Ceyair Wright starring in the USC cornerback competition

There are going to be plenty of new faces making huge impacts for the USC defense in 2023. All three levels of the defense are likely to feature at least one new starter and the defensive front could be changed completely. But a few returning Trojans will play big roles for this USC defense as starters and key depth pieces. Cornerback Ceyair Wright is positioning himself well to be part of that group.

Wright was maybe something of a surprise last fall when he grabbed a starting cornerback spot coming out of fall camp. He held that position through the first 11 games of the year before Jacobe Covington took over for the final three. With that move, his playing time was cut drastically. According to Pro Football Focus numbers, Wright was on the field for at least 37 defensive snaps during those 11 games he started. He played in just 18 total during games against Notre Dame, Utah and Tulane.

Wright graded out well in 2022. He finished as a top-10 USC defensive player according to PFF’s grades. But he did struggle in a Week 10 game against Cal. And a late-season charge from Covington resulted in the lineup change.

Bouncing Back in 2023

How last season ended didn’t seem to affect Wright’s offseason. He worked with the first defense throughout spring and started the spring game at cornerback. A few months later, he’s still there. And it appears to be getting more and more difficult for another corner to push him to the sideline.

“He’s in a really good place mentally,” head coach Lincoln Riley said of Wright this week .”Just his competitiveness is so much different.”

Wright said he doesn’t view this fall any differently than last fall in terms of going out every day to compete. The biggest difference in the cornerback group overall is the lack of a clear veteran leader. That’s what Mekhi Blackmon provided last season. He brought so much experience and leadership to an extremely young, unproven position group. This year, there is more maturity and experience across the board. Wright said it’s more of a leadership-by-committee approach. But Wright’s approach each day stands out.

“He’s just highly motivated, highly competitive,” Riley said. “He’s very confident right now. I mean, he’s invested in it. He’s worked hard.”

Wright Showing His Consistency

Consistency is a word that gets brought up a lot by the USC coaches. They are looking for players who bring their absolute best to every practice and every rep. And in doing so, the coaches can trust what they are going to get from those particular players.

Wright is bringing that this fall.

“What it’s created is a guy that comes out and the performance is there, day in and day out,” Riley said. “Even when he has a bad play, they’re not that bad. And that’s such a key thing, right? There’s winning. But also learning how not to lose. And he has really kind of mastered where good plays are good, but the bad plays are not that far off. And that’s what you want to see. His consistency is really, you know, it’s just grown and grown. And I give the kid a lot of credit for how much he’s invested into it.”

The competition isn’t stopping anytime soon. Covington continues to push and Domani Jackson seems to have taken the next step after an injury-plagued true freshman season. Veteran transfer Christian Roland-Wallace could see time at any of the five spots in the secondary and Prophet Brown is still in the mix at cornerback.

The Trojans will miss what Blackmon provided at cornerback for them last season. But Wright could be one of those returning players who help this USC defense improve dramatically in 2023.

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