True to his track record, Lane Kiffin created controversy once again by calling out his own defense in regards to former-USC quarterback Matt Barkley's depleting draft stock. "If Matt Barkley had the defense that Matt Leinart and Carson Palmer had, Matt Barkley would have won the Heisman Trophy. He would have had the winning records they had," Kiffin told ESPN.

Barkley, once regarded as the top quarterback prospect, has slid down draft boards due to a somewhat disappointing senior season and a late season injury that sidelined him for the Trojans final game.

Recent reports have also stated that due to USC quarterbacks lack of NFL success recently, Barkley may have even more red flags than expected.

Kiffin, suggesting Barkley didn't have the quality of defensive players that passed Trojans flourished with, may have caused a rift amongst his players with these comments. It will be interesting to see if the Trojans defense takes their coach's comments as motivation to improve, or as a slap in the face