Shaun Nua, one half of USC's interim co-defensive coordinator tandem with Brian Odom, talked with reporters after practice Tuesday, reflecting back on what he and Odom hoped to accomplish last week and how they felt about the results in the Trojans' 36-27 loss at Oregon.

“It’s hard, because losing, it’s never – that’s what we told the guys, we never accept losing," Nua said. "So obviously, you got to evaluate them and try to grade – but it’s the same story, it’s the big plays that’s killing us. And we gotta find a way to not only just minimize but eliminate them. A little better against the run, but the big plays in the air, that’s the one we gotta eliminate.”

See Nua's full comments below and scroll down for a complete transcript of the interview.

Shaun Nua transcript:

What was your takeaway from your first go-round as DC?

“It’s hard, because losing, it’s never – that’s what we told the guys, we never accept losing. So obviously, you got to evaluate them and try to grade – but it’s the same story, it’s the big plays that’s killing us. And we gotta find a way to not only just minimize, but eliminate them. A little better against the run, but the big plays in the air, that’s the one we gotta eliminate.”

Giving up big plays can be demoralizing ...

“Yep, especially if it’s early too.”

How do you keep the defense's confidence up?

“You gota make sure that they believe in what we’re doing and just keep teaching it and emphasizing the little details that will help them prevent that. We can’t come out and just say, ‘Oh, this guy’s hurt, this guy’s’ – nobody gives a crap. You know, we just got to find a way to, whoever’s in there, make sure we put them in a good position to execute.”