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▼ The biggest change on offense will come from the sidelines, where offensive coordinator Clay Helton will get his chance to call plays with an assist from rising coaching star Tee Martin. Helton called plays for the Trojans during spring practice, but Kiffin decided this summer that he would take that role again when the regular season started. Much of the criticism that surrounded the coach on the field in his final days had to do with his play selection. "Coach Kiffin was calling plays that he thought was best for the team," sophomore wide receiver Nelson Agholor told reporters the first week of October. "Whether or not it worked, that's out of my control. I don't think he was trying to lose games." The bright side for USC during its 1‑2 start in Pac-12 play has been a stingy defense — outside of the record 62 points they allowed to Arizona State. Prior to that game, a new five-man defensive line and a ball-hawking back end of the defense held opponents to 44 points in four games and created eight turnovers. Click here to listen to BGI's USC preview podcast Defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast took over the USC defense this season when Kiffin dismissed his father, Monte Kiffin, from the job after the team gave up 396.0 yards per game in 2012. Pendergast brought with him an unorthodox 5-2 look to take advantage of USC's speed, and the results have mostly been good. Fifth-year senior outside linebacker Devon Kennard has four sacks and six tackles for loss so far this season. Dion Bailey, a former linebacker, slid back to safety and is tied for the team lead with two interceptions and also has 30 tackles. "Other than last week, the defense has been fantastic," Schrader said after the Trojans' loss to Arizona State. "It was interesting that [Arizona State week] was ATTENTION IRISH FANS Packages are available for all Notre Dame home games during the 2013 season 2013 HOME GAMES Aug. 31 Sept. 21 Sept. 28 Oct. 19 Nov. 2 Nov. 23 Junior Marqise Lee, last year's Biletnikoff Award winner as the nation's top wide receiver, struggled with dropped passes and injuries in the Trojans' first five games, hauling in only 30 catches for 385 yards and a score. photo courtesy usc the first week they didn't have any hitting in practices — and the defense came out and had their worst performance all year." Pendergast's defense will remain largely untouched with Orgeron in charge, and it would seem unlikely that the intense former defensive lineman would allow his team to go a full week without tackling. Although, to be fair, the lack of contact is partially a result of USC's lack of depth while they weather the final season of scholarship sanctions that started three years ago. Kiffin may have spent the majority of his time at USC coaching with a deck stacked against him, but it was clear that he wouldn't survive to the following season. USC decided to make its change early in the year and try to salvage the final two months of 2013. It's not clear how long Orgeron will last at his current post. He's not worried about the big picture for the moment. "We have our team," Orgeron said. "It's what it is. It's what we are. We're Trojans. We put 11 out on the field and we fight." ✦ Temple Michigan State Oklahoma USC Navy B.Y.U ALL HOME GAME PACKAGES INCLUDE *Game Tickets end zone to the 40 yard line. *Two Nights Hotel *Great Customer Service Please visit www.diamondtravel.com for complete details 1.602.870.9197 DIAMOND TRAVEL 25 YEARS IN BUSINESS ✦ Page 2