Earlier last week, USC officially announced several of the assistant coaching moves that the Trojans had made over the prior month. On Friday, USC made several more of those moves official.
First up was the hire of Sam Carter as assistant secondary/nickels coach. Carter played safety for new defensive coordinator Gary Patterson at TCU from 2011-2014, and has been a college defensive backs coach for the past few seasons.
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Up next was a hire that had not previously been reported: Chris Meyers as a run game specialist/assistant offensive line and tight ends coach. Meyers comes to USC from Washington State, where he served as the tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator in 2025.
Finally, the Trojans made official the promotion of AJ Howard to outside linebackers coach. Howard served as an assistant linebackers coach/defensive analyst with the Trojans this past season.
It seems as though Patterson’s defensive staff at USC for the 2026 season is now largely in place. We will see if the Trojans have any more coaching moves left to make, or if their staff is now set.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USC football announces three more defensive coaching staff moves
