D’Anton Lynn was animated at Penn State football’s early August media day, lighting up and even accidentally letting an F-bomb slip while talking about returning to his alma mater as a coach.

“When I played here, as crazy as it sounds, I had tunnel vision,” Lynn told reporters. “I never realized how pretty our practice field is with the (bleeping) mountains and the trees – sorry. And the first time out here as a coach I’m like, ‘Wow, this practice field is beautiful. It’s beautiful here.’”

It was a rosy time for the defensive coordinator, who decided to leave USC before the 2025 season had even ended. The Trojans brought in the renowned Gary Patterson to take his place and, halfway through the 2026 season, it’s hard to tell who “won” the breakup.

Dating culture loves to decide who’s the “winner” and “loser” after a couple splits up. The winner is typically the one who moves on faster, rebounds more smoothly and ends up with a partner that’s a step above their last.

The loser, most times, does the opposite.

Lynn left USC and head coach Lincoln Riley after just two seasons with the program and after incrementally improving the defense in that time. With both the Trojans’ and Nittany Lions’ defenses giving inconsistent performances this season, it’s tough to tell who’s better off.

Lynn’s move to Penn State on Dec. 21 was personal as well as professional. He followed a gut feeling to take the job after a 2-hour phone call with Matt Campbell, who had left Iowa State to oversee the Nittany Lions on Dec. 8.

He now lives eight minutes from campus and is spending more time with his wife and kids. And months after his initial call with Campbell, Lynn is feeling reassured he made the right decision to return to State College.

“(It’s) the people I’m here with,” Lynn, who speaks with the media every other week, said Tuesday. “It feels good to be back. I love the players, love the staff. I still love all the people at SC, but since I’ve been here, me, my wife, and my kids are extremely happy.”

The product on the field has been validating, but only at times.

Lynn’s defense is holding opponents to a Big Ten-best 119.6 passing yards per game with players like cornerback Audavion Collins, who has batted down a conference-best seven passes this season, and linebacker Tony Rojas, who has 34 total tackles, three sacks and two interceptions.

The run defense isn’t faring nearly as well, and ranks 16th in the 18-team conference at 173.2 yards per game. Its defining low point was last week’s 34-13 loss to Northwestern. The Wildcats rattled off a whopping 413 rushing yards, which was the team’s most rushing yards in a game since 2003 and the most by a Big Ten team against FBS competition this season.

“We fundamentally were off in a lot of different areas,” Campbell told reporters Tuesday. “And when you’re a hair off in some of those situations, man, you’re getting exposed and you’re getting exposed really fast.

“I certainly believe we’ve got great coaches. We have to go back to how we practice fundamentally getting off blocks, finishing on the tackle point. We’ve got to be better.”

Lynn came down to field level at halftime after coaching from the box for the first half of the Northwestern game. He told reporters he hasn’t decided where he’ll be on Saturday against a USC team that figures to be the best passing attack PSU has faced so far.

“It was just hard to watch from up top and then just not being down there with the guys,” Lynn said, “being able to talk to them, look them in their eye.”

No player followed Lynn to Penn State, but USC did lose 11 defensive players to the transfer portal after last season.

Some are doing exceptionally well this season, like Devan Thompkins, who has become a valuable part of Alabama’s pass rush and came in at No. 36 on ESPN analyst Jordan Reid’s list of top 50 NFL draft prospects.

Patterson was hired after the transfer window had closed, leaving him with a defensive roster that had already been solidified. His transition from his career at TCU, where he was head coach from 2011-21, to his new one at USC was noticeable to defensive tackle Jahkeem Stewart, but trust is building.

“(He’s) slowly getting out of the TCU mindset, with the weapons we have right now,” Stewart said. “There’s a big difference from the generations where he coached with TCU and then now.

“Him knowing that he can blitz people and play zone, it’s looking like he can trust it. Especially our D-line front. And he’s slowly getting to the trust with that. And it took time, but we’re coming together, and he’s slowly getting there.”

No. 19 USC (5-1 overall, 2-1 Big Ten) had its best defensive performance out of its three conference games against Washington on Saturday, giving up conference season lows in rushing yards (116) and passing yards (245). It was also the first game Patterson coached from the box rather than on the field.

The Trojans also recorded a season-high five sacks after struggling to get to the quarterback. Players like freshman edge rusher Luke Wafle, who has 4½ tackles for loss, and senior safety Christian Pierce, whose 35 tackles are ninth-best in the conference, are developing as well.

The Trojans are ahead of Penn State (3-2, 0-2) in terms of rushing defense and are 11th in the conference in holding opponents to 118.2 rushing yards per game. The Nittany Lions, however, are superior in passing defense. The Trojans’ 230.7 yards allowed per game ranks 15th in the Big Ten.

How Patterson is feeling about the defense or his time at USC so far remains largely unknown, since he hasn’t spoken with reporters in any capacity since the Trojans’ in-house media day on Aug. 3.

Midway through the season, Riley still stands firm in the reasons why he wanted Patterson.

“All the things I’ve said before,” he said. “I don’t know that I would give you anything new. One of the best coaches of our generation, in college football history.

“One of the best defensive minds in college football history, College Football Hall of Famer. Somebody I trust. Somebody I know whose competitive fire burns as hot as anyone out there. That pretty much covers it.”