Women of Troy forward Vivian Iwuchukwu enters transfer portal
The Trojans lose nearly all of their frontcourt from last season to the portal.
Ahmad Akkaoui (247Sports.com) — It’s nearly a complete rebuild for USC and its frontcourt after sophomore Vivian Iwuchukwu announced her departure on Instagram and enters the NCAA transfer portal.
“To my sisters, teammates, my girls for life, thank you for all of the laughs, smiles and memories,” she said in an Instagram post. “The bonds we built mean everything to me and will last forever. With that being said, I’ve made the extremely difficult decision to enter the portal. My drive to keep improving and compete never changes, and I feel like this is the best step for me moving forward.”
The 6-foot-3 forward played in 31 games this season, starting 11 of them. She averaged 2.6 points and 2.2 rebounds in 10.2 minutes per game shooting 49.2 percent from the field and 55.6 percent from the charity stripe.
Iwuchukwu is the fourth player to confirm their departure from USC along with guard Malia Samuels (10), forward Dayana Mendes and center Yakiya Milton. Forward Gerda Raulsaityte has also been rumored to be on her way out, though that has not been confirmed.
Milton and Raulusaityte both transferred to USC last offseason, but neither were likely to get significant playing time next season. Milton came from Auburn, where she missed the first 11 games of the 2024-25 season with an injury. Meanwhile, Raulusaityte transferred from LCC International University as the 2024-25 Lithuanian Women’s Basketball League Most Valuable Player.
Milton never started in a game for the Trojans but averaged 2.3 points, 2.9 rebounds and 0.6 blocks in 7.1 minutes per game. Raulusaityte made 10 starts in 32 games and averaged 2.2 points, 2.8 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 13.6 minutes per game.
Iwuchukwuarrived in Los Angeles as a part of the seven-member 2024 recruiting class that included guards Kennedy Smith, Kayleigh Heckel (now at UCONN), Avery Howell (pictured at UW), Rian Forestierand Brooklyn Shamblinplus fellow forward Laura Williams.
Lindsay Gottlieb‘s team finished 18-14 overall and ended the regular season in ninth place in Big Ten standings. The Women of Troy took a second-round exit from the conference tournament with a loss to Washington and earned a No. 9 seed in the NCAA tournament. They defeated Clemson in overtime in the first round then got sent home by No. 1 seed South Carolina, who played in the national championship game. Iwuchukwu played a combined 20 minutes in each of the three postseason games and scored her final two points as a Trojan in the blowout loss to the Gamecocks.
Expectations are high for USC’s 2026-27 season as superstar JuJu Watkins returns to the court for her fourth collegiate season, No. 1 overall prospect Saniyah Hall (2) and No. 10 prospect Sara Okeke both arrive on campus, though Okeke hasn’t signed with the Trojans yet, and the Women of Troy can add key pieces in the transfer portal to last season’s core that included Jazzy Davidson and Smith.
The Trojans could easily be a strong contender for Final Four contention next season. USA Today ranked USC as the No. 1 team in the nation going into the offseason in their “way-too-early 2026-27 top 10 rankings” on Sunday.
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This teams defense was terrible under Alex Grench. Terrible decision on LR’s part to bring him from Oklahoma to LA and then he kept him too long. A fairly good hire with D’anton Lynn. We had 2 fairly good years under him but not good enough. Like I’ve said before 22 out of the last 25 NC’s finished in the top 20 on defense.11 out of the last 22 NC’s finished in the top 10 on defense.If you do the same study on offense, you don’t have nearly as many NC’s finishing in the top 10 and top 20 on… Read more »
We all need to realize that 2 years ago Riley really wanted Gary Patterson. GP did not want to get back in to coaching then and Riley had to settle for Lynn. Now he has the guy he wanted all along.
All successful head coaches have to deal with constantly losing their best assistants, or not getting certain ones they want for numerous reasons. It’s part of the job. And the best coaches win at very high levels regardless of changing assistants frequently. Just because Gary Patterson didn’t want to coach at USC two years ago was no legit excuse for USC to sink to a 7-6 record and barely even make a bowl game while sadly losing to doormat teams like MARYD and MINN. Riley’s sputtering offense only managed a paltry 17 points vs the dreaded Gophers. If LR’s career… Read more »
All we can do is hope now that LR has GP the defense, the whole team and even LR himself will perform better. You are right not have GP the last 2 years is not a reason for the blunders on offense and Lynn is more than capable DC.
