Defensive Stance

Subtract a Butkus Award winner from last season’s USC defense. Chris Claiborne is now a Detroit Lion.

Pencil in a lineup with only two senior starters.

Now try to avoid saying “rebuilding” or “wait till next year” in earshot of the players, because the Trojan defense will have none of it.

“We feel we’re just as good as last year, even though we lost some big-time players,” said outside linebacker Sultan Abdul-Malik, the Trojans’ sack leader the last two seasons as a defensive end, now honed into a leaner, quicker player at his new position.

“There are players on this team who have just as much talent as those guys, even though Chris is a great linebacker,” Abdul-Malik said. “We have guys that will step in there.”

Let USC Coach Paul Hackett talk about how this defense will need time to settle in and how the offense might have to carry the team early.

It didn’t necessarily look like that in a scrimmage Tuesday, when the first-team defense gave up no points, though it didn’t go against the first-team offense very often.

“Coach Hackett tells the press that the defense might be a little weak this year, but I really don’t see us being weak,” cornerback Antuan Simmons said. “I think it’s going to be the strength of our team again.”

That’s exactly what it was last season, when the Trojans were breaking in Carson Palmer as a freshman quarterback.

USC’s defense, anchored by Claiborne, safety Rashard Cook and cornerback Daylon McCutcheon, led the Pacific 10 Conference in total defense, pass-efficiency defense and scoring defense, allowing 18.5 points a game.

Now Palmer looks stunningly like a veteran, and the raised eyebrows have turned to the defense.

“We have a new set of guys, but we’re playing real good together and everybody has that mentality that nobody’s going to score on us,” said tackle Aaron Williams, one of the two senior starters, along with safety David Gibson.

“That was our mind-set, every time we went out there,” said Simmons, who replaces McCutcheon as the No. 1 cornerback. “That’s how we felt. It was up to us not to let them score. The offense will put something up. If we don’t let them score, we’ll win. We feel the same way this year.”

So Zeke Moreno takes Claiborne’s spot as the signal-caller at middle linebacker, Simmons takes McCutcheon’s place, Gibson steps back to his old safety position vacated by Cook, and young but already experienced players fill the gaps.

The misleading statistic is probably this one: Only three starters return at the same positions they played last season.

They are Ennis Davis, a first-team all-conference tackle, Simmons, a second-team all-conference cornerback, and Williams, another tackle.

Three other starters return at new positions, but they’re hardly unfamiliar. Gibson actually is returning to the position he played two seasons ago, Abdul-Malik is moving back to his high school position, and Moreno is moving over from outside linebacker.

“I’m just delighted with Zeke’s leadership, the natural way he takes command of things,” Hackett said. “I think a lot of it has to do with watching Chris. The bonus of having a Chris Claiborne as the Butkus winner and all that, is your other guys watch.”

Then there are two other starters who were regulars and started four and seven games, respectively, last season, free safety Ifeanyi Ohalete and lineman Shamsud-Din Abdul-Shaheed. (Abdul-Shaheed is academically suspended for the opener against Hawaii.)

That makes eight veterans, and the three other starters are cornerback Kris Richard, who could be pushed by freshman Darrell Rideaux; Kori Dickerson, an athletic defensive end, and in all likelihood, junior college linebacker Markus Steele, who has eye-catching natural ability and will wear Claiborne’s No. 55.

“I’ve seen him run around and I’m excited,” said Gibson, who played outside linebacker last year. “I can’t wait to see No. 55 back out there. Any No. 55 has good vibes for us. But he covers some ground, and really flies around out there.

“[The coaches] can be political about it, but he’s going to be the starter.”

Among the tests of the new defense will be the wide-open passing attacks USC will see, not only in the Pac-10, but right from the start against Hawaii, which figures to play the run-and-shoot under new Coach June Jones.

Richard, the new cornerback, will find out early if he’s ready, and the Trojans will be using a lot of defensive backs.

“Hawaii will be in the run-and-shoot and we’ll be in nickel most of the game,” Simmons said. “We’re going to have to play well.”

But even Hackett already admits the defense is coming along.

“Things have fit together a little quicker than I expected,” he said. “Our defense plays like wildfire.

“Now, are we up to last year? We’ll be tested in the opener. Hawaii is going to throw the ball 60 times and spread us all over the field.”

Ready or not, here comes the season.

“There are diminished expectations, because the offense returns a lot of players,” Gibson said. “The SC fans and the media, I think they want to see the offense come back. The defense is a little insulted. But whether or not people say we’re going to carry the team, we will do the job defensively.”