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D'Anton Lynn unlocking USC's defensive potential where others failed

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D'Anton Lynn unlocking USC's defensive potential where others failed

D’Anton Lynn walked along the perimeter of Allegiant Stadium hours before his anticipated USC debut, headphones on, shutting out the noise around him for one lap around the sideline, then another … then another. In a loud stadium, on a crowded sideline, Lynn walked as if totally alone, talking to no one, entranced in a silent, steely focus.

The Trojans’ new defensive coordinator had certainly earned a few moments of calm before the chaos of a new college football season, his most critical yet as a coach. He’d carried on the past nine months amid constant noise and persistent questions about how quickly he’d turn around a dismal USC defense after doing the same in a single year at UCLA. All throughout, he’d kept an even keel, making no promises other than to assure his team would come prepared Sunday.

“He’s actually a lot more relaxed [of a coach],” safety Akili Arnold said. “Because he knows we’re going to play good ball. He trusts in us.”

That quiet confidence was felt throughout Sunday’s 27-20 season-opening win over LSU as USC’s defense delivered in its coordinator’s debut, clamping down against the run and making key stops at critical times, two things the Trojans rarely managed under his predecessor, Alex Grinch.

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It wasn’t always perfect. The secondary still allowed 304 yards through the air. But the difference on USC’s defense was still staggering.

“This new defensive identity is way different than in previous years,” defensive end Braylan Shelby said. “We hold ourselves accountable. We hold ourselves to a standard.”

Nowhere was that new standard more clear Sunday than at the line of scrimmage. Few fronts in college football were worse last year at stopping the run. Opposing offenses bowled over the Trojans weekly, piling up an average of 186 yards per game on the ground.

So when Lynn took over, there was understandably no bigger question mark on the Trojans’ roster than the defensive front, which seemed even thinner on difference makers and depth than the group that ranked 119th in the nation in rush defense.

It certainly didn’t look that way Sunday. USC held LSU to just 117 yards on the ground, most of which came on four carries. The other 22 LSU runs amounted to just 46 yards — basically two yards per carry — as USC’s front was able to force the Tigers’ trio of backs into tight gaps with very little room to run. And that was with Bear Alexander, USC’s all-Pac-12 defensive tackle, playing only a part-time role (28 snaps) at defensive tackle.

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“That just shows you how dominant our D-line is,” linebacker Easton Mascarenas-Arnold said. “They’re a force to be reckoned with.”

The scheme also seemed to bring out the best in some players who’d fallen short of expectations in seasons past. Defensive end Anthony Lucas, who had disappointed amid high praise as a sophomore last season, looked dominant at the point of attack, forcing his way into the backfield on numerous occasions. Linebacker Eric Gentry, whose unusual skill set confounded the last defensive staff, was a force in the middle for this one, tallying seven tackles in just 29 snaps.

“I know [LSU is] looking out there like, ‘Damn, they got a 6-foot-6 linebacker,’” Mascarenas-Arnold said of Gentry. “Like, I know he’s a threat. I know he’s going to have an amazing season. This is just not even close to what he’s capable of.”

For LSU, Sunday marked one of its worst rushing performances of the past year. That it came after left tackle Will Campbell confidently stated LSU’s intentions to run the ball in a “fistfight” with the Trojans’ defense only made vindication all the sweeter for USC.

Whether Campbell’s comments were intended as a jab, the Trojans took them personally enough to make a point of it.

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“They had every right to be confident, but so did we,” coach Lincoln Riley said. “We just chose not to say it in the media.”

The story wrote itself for USC on Sunday night. It started as soon as the first drive, when LSU spent more than half the first quarter driving the field, only for Lynn to call a critical blitz on fourth down, inside the three-yard line, that forced LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier to throw it away. And it continued into the third quarter, as USC responded to an LSU touchdown drive with two straight defensive stands.

The second came courtesy of Gentry, who blew up an LSU run on third and one, midway through the fourth. Soon after that, USC seized control back from LSU as quarterback Miller Moss led a three-play touchdown drive to reclaim the lead.

Lynn’s defense had one last stand in it. Even after a 41-yard pass play led LSU into the red zone, the Trojans stood tall with three straight stops, forcing a field goal.

