tackle after tackle, seeming oddly tentative and unsure. On multiple plays, Pola-Mao wrapped up ball carriers gently while remaining in a vertical position, allowing himself to be dragged for yards. On others, he simply watched the ball carrier run past with only a half-hearted semblance of a tackle attempt. Pola-Mao is regarded as one of the hardest workers on the team as well as a leader on the back end of the defense -- this performance seemed out of character.