USC Trojans Linebacker Desman Stephens II Sees Increased Playing Time vs. Penn State

With USC Trojans linebackers Eric Gentry out “indefinitely” and Raesjon Davis making the decision to persevere his finally season of eligibility by redshirting, true freshman Desman Stephens II has received an extended role on the USC Trojans defense.

Oct 12, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC Trojans linebacker Desman Stephens II (23) runs the ball after an interception in the first half against the Penn State Nittany Lions at United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

With USC Trojans linebackers Eric Gentry out “indefinitely” and Raesjon Davis making the decision to persevere his finally season of eligibility and redshirt, true freshman Desman Stephens II has received an extended role on the USC defense. Depth on a football team is essential because of the wear and tear over the course a season. In college football that means relying on young players with little experience at this level of competition.

Easton Mascarenas-Arnold and Mason Cobb have played a bulk of the snaps at inside linebacker, but
USC coach Lincoln Riley wants the Trojans to put a better emphasis on rotation across the defense. Stephens II played a season-high 16 snaps on Saturday against the Penn State Nittany Lions and grabbed his first career interception early in the second quarter. Stephens was the top-rated linebacker in all of college football in Week 7, according to Pro Football Focus. 

“We didn't do it enough against Minnesota," Riley said. "We felt like that was something that we needed to be better at. We needed to trust some of these young guys. And I think, you know, they've also given us some reasons to want to trust them. So obviously, developing that depth is going to be important with the stretch we've had and with the stretch that we've got ahead of us.”

Oct 12, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC Trojans linebacker Desman Stephens II (23) runs the ball after an interception in the first half against the Penn State Nittany Lions at United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The decision to give Stephens more playing time on Saturday was something that the Michigan native has been working for since he first arrived on campus an early enrollee in the spring. Riley raved about Stephens in early September.

"We've been impressed," Riley said. "Really from spring on - he's kind of felt like he's belonged the entire time. He doesn't look like a true freshman in terms of the way he competes. He's learned our defense fast and we've got a lot of confidence in him. . . . He's got a bright future here if he stays on track and stays hungry and keeps improving. We all see that. But he's certainly going to have the ability to impact this team right now.

"So looking forward to him hopefully getting some oppurtunities to play in some games and getting to really show it because there is a real talent there that you're really excited about because he's a pretty mature competitor for his age and he's physically pretty mature. He has the tools capable to make an impact early," continued Riley.

Redshirt freshman Sam Greene also played 16 snaps on the edge, redshirt junior cornerback Prophet Brown played 10 snaps and true freshman defensive lineman Jide Abasiri played nine snaps in reserve roles against Penn State.

Redshirt sophomore safety Zion Branch played a career-high 42 snaps. The Trojans certainly took their lumps defensively in the second half, but the experience could pay off in the future.

USC will be back on the road this week against the Maryland Terrapins. Kickoff is at 1 p.m. PT and will be televised on FS1.

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