USC Trojans star sees the writing on wall and opts out of the rest of college football season
The USC Trojans are making the news once again, for the third time in what feels like 24 hours. It may not be national news, but, if you follow the Trojans or the Big Ten, you have likely heard all of the news going around about a potential unhappy camper. Let's just start with a […]
The USC Trojans are making the news once again, for the third time in what feels like 24 hours. It may not be national news, but, if you follow the Trojans or the Big Ten, you have likely heard all of the news going around about a potential unhappy camper.
Let's just start with a refresher.
Defensive tackle Bear Alexander was posting cryptic tweets suggesting that he was disgruntled with his playing time. Just when we thought head coach Lincoln Riley was here to tell us everything was fine, it wasn't
“He played over a third of the game," Lincoln Riley said on Tuesday. "So people want to act like the guy’s not playing snaps. He’s doing a good job for us out here. He’s getting better. There’s no story there. I know you guys are looking for one — there’s no story there.”
In Week 1 he played 28 snaps; in Week 2 he played 20 snaps, and in Week 3 he played 21 snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. So, his usage has decreased a bit, but, that's normal because every game and situation is different. Through his first three games last season, Alexander was already up to 114 snaps on the year. So, the dropoff from last year to this year is significant. But, the defense this year is way better than it was last year.
On Wednesday, Alexander and his family made it known that he was going to redshirt his junior season, or in other words, he is going to stop playing this year, reserve his eligibility, and transfer after the season is over.
Alexander has played the least amount of snaps between USC's three primary interior defenders. Nate Clifton has played 96 total defensive snaps as an interior defender, while Gavin Meyer has played 86 to Alexander's 69. So, it's not like they will have a tough time finding out how to replace him. They have 10 other defensive tackles on their roster.
This will be Alexander's seventh team since he was a freshman in high school. That's not the best look.
This is not the end of the world for the Trojans, nor is it the beginning of the end. Alexander is good, and he has the tools to be great. But, it just doesn't show up on the film as often as it needs to. Hopefully, he plays well wherever he decides to go next.
USC Trojans HC Lincoln Riley delivers a heavy dose of the truth regarding a potential unhappy camper on the team
The Trojans are heading in the right direction.