It was all the help USC needed from its defense to silence LSU. But none had spoken louder in Sunday’s season-opening win than Lynn, whose defense had made a blaring statement to the college football world.

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“I mean, shoot, I don’t even think it was just, statistically, that we won,” Mascarenas-Arnold said. “I think it was the way that we responded to the entire game.

“We believed in each other today, and it showed a lot about who we are.”

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Auburn fans shower officials with debris after wild buzzer-beater gets overturned

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Auburn fans shower officials with debris after wild buzzer-beater gets overturned

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A chaotic scene unfolded at Auburn University on Tuesday night as a wild buzzer-beater was waved off well after the Tigers had celebrated on their own court.

With 0.6 seconds remaining and Auburn trailing 90-88, KeShawn Murphy, somehow left wide open, caught an inbounds pass and nailed a long 3-pointer for what was thought to be the game-winner.

However, officials went to the scorer’s table to review the play, which was awfully close.

 

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Auburn Tigers players watch the replay of a possible game-winning shot that was called back as Auburn Tigers take on Texas A&M Aggies at Neville Arena in Auburn, Alabama on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (Jake Crandall/USA Today Network via Imagn Images)

Ultimately, officials ruled that the shot had not gone off in time, ending the Tigers’ celebration and prompting one from Texas A&M.

The officials quickly made themselves public enemy number one and were showered with debris from fans on their way off the court. At least one referee needed his head to be covered.

One fan sitting courtside even turned his back and threw his drink over his shoulder aimed at an official.

“They didn’t say a word. They just said it was no good and ran off the floor. I probably wouldn’t want to talk to me in that moment, anyway,” Auburn head coach Steven Pearl, who took over for his dad, Bruce this season, said after the game. “So, I get why they’d run away from me. Just from the angles that I saw, it looked like it was off his fingers. But that was just, I don’t have all the same angles they have.”

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Texas A&M Aggies players celebrate victory as Auburn Tigers take on Texas A&M Aggies at Neville Arena in Auburn, Alabama, on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (Jake Crandall/USA Today Network via Imagn Images)

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It is now six losses in their last 10 games for the Tigers after starting 5-1. They lost in the Final Four last year to Florida, who won the national championship over Houston.

Auburn (9-6, 0-2) led 47-37 at halftime and extended the margin to 61-45 with 12:29 remaining.

KeShawn Murphy of the Auburn Tigers reacts after officials ruled that his last-second shot did not beat the shot clock to win the game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Neville Arena on Jan. 6, 2026 in Auburn, Alabama. (Stew Milne/Getty Images)

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Texas A&M answered with a steady run fueled by outside shooting, taking its first lead at 8:42 when Pop Isaacs buried a 3-pointer. The Aggies followed with back-to-back triples from Isaacs to open a five-point cushion that they would not relinquish, by the skin of their teeth.

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Former NFL player Jordan Shipley is in critical condition after accident on his ranch

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Former NFL player Jordan Shipley is in critical condition after accident on his ranch

Two-time All-American wide receiver and prominent Outdoors Channel host Jordan Shipley is in critical condition after an accident on his ranch in Texas, his family said in a statement.

Shipley, 40, was described as stable after remaining hospitalized Tuesday night in Austin. The statement said a machine that he was operating near his hometown of Burnet caught fire. The former Texas great suffered “severe burns on his body.”

Shipley abruptly retired in 2012 after three NFL seasons primarily because of persistent concussion issues and chronic knee problems. He quickly transitioned to television shows that showcased his passion for deer hunting, co-hosting “The Bucks of Tecomate” and “Tecomate Whitetail Nation.”

“It was not hard at all,” Shipley said at the time of retiring at 27. “Only because I never saw myself as a football player first. Don’t get me wrong, I worked my tail off for football and I loved it but never saw that as my whole identity because I had such a big background in outdoors. Really, with this opportunity I had I was actually pretty excited about moving forward.”

Although he enjoyed a strong rookie season with the Cincinnati Bengals in 2010 with 52 receptions for 600 yards and three touchdowns, he is best remembered as a record-setting player at Texas.