I’d take a fantastic defense any day of the week over a great offense. From my perspective, not being able to move the ball, or get it into the end zone is absolutely the most demoralizing thing for a team to face. It reminds me of that line in Butch Cassidy said by Paul Newman, unable to ditch their posse, “Who are these guys?” Even the the best offenses can tend to be streaky depending on how a QB is playing, dropped passes, or if a runner can’t get into a groove, or fumbles/picks become a factor. Turnovers will kill… Read more »
I think you need both but, I agree, defense is more important. I didn’t always believe that but when I did some research I found that 22 out of the last 25 NC’s have been in the top 20 nationally defensively and 11 out of the last 22 NC’s have been in the top 10 defensively. I did the same thing for offense and there was not nearly as many NC’s in the top 10 or 20. Unless I’m using faulty logic, that seems to imply to me that defense is more important when vying for a NC.
Does anyone know what happened to Erik McKinney of WEARESC/on3? About a month ago his reporting disappeared. I haven’t seen any postings about his status. Hoping someone has some information. Thanks
There’s been a change in ownership/management there. On3 acquired Rivals from Yahoo Sports. I think Rivals might now be more focused on recruiting under the On3 penumbra. Yahoo Sports also now has a minority ownership stake in On3. I’m probably over-simplifying here. It’s basically a huge merger. You usually lose some people when that happens. But I have no specifics about Erik.
USC pitching melting down again. They have given up 25 runs in 3 games. Today, can Trojans avoid getting swept by a pretty good Nebraska team and another 4 game losing streak?
Already blew a 3 run run lead. A couple of freshmen inserted in the lineup are killings us with errors and base running blunders. I don’t see how we avoid losing our 4th straight.The loss Friday night was brutal, and a great effort by Edwards was wasted. No way this team is hosting a regional. They better hope they can sneak into the post season, but they look awful against great teams
It’s amazing in baseball how teams start to figure you out. Sometimes adjustments can be made, sometimes not. But I don’t really know much about the game.
In today’s contest USC is losing to NEB 9-6, bottom of the 6th, and heading to being swept by the Huskers.
Center Pania Davis joins Lady Trojans USC women’s basketball has added size and production to its front court with the signing of 6-6 center Pania Davis, HC Lindsay Gottlieb announced today. She immediately becomes the tallest player on the roster. A native of Perth, Western Australia, Davis joins the Trojans after competing at FSU and NEW MEX JC. “Pania will be such a dynamic new part of our frontcourt,” Gottlieb said in USC’s press release announcing the news. “Her length, athleticism, mobility and skill all fit not only a need for us, but our style of play. In addition to her abilities, she brings an experience,… Read more »
Just what the doctor ordered. She has the height they need. Her stats are not impressive. She played on a weak team last season. Hope she has the potential Gottlieb and Burns can coach up.
She chose USC over OU (26-8/11-5) and TT (26-6/12-6).
Here are some comments I picked up about her:
“Wow, another great low key signing. She is a pure rim runner right now, but really, really athletic. Badly needed,”
“She is quite tall and did gain some confidence with blocking throughout the season but her rebounds don’t match her height, her shooting isn’t great, and she has no mass/muscle so she gets pushed around. I had hope for her (as a FSU fan) but she needs to get in the gym.”
Absolutely. Our GM knows this game. He knows where USC needs to focus ( not always a wide receiver) and is doing better than any GM in the nation, especially under the circumstances our program has presented, especially with a HC that’s very singular focused. It’s awkward to be extremely enthusiastic about an administrative position, but he’s a game changer and needs to have his contract renegotiated.
Absolutely. Tie this guy up. He and D’Anton Lynn didn’t get along at all. I’m glad Lynn split come to think of it. I think Gary Patterson is an improvement. Hope it’s not just because of Kool-Aid season. But I don’t think it is.
