USC Trojans discuss practice helping prepare their players for games

USC Trojans On SI

USC Trojans wide receiver Makai Lemon, coach Lincoln Riley, and inside linebacker Eric Gentry discusses practice helping prepare their players for games. Gentry talks about how they have tons of reps in practice and the guys being prepared because of the quality reps they have.

Transcript

00:00You guys were missing some key pieces, especially in the secondary in this game.

00:03Why in the second half is the defense so confident despite the loss?

00:08Practice.

00:08We give a lot of reps to our twos and the guys behind our ones

00:12and really make sure, you know, our ones are pushing the twos even harder than anybody.

00:18So a lot of this time, you know, guys are just prepared for it more than anything.

00:21So when the time comes, they're more excited to play than be nervous.

00:25I mean, we really, really having a lot of reps during the week of just focusing

00:29and more than anything, it's not about the quantity of the reps.

00:32It's the quality, being able to focus every rep and not have, you know, no mess-ups or nothing.

00:37So I can't really overemphasize practice too much because, I mean, that's really what it is,

00:42but just really having guys take a lot of reps during practice.

00:45So, you know, everybody feeling comfortable during game day.

00:47Eric, if you have permission, talking to Coach Lynn in the second half,

00:52as not only one of the leaders but one of the emotional leaders of the team,

00:55at what moment during halftime or in the second half did you realize, like, yo, we got this?

01:03I would say going into halftime, really we had a little momentum going into it.

01:09So really coming in, like I said, it's one-week season, so it's win or go home right now.

01:15So it ain't no going home.

01:16We got to win.

01:17So, I mean, everybody, like Coach Lynn said, when your captains can do it, it's one thing.

01:22But when you got walk-ons in the whole team and guys really being a person that's being the guys who pushing us,

01:28I mean, it makes a big difference.

01:30And so I think the whole team is understanding what the culture is,

01:33and that is just fight to the last second.

01:35We're not in denial or feeling like, you know, something bad is going to happen.

01:40Coach Lynn said it, don't hope for nothing, make it happen.

01:43You know, don't hope for nothing good to happen, make the good happen.

01:45So, yeah.

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