USC Trojans

WeAreSC catches up with Marvin Sanders, the Trojans new defensive backs coach.

LOS ANGELES – The cornerback position is one of the deepest groups on the field for the Trojans this spring, including a returning third-year starter on one side in junior Nickell Robey.

The starting spot opposite Robey is currently manned by senior Isiah Wiley, a junior college transfer last fall who ended up starting the final six games of the season for the Trojans after injuries to previous starters Torin Harris (shoulder) and Anthony Brown (ankle).

It was a quick introduction to big-time college football for the former Arizona Western College star. Wiley had originally been scheduled to enroll at USC in spring of 2011, but academic issues delayed his arrival until the fall. Once he got to USC, Wiley had to learn a new defensive system and adjust to a different level of play in a matter of weeks before he was completely ready to see the field.


“Game speed was the toughest transition,” Wiley said. “The athletes at this level are so much better and everyone is moving at full speed. Also, learning the terminology of the defense. It wasn’t overly hard, it just took me a little while.

“Nickell (Robey) really helped me get settled in. Both of us being from the south, we got together and he helped me with my footwork and learning all the plays. Now I love playing in this defense. It’s an NFL-style defense and it’s perfect for me.”

Wiley (6-foot, 180 pounds) sat out the first two games of the season against Minnesota and Utah but played in all ten games after that and ended the year with 39 tackles, two tackles for loss (including a sack), four pass deflections and a fumble recovery.

His top statistical performance was an 11-tackle performance against Stanford, but it was a different game which offered his top memory of the season.

“My favorite play was the Notre Dame game when they fumbled the ball near the goal line,” Wiley said. “I hit it and Jawanza [Starling] ended up picking it up and taking it to the house.”

Once the season was over, Wiley, a sociology major, was allowed more time to adjust to life as a USC student without the demands of the season, and he says that has allowed him to get better acclimated to campus.

“Things happened so fast in the fall,” Wiley said. “This off-season was definitely a time for me to get more adjusted to school and focus on weight training.”

Now that spring ball has started, Wiley is having to adjust once again, this time to a new position coach in Marvin Sanders. Gone is graduate assistant Sammy Knight, who had stepped into the defensive backs coach role after Willie Mack Garza departed just days before the season opener. Sanders brings no pre-conceived opinions about who should play or who has done what in the past. The players are starting with a clean slate with their new coach, which Wiley says only increases the competition.

“Coach Sanders is very intense,” Wiley said. “He wants us to compete every play, every down. He wants everybody to earn their playing time, no matter if you’ve been a three-year starter or a new guy.”

Wiley knows there is plenty of competition for his job -- Brown is back on the field this spring and Harris will return in the fall -- so he is looking to advance his game to another level this year.

“I want to focus on improving my play-making ability,” Wiley said. “I want to make plays -- interceptions, big hits, anything. Our position group is deep. We’ve got a lot of good players at corner. You could put any one of us out there at any given time and you’re going to get the same effort. I think we’re going to do some good things.”

LOS ANGELES -- Just like Pete Carroll couldn’t control his fondness for the defense, Lane Kiffin hasn’t been shy about siding with the offense during his coaching tenure. But through three spring practices, it’s the other side of the ball that has caught Kiffin’s eye.

“Our defense is going to be better,” Kiffin said of what he will take away from the first week of spring ball. “Just watching them, they have a good look about themselves. They’re practicing as hard as they’ve practiced since we’ve been here. They’re holding each other accountable. I’m excited about their development.”

Kiffin heaped praise upon defensive end Wes Horton and cornerback Nickell Robey following Saturday’s practice. Both were responsible for turnovers, as Horton batted a pass in the air and came down with an interception, while Robey chased a ball carrier deep into the secondary and forced a fumble.

“I think Wes has pretty much dominated,” Kiffin said. “He looks faster and he’s doing a great job with his hands.”

Kiffin said the coaches have moved Horton to the right side of the line--a position vacated by Nick Perry -- in an attempt to produce more “explosive plays” from the quarterback’s blind side. Kiffin’s praise for Robey is nothing unusual, as he became an impact player during his first fall camp. Robey earned the MVP nod from Kiffin after day three.

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