Can’t wait until we play PSU on Oct. 10 in Beaver Stadium. Could be a classic.
Lincoln Riley at OU (55-10, .85). By that stat everybody should have stayed pat. But nobody should believe Hugs would be .66 or better staying at USC and in the Big10. We wouldn’t have Gary Patterson with Hugs either. I still think USC is way better off with Riley than Helton. The road is never easy for USC football since the PC days.
Gee. You’re using Clay Helton as the benchmark for Lincoln Riley. 😂 😂 Talk about a low bar. Helton, basically a .500 coach at best, never had the benefit of GM Chad Bowden or Jen Cohen, as well as all the incredibly improved infrastructure and strength and conditioning that USC has implemented and paid for big-time to assist Riley, over and above Riley’s insane contract. Without those super important Trojan additions, Riley would still be flailing around, trying to figure out if California was a good place to recruit for USC. Duh, Riley. We all know most any coach would… Read more »
Riley has disappointed us all, and is on the hot seat. But there is no comparison between him and Gomer. Gomer took over a loaded roster from Sark, and was coaching in a weak conference. After a Rose Bowl, it went downhill, really fast. He destroyed the culture, and the recruiting followed. He left a sh*t show for Riley, who gave us fools gold with his first season. We will find out a lot about Riley this year. If we still can’t stop the run, continue to pass the ball in running situations, and can’t close games out, he is… Read more »
Okay. Here you go. Did you know this 007? Probably you did, but here goes. For the 2025 Valero Alamo Bowl, which USC lost in typical fashion to unranked TCU 30-27, over a dozen key USC players—including at least five starters (Kamari Ramsey, Eric Gentry, Makai Lemon, Ja’Kobi Lane, and Lake McRee)—opted out. There were also at least another 10 Trojans who skipped the affair for one reason or another, leaving USC short of almost 25 players. Since LR has so far never been able to even get USC to a decent enough bowl game that the players all wanted to actually suit up… Read more »
I did already know that and I think it is sad. These coaches(as I understand it) sleep in their office until the weekend. They really put a lot into this program even if they are not great coaches. They give it their best shot. I think it is down right arrogance for a good player to think…..”Is this bowl game a good enough game for me to honor my team with my attendance?” Sad
Speaking of so-called “Blue Bloods.” Here’s a somewhat wacky list, demonstrating the amorphous confusion and contradictions the description now inspires. This is what other USC fans said about it: “I call bs lol this is so Homer!!! USC has how many national titles??? USC has how many players in the NFL Hall of Fame? How many Heismans? How many in the CF HALL? HOW MANY Rose bowls? Has a winning record over all those teams but ND AND BAMA!” “Texas has won 5 national championships; USC has 11. Texas has won two Heismans, USC leads all schools with 8. Florida… Read more »
Alabama’s 6 NCs in 12 years will never be repeated again. Georgia’s back to back in ’21 and ’22 may be repeated but it will take a special team that can stay together over 2 seasons. Notice the current NC did not make the list. Indiana ranks 101st with 534 wins. Oregon ranks 33rd with 731 and no title. Who on this list would still be considered Blue Bloods and who did not make this list that would be current Blue Blood? Who’s a current Blue Blood that will regularly make the playoffs but never win a title?
LOL…..ok….how do you define Blue Blood? I consider Notre Dame a Blue Blood but they have not won a NC in 38 years! I don’t consider Penn St a Blue Blood any longer even though they won a NC just a few years before ND and have just about the same number of all time wins. Why? I guess it’s just a feeling that ND is college football. I will say if ND does not win a ND in the next 10 years even that crown for me will have slipped off. Into ancient history. Some would consider any program… Read more »
I guess a “current” Blue Blood would regularly make the playoffs as a top 10 seed. Penn St and ND could do that but never get a NC as will many others. I envision in a few years a graphic like the one above, “Top 25 Most Playoff Wins With No NC”.
