USC Football: New Transfer Reminds Lincoln Riley Of Recent All-Pac-12 Trojan

The USC secondary, one of the worst in the country regarding passing yards allowed, has taken some hits lately.

Safety Max Williams picked up an injury against Notre Dame and missed the following two games. Lincoln Riley said Wednesday that he was not sure whether Williams would play but hoped that he would be available "in some capacity."

To make matters worse for the Trojan secondary, redshirt freshman safety Zion Branch will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing a procedure after injuring his knee during the Trojans' 50-49 win against Cal.

Now, the depleted Trojan secondary will face their toughest competition to date.

The Washington Huskies offense is among the best in the country, led by Heisman favorite quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and the best receiver duo in the country in Rome Odunze and Ja'lynn Polk.

Riley said that a valuable piece of the Trojan defense and someone who will have a chance to step up in the wake of recent injuries will be veteran transfer cornerback Christian Roland-Wallace.

“It’s starting to feel like Mekhi Blackmon's impact on our team last year,” Riley said. “Just a very steady presence out there. He's making a lot of competitive plays. You do feel his experience in terms of the way he prepares, the way he plays. It's just very, very consistent right now. He's been a real key for us, there's no question about it. Certainly great to have somebody that's had experience against some of these teams, some of these individual players that we've had a chance to play against.”

(Via R.J. Abeytia, USCFootball.com)

Roland-Wallace has been a solid contributor on defense with an ability to cover and affect the ground game. As a leader on a team that will have to rely on younger players given their recent injuries, Roland-Wallace, who transferred from Arizona, has an important role to play on Saturday.

“He's been great for our young corners as they're learning and progressing,” Riley said. “He's helped Domani (Jackson) and several of these other guys, not just helping them along, but just setting a great example for, ‘This is how you prepare. This is how you work. This is how you play the game.’ The attention to detail, you feel it with this guy. I’ve been really proud of how he's played here in the last several weeks.”

(Via R.J. Abeytia, USCFootball.com)

The Trojans lost to the Washington Huskies 52-42. The hope is that next season the defense can make some strides, especially the secondary. 

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