Will Troy’s identity finally change?
For the past decade, the Trojans were known as one of the most gritty and premier defenses in the Sun Belt. The Trojans’ defense helped carry them to five double-digit win seasons and three conference championships during that time. Most notably are the back-to-back conference titles they’ve won the past two seasons under former coach Jon Sumrall, who embodied the defensive culture. Last year, the Trojans had the best defense in the Sun Belt, allowing 17.1 points and 308 yards per game.
Now the Trojans are being led by a coach with an offensive background. Gerad Parker has spent all of his 18-year coaching career as an offensive coach and most recently was the offensive coordinator at Notre Dame.
And Parker has to nearly rebuild the defense that was so dominant last year. The Trojans are returning just four players on that side of the ball who saw a lot of playing time.
Jordan Stringer, Terry Thomas Return At Linebacker For Troy
Linebackers Jordan Stringer and Terry Thomas are the two most experienced players who will be back starting for the Trojans. Stringer started the final six games of the season and was third on the roster with 68 total tackles. He also added 4.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, and an interception. Thomas started nine games and recorded 41 tackles, three TFLs, and 1.5 sacks.
This duo will be heavily relied on to keep Troy’s defense playing at a high level.
At defensive tackle, Raymond Cutts spent some time injured but made his presence felt when he was on the field. The senior finished with 19 tackles and 1.5 TFLs. He was playing some of his best football at the end of the season. Luis Medina is also likely to be a starter on the defensive line this fall and had 23 tackles and one sack last year. Medina started one game in 2023.
Malaki Pegues and Julian Peterson played limited snaps last year but should have expanded roles going forward. Pegues had eight tackles and 1.5 sacks while Peterson had five tackles and 1.5 sacks.
Troy will also be looking for new guys to fill in their Bandit and Spear positions. Jah-Mal Williams is a strong candidate to step into the Bandit spot, and Jordan Perry looks like he might be the favorite to start at Spear. Williams transferred from Cincinnati, and Perry is from Kansas State.
Troy’s Secondary Facing Turnover
The secondary will feature plenty of new faces as well. In fact, the only returner in the secondary who could see significant playing time — outside of special teams — is safety Justin Powe. Powe’s role should expand significantly this fall as he comes off a three-tackle season. Cecil Powell could fill in the other safety spot after transferring from NC State where he saw action in 12 games, mainly on special teams.
Transfer Trent Henry looks to be in line to start at one of the cornerback spots. Henry saw action in nine games for LSU last year, recording 13 tackles, three interceptions, and one pass breakup. There will be a battle for the other starting spot, but returning senior Damaje Yancey could lock up the job. Yancey appeared in nine games last year in limited action.
It’s going to be a lot of fun to see how Troy matches up against the rest of the Sun Belt in its first season under Parker. The competitiveness of the league isn’t going away and might be even tougher than it was in 2023.