Good points. “Blue Blood” has become much more of a subjective term with the advent of NIL and the portal. We’re all self-serving to some degree in our opinions. I am sure there are quite a few non-USC fans who don’t even think of USC as a Blue Blood anymore. In fact, they joke about it. And even though USC rarely beats ND any more, it’s easy to rank on ND because they haven’t won it all since 1988 under Lou Holtz. And ORE has basically taken over football dominance in the west ever since Pete Carroll split for the… Read more »
I think we will have to wait another 3-8 years or so for a definition of “Current Blue Blood”. Say most “appearances in the 12/24 team playoff era”, “most wins in the 12/24 team playoffs”, or “NCs won in the 12/24 team playoffs”. 2 years in, Indiana, Ohio St, Georgia, Oregon, and Texas are in the Blue Blood consideration.
After reading Allen’s post it seems like we could have three separate Blue Blood pools. The pure dinosaurs that have not won NC’s in decades yet carry some aura due to past performance. I’d cut this off at 1970 or so or teams like Minnesota or Illinois might decide to reach….and even as an Illini fan….no way. Red Grange died before most of our dad’s died. The dinosaurs that have kept winning a NC or more within the past 25 years or so and have a positive program. The current monsters……excluding those programs that are dependent on some quirk that… Read more »
As I explained above, “Blue Blood” is now a totally outdated, meaningless term. I know you love the term “Blue Blood”, but to me it’s just a lazy, overused moniker that fits about 10 different sizes. I’d much rather be a current big-time winner than a so-called Blue Blood any day of the week, Anybody, including ORE, IU, NEB, PSU, LSU, CLEM and OU can legitimately call themselves “Blue Bloods” if they want based on their accomplishments. I’m sure all their fans truly believe it, regardless of how they’ve done on the field lately, or what anyone else thinks of… Read more »
I don’t love the term, Blue Blood, it’s just what others have used. You are right it is probably outdated with the playoffs and having to prove yourself on the field. Getting wins in the playoffs is what will define programs going forward.
Those were the days when the SEC cheated like hell and the NCAA rules committee constantly looked the other way because the powers that be wanted the SEC to rule. When the rules changed and it was now legal to buy players with a bag of cash, Nick Saban decided that it was time to get out and sell his new cars to real people instead of giving them to big time recruits and Alabama has not won a Natty since and the Big 10 has won the last 3.
Very good analysis. Although I will say Saban was a great coach. He just did what was expected at the time.
Now that cash is the real driver……..all you have to do is look at where per capital income is the highest……and the BIG country is the power. Having California and Washington and even Oregon join enhanced the difference. They have tons of cash.
Saban was truly a phenomenal coach. One smart cookie. He even came up with the term “rat poison.” That alone explains just how much he knew about what it takes to win big, all the time. I really enjoy him much of the time on GameDay, even though his SEC bias is so ridiculously high.
As you point out, the B1G has taken over CFB. USC’s move to the deep pockets B1G was such a smart move. Lots of short term pain in exchange for long time gain IMO.
Yep!…….Just think of all the good times coming up. USC is going to roll big time in just a short while.This is the first year in a long long time that I believe I can say our OL is going to be competitive. The rest of the team has some weaknesses which may show this year but they are being addressed and I hear our new defensive coach……wow! Just stay out of the way Riley. It may take a year or so to get his entire system operating the way he likes. Everybody talks about the new south, and they… Read more »
Your opinion is respected……I somewhat agree…….IMO the variable of coaching and getting good ones is one of the issues, probably the biggest, that will preclude cash from being the only factor. Example…..others may disagree……Oregon has a good coach…..but I’ve watched every game he has coached as head coach…..I also have a couple friends near the program due to my residence in Portland for 15 years…… The final judgement on Lanning is still out…..as far as I’am concerned. No one directly connected to the program will say that. He is god like there. He seems to make some bizarre judgements at… Read more »
Look at TEXAS. They have the biggest budget in college football, but only finished at 11-3, didn’t make the playoffs, were forced to play in the Cheeze-It Citrus Bowl, and crawled to a final AP rank of 12. Why? Their HC is Sark. Getting a great HC is the key to consistently winning big in CFB. Money sets you up, but you need a great HC and staff to consistently close the deal by finishing at or near the top most every single year. Personally, I don’t think it’s fair to compare anyone to Saban. JMHO. He makes every coach… Read more »
I sincerely agree with your entire post. My comparison with Saban was a bit much.
