USC’s linebackers have been backsliding this season

Rey Maualuga could not get past the entrance gate to USC’s practice field this week, fallout from NCAA sanctions that prevent former players from attending Trojans practices.

Too bad for the Trojans.

Maualuga, a standout on one of the stingiest defenses in college football history before launching an NFL career with the Cincinnati Bengals, might have been able to offer some encouragement to a linebacker corps that has been maligned as USC opponents mounted game-winning touchdown drives the last two weeks.

“All I hear is, what’s wrong with the defense?” lamented Maualuga, adding that he had not seen enough of his former team to offer an opinion.

This much is certain: The linebackers have been the focus of a defense that has played below expectations.

The line, expected to be a Trojans strength, has failed to consistently pressure quarterbacks. A young secondary has played to its experience level, which is to say, inconsistently.

And then there are the linebackers, a thinning mix of youth and experience that will be on the spot again Saturday when the Trojans play California at the Coliseum.

USC ranks 100th among 120 major-college teams in total defense.

“We haven’t played well, and we understand that,” said Michael Morgan, a two-year starter at strong-side linebacker. “We just went back to the drawing board and started over. We went over stuff again to reevaluate what’s going on.”

First-year linebackers coach Joe Barry, a former USC player who coached 10 years in the NFL, said the formula is relatively simple.

“We strive for consistent play every snap,” he said. “When we do that, we play pretty well. Unfortunately, we haven’t done a lot of it.”

USC’s linebacker woes have been well-documented: The departures of Maualuga, Brian Cushing, Clay Matthews and Kaluka Maiava to the NFL after the 2008 season; the inability to land Vontaze Burfict, who went to Arizona State, and Manti Te’o, who chose Notre Dame; and the unfortunate medical circumstances of Frankie Telfort and Jarvis Jones, depleting depth.

Last season, Morgan and Malcolm Smith flanked middle linebacker Chris Galippo, the trio of first-year starters taking their lumps as the Trojans finished 9-4 in Pete Carroll’s final season.

Lane Kiffin’s new staff, led by his father, Monte, the assistant head coach for defense, changed to a Tampa 2 scheme and also adjusted the lineup, moving sophomore Devon Kennard from outside linebacker to the middle ahead of Galippo.

“It’s been a learning experience the whole time,” said Kennard, adding that he has been encouraged by weekly growth.

USC learned the hard way against Washington two weeks ago when quarterback Jake Locker engineered a game-winning drive against the Trojans for the second year in a row.

Lane Kiffin later lamented the linebackers’ inability to make game-changing plays.

“It hasn’t been where you watch the film and say, you know, ‘Wow, they’re blowing a bunch of assignments or missing a ton of tackles,’ ” the head coach said. “They’re playing OK, but there’s been no significant plays — the big sack, the big fumble, the big interception, the big play on a ball that’s going to be a first down.”

Last week against Stanford, the Trojans forced several turnovers but again failed to prevent a game-winning drive.

Galippo, the only linebacker with an interception this season, played extensively against the Cardinal after Smith suffered a knee injury. He’ll start at weak-side linebacker for the first time against Cal.

The goal, Galippo said, is to play aggressively while avoiding mistakes such as his late hit that kept Stanford’s game-winning drive alive.

Collectively, he added, the linebacker crew is close to jelling.

“It’s been a big transition for us going through a new coaching staff and learning a new system, but at the end of the day I don’t think we’re doing too bad,” he said. “It’s just the little tiny things.

“I mean, we’re four seconds and [a few] points from being 6-0.”

gary.klein@latimes.com

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