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Shipley starred as a receiver and a kick returner from 2006 to 2009, setting program single-season records in 2009 with 116 receptions and 1,489 yards. He also remains the career leader for receptions with 248 and ranks second in career receiving yards with 3,191, behind Roy Williams. Shipley also returned four punts or kickoffs for touchdowns.

After being drafted in the third round by the Bengals, he became one of the most popular players with Cincinnati fans, and his No. 11 jersey was worn by thousands. After a debilitating knee injury early in the 2011 season, he was never the same player, and he had short stints with Tampa Bay and Jacksonville before retiring.

According to his family, Jordan was operating a machine at his ranch when it caught fire. He managed to free himself from the machine, but “not before sustaining severe burns on his body in the process.” Jordan was airlifted to the hospital in Austin.

“He was able to get to one of his workers on the ranch, who drove him to a local hospital. He was then care-flighted to Austin, where he remains in critical but stable condition,” the statement said.

Shipley’s younger brother, former Texas wide receiver Jaxon Shipley, 33, asked for prayers in a statement on Instagram: “Please pray for full healing and no infections or other issues on his road to recovery. I don’t want to get into all the details, other than his life was spared today by the grace of God and the sheer will to live. I believe prayer is effective so I’m asking anyone and everyone to lift Jordan up in prayer.”

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Tom Izzo explodes on former Michigan State player in wild scene: ‘What the f— are you doing?’

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Tom Izzo explodes on former Michigan State player in wild scene: ‘What the f— are you doing?’

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Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo has been known to get visibly angry with his players over his years in East Lansing, but what happened Monday night against USC was different.

Izzo let loose his frustration on a former player.

During the Spartans’ blowout over the Trojans, 80-51, Izzo was spotted unloading on former Michigan State center Paul Davis, who played for the team from 2002-06, after he caused a disturbance in the stands.

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Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans reacts to a call during a game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the first half at Pinnacle Bank Arena Jan. 2, 2026, in Lincoln, Neb. (Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)

Referees pointed out Davis, who was a spectator, from his courtside seat after he was among many in the building who disagreed with a call in the second half. Davis stood up and shouted at referee Jeffrey Anderson.

Anderson responded with a loud whistle, stopping play and pointing at Davis. Then, Anderson went over to Izzo to explain what happened, and the 70-year-old coach went ballistic.

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First, he was motioning toward Davis, and it was clear he asked his former center, “What the f— are you doing?”

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Davis was met by someone asking him to leave his seat, and that’s when Izzo went nuts. He shouted “Get out of here!” at Davis, who appeared to gesture toward Izzo, perhaps in apology for disturbing the game.

Izzo was asked about Davis’ ejection after the game.

“What he said, he should never say anywhere in the world,” Izzo responded when asked what happened. “That ticked me off. So, just because it’s 25, 20 years later, I’m going to have to call him tomorrow and tell him what I thought of it. And you know what he’ll say? ‘I screwed up, coach. I’m sorry.’”

Izzo quickly clarified that what Davis said “wasn’t something racial” and “it wasn’t something sexual.”

Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo protests a call that benefited the Iowa Hawkeyes during the first half at Jack Breslin Student Events Center Dec. 2, 2025. (Dale Young/Imagn Images)

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“It was just the wrong thing to say, and I’ll leave it at that.”

Davis later met with reporters Tuesday, apologizing for his actions.

“I’m not up here to make any excuses. I’m up here to take accountability, to own it,” Davis said. It was a mistake that will never happen again. It was a mistake that’s not me, but, unfortunately, last night it was.”

Izzo said Davis was one of his “favorite guys” during his time playing for the Spartans. He had a breakout sophomore campaign with 15.8 points, 6.2 rebounds and two assists per game in 30 starts for Izzo during the 2003-04 season.

Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans reacts during a game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second half at Pinnacle Bank Arena Jan. 2, 2026, in Lincoln, Neb.  (Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)

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In his senior year, Davis averaged 17.5 points, a career-high, in 33 games.

He was taken in the second round of the 2006 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers. Davis played just four seasons in the league, his final one with the Washington Wizards.

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