After reading your posts with the same interest as I use with the financial news…….it seems you have decided that Riley is a guy we are carrying……??? Still thinking he might progress or just waiting for the day the contract is up?
I actually still have hope for Riley at USC, as long as he stays in his own lane and lets what I think is finally an outstanding staff do its work without his interference. He knows nothing about successful D or special teams. But now we have people coaching the kids who do, and a much better admin set up as well. He’s not a great leader or recruiter by any means, but with people like Jen Cohen to fund the program, and GM Chad Bowden to run the talent end of things, Riley can focus on his offense, and… Read more »
I agree. As Illini head coach…..he would beat Southern Illinois most years…..Purdue would be the big game of the year. Maybe 35 to 34……with a ball bouncing off of a cheerleader for a score……LOL.
All that may be true but we can’t ignore LR’s expertise when it comes to offensive football. SC may be carrying LR but not the way SC carried Clay Helton or the way Tom Brady carried Bill Belechick. Neither Helton nor Belechick could say “we’re winning partly because of my expertise in this one vital part of the team” because neither one possessed any such expertise. But the offense is a vital part of the team(although I would say that the defense is more even important) and LR has real talent in that area. I really don’t think Pete Carroll(as… Read more »
The good thing about LR is that he really is a great offensive coach. If you can just get a great defensive coach, you have everything else. We have money and most of all, we have the administration solidly behind the program. That wasn’t always true.
Is this really an accurate telling of wins? How many Division II teams has Michigan, Ohio St, Alabama(who still sneaks these games in) played?
I’d like to see how the wins would change if showing these teams playing Division I teams only. We might be very surprised at those totals.
There’s lots of talk about prospects’ “stars” here. It’s a pretty complicated subject actually. Who doesn’t want a bunch of 4 and 5-stars on their team? Nobody that I know. Bring ’em on. Load ’em up. Stack ’em. Hopefully, spread ’em out at different positions so you’re not too heavy at some spots and too light at others. It’s called balance. Some teams have it. Others have lots of high star guys, but they still have too many weak links that get exploited. Frankly, USC’s experienced a lot of that problem over the last 15 years or so. Unfortunately, star… Read more »
We are rapidly approaching a CPC level roster. Not quite yet……and it may be impossible to have that kind of depth given the NIL available for top notch backups.
So…….I’ll just say this…….with this potential roster…… in year or so…..a blind man without a guide dog would make the playoffs.
Talent-wise, SC is still a long ways from the big Kahunas. On the 2026 roster Ohio state has eighty 4 stars and sixteen 5 stars. USC has fifty one 4 stars and six 5 stars. That might be a little off. I had to combine a few websites to get that figure but it is still in the ball park. To be honest, I don’t think too many teams would compare with OSU.
Ohio State….. The Ohio State that Indiana kicked around? How many 5 star on Indiana. Heck….how many 4 star on Indiana. Besides…..Making the playoffs has very little to do with Ohio State. Making the playoffs in most years is being the 4th or 3rd best BIG team. That might be a team ranked in the top 15. Even with our current level of talent that should be doable…..not to mention with what we are bringing in. Nationally, even with Riley’s lousy reputation the polls are ranking us consistently in the top 15 pre season. They believe we have the talent… Read more »
Absolutely, but with a number 1 class followed by a 3 or so……the team should have a good level of talent. A miss or two or three is expected…..two entire highly ranked classes turning out poor…..seldom….with capable coaching.
If stars mean little, than why are all the programs chasing the 5’s with millions.
If you are suggesting stars don’t mean anything I disagree but I do agree there are other variables. So…..the classes are our coaching staffs best guess. If they are a poor judge of talent……that may be another discussion about Riley and crew.
