New USC defensive coordinator can provide recruiting help in different ways
The USC Trojans, as of Tuesday afternoon in Los Angeles, have not yet hired a defensive coordinator. We will obviously have a lot more to say once the hire is made, but it’s worth offering a few big-picture thoughts about this move even before it happens.
In an ideal world, the defensive coordinator will be a knockout recruiter. One remembers that Clay Helton’s former defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast simply did not recruit. He couldn’t be bothered. One can be assured that USC’s new coordinator will make a significant effort to recruit. However, one shouldn’t think the coordinator himself has to be a rock-star coordinator. As long as he can coach defense really well, that fact alone will be a recruiting tool.
One name worth mentioning along these lines is Tom Allen. At Indiana, he didn’t recruit well. That could be Tom Allen’s fault, but let’s face it: It’s Indiana football. It’s hard for anyone to recruit well there.
Allen is highly respected as a defensive mind. Even if his actual recruiting chops aren’t great, Allen takes two- and three-star players and molds them into quality defensive performers. When recruits see that Tom Allen (or maybe someone with similar credentials) is USC defensive coordinator, that itself could have a positive effect on recruiting.
Allen could recruit USC well even without doing the recruiting personally. His reputation could change a lot of recruitments, even without paying any prospect a house call.
This is an example of how the new defensive coordinator can “recruit” for USC on different levels. Keep that in mind as we approach the announcement of the new assistant to Lincoln Riley.
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