Alex Grinch said earlier this week that the USC defense was not where it needed to be in Year 2.

That was painfully evident on Saturday in the first half against Cal, which had 318 yards in the first 30 minutes of the game. Cal went into the locker room at the break with a 28-17 lead after averaging 9.6 yards a play.

USC went up 10-0. Then Jaydn Ott went off.

He broke the century mark on the ground before the first quarter ended and went into the locker room with 153 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 13 carries. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza went 11-for-15 for 141 yards and a touchdown through the air.

The defense was a disaster for USC. Considering the context — the Trojans are coming off consecutive losses — it was a worst-case kind of first half for USC.

Fans have been unhappy with Lincoln Riley and Grinch, the team’s defensive coordinator, for weeks. Grinch faced intense scrutiny a year ago down the stretch, but Riley stuck by his coordinator and expressed confidence Year 2 would bring improvement.

That has technically happened. USC ranked 124th in defensive efficiency a year ago, giving up 6.5 yards per play. Entering Saturday’s game against Cal, USC was yielding 5.8 yards per play. The issue? That’s only good for 89th.

The Trojans haven’t made up enough ground to matter, and fans and media members called for Grinch’s job before Saturday’s game even reached halftime: