His arrival final December, within the midst of the darkest defensive stretch at school historical past, was hailed as a possible program-saving second at USC. At UCLA, the place he revived a struggling protection in a single season, his departure was considered as a disastrous setback, solely made worse by the vacation spot.
However virtually a full yr after defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn traded one aspect of the crosstown rivalry for the opposite, actuality appears to have settled someplace within the center. USC, at 5-5, didn’t abruptly area considered one of faculty soccer’s finest defenses with Lynn on the helm. Nor have the Bruins, at 4-6, bottomed out with out him, as first-year coordinator Ikaika Malloe has stored UCLA’s protection afloat simply high-quality.
As Lynn returns to the Rose Bowl this week, on the opposite sideline this time, each colleges appear fairly glad with the place they stand on protection.
“He’s done a tremendous job at this point,” USC coach Lincoln Riley mentioned of Lynn.
“We had complete confidence,” UCLA’s DeShaun Foster mentioned of Malloe. “This isn’t anything shocking to us about how the defense is playing.”
It wasn’t lengthy after the 2 rivals confronted off final November that Riley zeroed in on Lynn as the main target of his coordinator search. He’d made a compelling case in UCLA’s 38-20 win over USC, having held the Trojans to a few speeding yards, the fewest ever from a Riley-led offense. It was a becoming end to an incredible debut season wherein Lynn remodeled a mediocre UCLA protection into one of many nation’s finest in a matter of months, a unit that gave up 11 fewer factors and 102 fewer yards per recreation than the yr earlier than.
Two weeks later, USC stole Lynn away with one of many greatest contracts ever for a school defensive coordinator. UCLA made its personal push to maintain him, however former coach Chip Kelly mentioned the Bruins “weren’t in the ballpark from that standpoint.”
It was a major swing from Riley, who was determined to iron out the problems that adopted him since his days at Oklahoma, the place his dedication to protection had been recurrently questioned. By the beginning of his third season at USC, Riley tried to vary that tune. All the things, he mentioned in February, could be carried out “with a defensive mind first.”
“They are passionate about playing elite defense here at SC by any means necessary,” Lynn mentioned.
In the meantime, the plan at UCLA in mild of Lynn’s departure was to not disrupt a protection that already was on an elite path. So after a robust exhibiting within the LA Bowl, Kelly promoted from inside, making Malloe, the line of defense coach, his full-time coordinator. When Kelly left for Ohio State in February and Foster took over, he stored Malloe in place.
Malloe stored the scheme largely the identical. However sustaining the progress made by Lynn the earlier season was made all of the tougher by the truth that UCLA’s protection had been depleted by the NFL draft. The cross rush particularly had been picked aside. Others, like standout security Kamari Ramsey, adopted Lynn to USC.
The trail since, for each defenses, hasn’t all the time been linear. Early progress at USC was hampered when it misplaced arguably the 2 finest gamers on its defensive entrance, Eric Gentry and Anthony Lucas, for the season, leaving it dangerously skinny on depth, whereas UCLA struggled via a 1-3 begin wherein it gave up greater than 30 factors per recreation. Neither group has had a lot luck speeding the passer, both, with USC ranked 111th and UCLA 79th in sacks.
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However because the one-year anniversary of Lynn’s departure nears, each colleges are undoubtedly on totally different tracks than they have been for his or her final assembly.
It’s not tough to quantify that affect at USC, the place Lynn has — statistically, no less than — lived as much as his excessive billing. USC has gone from 121st within the nation in factors given up final season (34.4 per recreation) to a decent forty second (22). The run protection leaped from 119th (186.5 yards per recreation) to 52nd (132). Missed tackles are down significantly — from practically 11 per recreation to a median of eight, and explosive performs have plummeted, as USC went from 124th in 20-plus-yard performs given as much as thirteenth this season.
“Certainly, the progress is real by stats,” Riley mentioned. “But you can just feel the difference right now.”
It’s on probably the most vital downs the place that distinction has been felt most at USC — and missed most at UCLA.
On third downs, USC’s protection ranks twenty second in opponent conversion fee (32.6%), down from 109th final yr (43.6%), whereas UCLA fell from thirty fifth (35.5%) with Lynn all strategy to lifeless final in faculty soccer with out him, the one group this season to have opposing offenses convert higher than 50% of the time.
USC defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn walks on the sector throughout a win over Louisiana State in Las Vegas on Sept. 1.
(Jevone Moore / Icon Sportswire through Getty Photos)
The identical development bears out within the crimson zone, the place UCLA was the most effective protection in faculty soccer final season at limiting touchdowns. Simply 35% of crimson zone journeys below Lynn resulted in touchdowns, whereas 75% of these journeys have resulted in touchdowns this yr. At USC, 69% of crimson zone journeys resulted in touchdowns a yr in the past, in comparison with 51% now.
“You can look at the stats and see a pretty massive difference there,” Riley mentioned. “But I don’t think that tells the whole story. I think D’Anton’s been a really consistent leader.”
Nor do stats fairly illuminate precisely what Malloe has meant to UCLA’s protection, which was left with principally spare components when he took over.
UCLA is giving up 9 extra factors and 45 extra yards per recreation than it did final yr below Lynn. However over their previous six video games, the Bruins even have given up fewer yards (311) and factors (24.6) per recreation than Lynn’s USC protection over the identical span (404 yards, 25.3 factors).
“The job Malloe’s done, he’s been able to maximize the whole defense’s potential, putting everybody in spots to make plays,” linebacker Carson Schwesinger mentioned, “so a lot of our success could be attributed to the work that he’s put in.”
Success is in the end a matter of perspective. However for the person on the middle of the dialog, there might be no added which means Saturday when his previous group clashes along with his new one. Requested about his return to the Rose Bowl, the unassuming Lynn mentioned solely that it was “exciting” and “another big game for our guys.”
He shrugged off every other significance.
“It’s ball at the end of the day,” Lynn mentioned.
However the significance of Lynn’s choice final November isn’t misplaced on Riley, whose protection has been the steadiest a part of the Trojans’ rocky season.
“He’s done everything that we would’ve asked,” Riley mentioned of Lynn. “The culture defensively within our program has really shifted in a lot of ways.”
