USC DL coach Chad Kauha'aha'a: Notre Dame has 'the biggest O-linemen I've seen in a long time'

Since the season opener, defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast and defensive line coach Chad Kauha'aha'a have maintained that USC's defensive line has done everything it should in stopping the run. Now they're asking for a bit more.

The Trojans' run defense as a whole has struggled, even if the down linemen are doing their job on plays between the tackles. USC is allowing an average of 175.2 yards per game, a figure that has risen each year during Pendergast's second stint.

Much of that damage has been done on outside runs attacking the linebackers and secondary. While the Fighting Irish will present a bigger challenge inside than its previous opponents, USC is amending its scheme so that its interior linemen provide more relief on jet sweeps and crack tosses. Kauha'aha'a said he used the bye to implement a new drill over these last two weeks, which was still being fine-tuned in the final days of prep for Notre Dame.

"We just made a quick adjustment here after practice," Kauha'aha'a said Wednesday. "I said, Guys, if I thought we weren’t a group that could handle quick adjustments like this, we wouldn’t do it. But these guys can handle it. It’s like making a halftime adjustment. We just did that right now. It didn’t look good on one of our third down deals we did today, so we made one little tweak, which is easy for these guys to handle and we move forward."

The D-line has been the defense's best unit through five games, not only by limiting runs inside but generating more pressure on the QB than USC has gotten in years. The primary blemish has been sacking him. Pendergast quipped last week that the Trojans should have 10 more sacks.

GET READY TO COMPETE

Pick your champion (you can change it later). We’ll email you when brackets open.

No purchase necessary. 50 U.S./D.C. 18+. Entry opens 3PM ET Dec 6, 2026 and closes 8PM ET Dec 18, 2026. Void where prohibited.See for complete details. The College Football Playoff (CFP) is not a sponsor or administrator of this contest.

Rookie Drake Jackson has spearheaded a pass rush that's also been propelled by Jay Tufele and Marlon Tuipulotu. Brandon Pili, meanwhile, is perhaps the best run stopper on the line. Christian Rector, who's biggest strength is rushing the quarterback, has been hobbled by an ankle injury for the past month but said he is close to 100 percent heading into this weekend.

The collective is a far cry from the compromised unit that was mauled by the Fighting Irish two years ago in South Bend. USC relied heavily on a three-down front then, and the loss of Josh Fatu days before forced Pili, then a true freshman, into the starting lineup alongside the undersized Malik Dorton. Rector, whose run defense has long been a hindrance, had just become a starter himself, while offensive lineman Liam Jimmons was playing defensive tackle at the time and called upon to spell the starters.

The Fighting Irish ran for 377 yards in the 49-14 victory. It is USC's most lopsided loss ever at Notre Dame Stadium. The Trojans aren't nearly as vulnerable this time around, but they have their work cut out for them.

"These are the biggest O-linemen I’ve seen in a long time," Kauha'aha'a said. "Last time I’ve seen O-linemen like that was probably when I was at Wisconsin, going against those types of guys in the Big Ten. They’re a veteran group, but so are we. We’re a younger veteran group.

"Our guys, we’ll be up for the challenge. They’re embracing it and we’ll be ready to go on Saturday."

They have to be if USC has any shot of winning.

Add us as a preferred source on Google