Former USC linebacker coach Matt Entz is not being shy or soft-spoken as the head coach at Fresno State. USA TODAY Sports has more details on the man who will come back to the Coliseum this Friday night to face the Trojans:
"Georgia. Notre Dame. Oregon. Fresno State? One of those is not like the others, until you realize it is. Perhaps quietly, after an ahead-of-schedule nine-win debut season in 2025, Matt Entz has Fresno State as a potential Group of Six College Football Playoff contender and presumptive challenger in the reborn Pac-12. The Bulldogs, after all, return '14 of 15 starters, depending on how you want to look at it,' Entz told USA TODAY Sports.
"Notre Dame and Oregon tout 15 returning starters; Georgia and USC also are among Power
conference teams fielding some of the sport’s most experienced rosters with at least 14 returners. There’s the potential for more for Fresno.
“I think our players are seeing that ‘Hey, this experience is bigger than just me. I can get wherever I want from Fresno State,” Entz said. “Now, at the same time, we have another successful season, it's going to get harder and harder to retain some of these players because, again, there are lucrative opportunities out there. And I talk about that in recruiting. We're utilizing that to keep kids here. We're going to help you get the next contract, some way, somehow. I don't know if that's in the SEC, the Big Ten, or the NFL, but we'll figure it out as we kind of navigate this.”
Matt Entz has a big vision for Fresno State. Beating USC would certainly move that project along. Lincoln Riley knows he must have a good game plan to counter the talented and motivated head coach who is coming back to the Coliseum this week.
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This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Matt Entz has big plans for Fresno State going into USC game
