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Oct 28, 2023; Berkeley, California, USA; USC Trojans defensive lineman Bear Alexander (90) gestures during the third quarter against the California Golden Bears at California Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

USC Trojans' Bear Alexander Interested in Transfer To Oregon Ducks?

Originally posted on Oregon Ducks on SI
By Arden Cravalho | Last updated Oct 3, 2024 2:48 PM ET

This is the new era of name, image, likeness and the transfer portal, players deciding for themselves to redshirt (only allowed once) instead of a coach deciding for the player in order preserve and build of his future potential. The Oregon football program is in the thick of it.

USC Trojans defensive tackle Bear Alexander recently announced that he is going to redshirt this season with the plan to transfer from USC after just three games this season. He is only looking at a place where he can get a high amount of snaps.

Alexander is most-interested in: the Alabama Crimson Tide, Georgia Bulldogs, LSU Tigers, Michigan Wolverines, Oklahoma Sooners, Texas Longhorns and Oregon, according to a report from Blue Bloods Bias.

This will be Alexander's third different college football program in four years. Bear also went to four different high schools in four years (Terrell High School in Texas, Skyline High School in Texas, Denton High School in Texas, IMG Academy in Florida). A big question mark when college football programs are taking a look at him.

Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images

The 6-foot-3, 315-pound transfer was offered by the Oregon Ducks back in May of 2020 so he's familiar with what the program can offer him.

Alexander was the No. 15 ranked defensive tackle in the 2022 recruiting class and initially committed to head coach Kirby Smart and Georgia. With the Bulldogs during his freshman season, he had nine total tackles and two sacks. Bear then transferred to the Trojans where he improved to 47 total tackles and 1.5 sacks in his sophomore season, starting all 13 games in 2023.

In 2024, Alexander has recorded just four tackles and has been in a backup role for USC.

During the offseason and then the beginning of this season, he realized that he didn't like the path that his junior campaign was going on. Alexander was off the field quite a bit and his snap count was pretty low during the early parts of his second season with USC.

"Missing the spring, but coming back, taking reps over the course of practice and evaluating it as a whole. We felt like once we got to Michigan, it was pretty much figured out from there."Bear Alexander via TMZ

USC head coach Lincoln Riley was not happy with his decision to leave. Riley wants the idea of a redshirt season to just go completely away.

“I think guys should have five years of eligibility. Do whatever you want, play as much as you want or as little as you want, and the only way you get an extra one is if you have two season-ending injuries and miss the whole season.” Lincoln Riley on Bear Alexander

Does Oregon head coach Dan Lanning even want a player like Alexander? Is it possible that he can turn Alexander around? Could coach Lanning give him what he wants with actual playing time?