Report: D'Anton Lynn will not coach USC in Alamo Bowl, Eric Henderson to call plays on defense

As he prepares to take the Penn State defensive coordinator job, D’Anton Lynn will not coach USC in the Alamo Bowl against TCU, the Los Angeles Times’ Ryan Kartje reported. Co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach Eric Henderson will call the Trojans’ plays on defense.

Lynn and USC came to a “mutual decision” to leave the team ahead of Tuesday’s game, Kartje reported. He emerged as the top target for the defensive coordinator job at his alma mater, Penn State, On3’s Pete Nakos reported Monday.

When asked previously about rumors surrounding the Penn State job, Lynn declined comment. He instead shifted focus back to the task at hand, which was getting ready for the Alamo Bowl.

“I just focus on the players,” Lynn said Sunday. “I just focus on what’s in front of me, their growth, their development and just trying to get their 10th win.”

Lynn spent the last two seasons at USC, where he helped the Trojans’ defense improve after the transition to the Big Ten. They went from allowing 377.1 yards per game in 2024 to 348.8 in 2025. In addition, their points allowed per game went from 24.1 to 22.4 during that time.

USC head coach Lincoln Riley also received a question about Lynn and the links to Penn State. He called it a testament to the work the Trojans’ staff has done as assistant coaches’ names come up in the rumor mill.

“This is just what happens this time of year, especially when you have a really good staff, and are doing a lot of really positive things,” Riley said Dec. 21. “This is part of what happens. So, we’ve seen it, we understand it. We’ll obviously see how it plays out.”

More on D’Anton Lynn’s coaching career

Before his time at USC, D’Anton Lynn was the defensive coordinator at UCLA. The Bruins had the best defense in the Pac-12 during his lone year with the program with 301.5 yards allowed per game, and their 18.4 points allowed per game ranked second in the conference.

Lynn played four seasons at Penn State as a cornerback and was a three-time honorable mention All-Big Ten selection. He went undrafted in the 2012 NFL Draft before signing with the New York Jets’ practice squad. He later started his coaching career with the franchise as a seasonal intern.

From there, Lynn worked his way up the coaching ranks in the NFL from 2015-22. He had stints with the Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Chargers, Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens before becoming UCLA’s defensive coordinator in 2023. His father, Anthony Lynn, currently works as the Washington Commanders’ running backs coach.