USC, Riley fire DC Grinch after 52-42 loss to UW
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Paolo Uggetti, ESPN
After USC surrendered 101 total points in the past two games, defensive coordinator Alex Grinch was relieved of his duties, coach Lincoln Riley announced Sunday.
Grinch, who was Oklahoma‘s defensive coordinator from 2019 to 2021 before leaving for USC alongside Riley, led a unit that allowed an average of 34.5 points per game this season and was in the bottom 30 in the country in nearly every statistical category, including 120th in rushing defense and 107th against the pass.
In a statement sent via a USC spokesperson, Riley named defensive line coach Shaun Nua and linebackers coach Brian Odom as co-defensive coordinators for the rest of the season.
Even going back to last season, when USC finished the year allowing 47 points to Utah in the Pac-12 title game loss and 46 points to Tulane in the Cotton Bowl loss, Grinch had been the subject of much criticism surrounding his and the unit’s performance.
“As a coach, you don’t deflect,” Grinch, who routinely took responsibility for the defense’s shortcomings on a weekly basis, said at practice last week. “I couldn’t be more disappointed in myself and the inability to get the guys to be more sound.”
Throughout the offseason, USC and Riley specifically preached patience and gave an optimistic outlook on the progress the defense would make with more time and more talent. Yet even as USC used the transfer portal to bring in defensive players such as former Georgia lineman Bear Alexander and former Oklahoma State linebacker Mason Cobb, among others, the performance of the unit did not improve. USC finished last season as the 87th-ranked team in defensive SP+. This season, it’s ranked 87th.
Riley had, until now, stood by Grinch and his efforts, but after Saturday night’s 52-42 loss to Washington (USC’s third defeat in four games), with the defense allowing 572 yards of offense and 52 points, Riley could only default to not wanting to answer “big picture questions” as it related to Grinch and the defense.
“I know as a head coach, it all falls under my responsibility ultimately,” Riley said. “I don’t shy away from that and never have, but there are times and places for those discussions and those will happen at the appropriate time.”
One source close to the program told ESPN after Saturday’s game that Grinch was “for all intents and purposes” done at USC, and while some thought Riley would wait until after the season to let him go, the coach waited less than 24 hours to make the move.
After suffering its second conference loss of the year, USC now needs to win out and get much help to have a shot at qualifying for the Pac-12 title. The Trojans head to Oregon next week to face a Ducks team that, like Washington, features one of the best offenses in the nation with plenty to play for.
And while Grinch was certainly the face of USC’s defensive issues, Riley and the rest of his staff have their work cut out for them as the program heads to the Big Ten next season hoping to not waste a top-five offense in the country like they have the past two seasons.
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Adam Rittenberg
Pitt freshman football player Mason Alexander was killed Saturday night in a car accident in his hometown of Fishers, Indiana.
Alexander, 18, was pronounced dead at the scene. According to the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, he was a passenger in a 2016 BMW driving south on Florida Road. The driver of the car tried to pass a 2015 Toyota before a hillcrest and swerved to avoid a head-on collision with another car traveling in the northbound lane. The BMW traveled off the road and eventually hit a tree, catching on fire.
Alexander starred at cornerback for Hamilton Southeastern High School in Fishers, near Indianapolis, and was an ESPN 300 recruit in the 2025 class. He signed with Pitt in December, enrolled early and was set to join the team for the start of spring practice this month.
“I received a call this morning that no parent, teacher or coach ever wants to get — the news of the sudden loss of a young and promising life,” Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi said in a statement. “Our entire program is shocked and deeply saddened to learn of Mason Alexander’s passing.
“Mason had just enrolled at Pitt in January following his early graduation from Indiana’s Hamilton Southeastern High School. Even during that short time, he made a great impression on all of us. Mason was proud and excited to be a Panther, and we felt the same way about having him in our Pitt family. He will always be a Panther to us. The Alexander family and Mason’s many loved ones and friends will be in our prayers.”
Peyton Daniels, a high school teammate of Alexander’s who plays at Butler, posted about his friend on X, writing, “Mason lit up every room he was in. Brought joy and playfulness to everything and everyone. He could change the entire direction of your day with one interaction. Mason is the embodiment of exceptional. Rest Easy 15. Love forever.”
It’s hard to find the words to say right now. Mason lit up every room he was in. Brought joy and playfulness to everything and everyone. He could change the entire direction of your day with one interaction. Mason is the embodiment of exceptional. Rest Easy 15. Love forever.š¤ pic.twitter.com/FptDR74MSN
ā Peyton Daniels (@daniels_peyton) March 2, 2025
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Ryan S. Clark
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Greg Wyshynski
The NHL trade deadline for the 2024-25 season is not until March 7, but teams have not waited until the last minute to make major moves.
For every significant trade that occurs during the season, you’ll find a grade for it here, the Colorado Avalanche and San Jose Sharks swapping goaltenders, Cam Fowler to the St. Louis Blues, Kaapo Kakko to the Seattle Kraken, the blockbuster deal sending Mikko Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes and Martin Necas to the Avalanche, J.T. Miller from the Vancouver Canucks to the New York Rangers, and the Canucks staying busy and getting Marcus Pettersson from the Pittsburgh Penguins.
March 1 featured three big trades, with Ryan Lindgren headed to the Colorado Avalanche, the Minnesota Wild adding Gustav Nyquist, and Seth Jones joining the Florida Panthers.
Read on for grades from Ryan S. Clark and Greg Wyshynski, and check back the next time a big deal breaks.
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