Former top-10 prospect Bear Alexander doesn’t want to use a year of eligibility this season.
The USC defensive tackle is set to redshirt for the rest of the 2024 season after he didn’t play a major role on USC’s defense through the first three games of the season. Alexander was the No. 2 defensive tackle and No. 9 prospect overall in the high school class of 2022 when he signed with Georgia.
Alexander has four tackles through three games so far in 2023. He appeared in 13 games a season ago for the Trojans and had 48 tackles with seven tackles for loss. That was his first season at USC after he spent his freshman year at Georgia. He had nine tackles in 12 games with the Bulldogs.
USC coach Lincoln Riley told media members Tuesday that “there’s no story there” when it came to rumors of Alexander’s departure. He also mentioned that USC had gotten better up front this season compared to 2023.
“He played over a third of the game [against Michigan],” Riley said via Rivals’ TrojanSports.com. “So people want to act like the guy’s not playing snaps. He’s doing a good job for us out here. He’s getting better. There’s no story there. I know you guys are looking for one, there’s no story there. The guy’s out here working hard, he’s improving, he’s in a new system with a new coach. He’s getting better. I think he’s going to continue to get better. It should be hard to play D-line at USC. Like, it ought to be kind of hard. It wasn’t hard last year, and that’s why we weren’t very good up there. We’re pretty decent up there, and it’s hard, and the margins are thin.”
USC is in its first season with D’Anton Lynn as the defensive coordinator. Lynn replaced Alex Grinch, who came with Riley to USC from Oklahoma.
Players can play in up to four games in a season and still keep their redshirt, so Alexander could theoretically still appear in one game without losing his ability to keep a season of eligibility. It’s unclear at the moment if the move is the precursor to Alexander entering the transfer portal at the end of the season.