You bring up a very “telling” aspect that questions common belief. You have to have the horses to win games assuredly. But coaching takes those horses to a certain level of overall success. Lincoln Riley is still the HC here due to circumstances favoring him. He was hired as a championship level HC. But under that title did he really earn it? He took over a program already set up by the retiring HC. If Oklahoma was in the same shape as USC was when he took over, would the results show the same? He didn’t know how to rebuild!… Read more »
Lincoln Riley is the luckiest coach alive. Why, outside of his ridiculously over-inflated contract? Because he somehow landed at USC. That’s why. Without our brand, power, location, logo (yes Larry, they do win championships), amazing heritage, massive financial support from Jen Cohen, and blue blood lineage, LR would be dawdling along as a so-called QB Whisperer with a bad D and crappy special teams. One of the well-known reasons Riley was so willing to leave OU in the dust was because he feared playing in the SEC would definitely expose his weaknesses. Basically, LR has used his elite position at… Read more »
You are spot on, playoffs or Riley is a bust in ’26. Just looking back on the events since Riley was hired at the end of Nov. ’21. April ’21 the 1 year transfer rule begins and July ’21 NIL begins to takeoff. USC is slow to embrace what others jumped on. May ’23 Bohn is fired and Cohen is hired in Aug. Grinch is fired and Lynn is hired Dec. ’23 after Riley could not convince Patterson to return to coaching. Early ’24 USC finally gets aggressive with NIL. Jan. ’25 Chad Bowden is hired. USC has the #1… Read more »
I know, you hate the word, excuses. But you got to admit there has been a lot that has happened in the last 5 years with college football and USC that Riley had no control over. Hopefully, since we were stuck with Riley, he has had long enough for him to finally put it together.
Hate excuses? Not at all. Plenty of people have totally legit excuses which deserve acknowledgement. They have their justified place sometimes. But you’ve always been an apologist for Riley. Poor Lincoln. I don’t buy for a second all this blather about his lack of control. He’s made so many bad decisions that he had total control over, it’s ridiculous, and came at a horrible cost to USC football. As I said, he’s been on his training wheels at USC the entire time, and much too often, it hasn’t been pretty. I could easily list over a dozen hugely dumb Riley… Read more »
I draw a distinction between excuses, which abound from LR, and reasons. There simply is no good reason for LR to have not gotten USC back near the top by now.
and thank you…….for me…..its all about coaching…..most all the other variables connect to it. Although, as Allen stated so well…..who would not want to have a roster loaded with talent……you can’t coach 4.2 speed. I realize you already know everything stated…..it just gets so frustrating watching a team that has pretty good talent get wasted.
They still have a long ways to go but I think that they have the right coach. They need to build up a better fan base. I think that they only got around 900 to their last game.
USC’s 10-man 2027 class is now ranked #3 by 247Sports and #4 by Rivals. Three-star San Mateo (CA) Serra TE Jace Cannon (6-5, 210) announced his commitment to USC on Saturday over hometown STAN and CAL, as well as MICH and A&M, among many others. Cannon is Rivals No. 35 TE nationally and the No. 50 2027 recruit in California. He already has close to an 80” wingspan and is an incredibly versatile athlete with a penchant for mountain biking. Well-coached from a traditional Northern Calif power, Cannon is an acrobatic, highly competitive, smooth, polished route runner with a strong basketball background, good vertical ability and nice… Read more »
I don’t think any true Trojan fan would take seriously the idea of rooting for UCLA. I am very concerned about the Chesney hire as Allen has alluded to. Looking at his resume, but more importantly his core beliefs in coaching a football team, will be a thorn in the side of our program for years ( unless we counter with a like hire). Chesney is a fundamentals first guy. Develop first from the center and nose guard on out, tackling, line control, and defense. A Cignetti type if you will. Similar backgrounds. Our current culture. ( hopefully GP can… Read more »
True. I don’t get being happy in the least that the little gutties now have a far superior football coach. Gee. How cool? 😂 UCLA, fielding one of the worst 3-9 teams in CFB last season and even without a permanent HC, was actually leading the Trojans 10-7 at half on Nov. 29, while USC looked totally lost in the Coliseum and fans booed. It was only in 2023 when UCLA beat the living hell out of us 38-20 before Chip Kelly split. That sure was fun. USC has enough trouble with the always highly motivated little gutties as it… Read more »
I was listening to one USC pundant and he was pulling for UCLA to succeed under Chesney and become an outstanding team again. His reasoning was that SC will always be the team that the best California players want to go to but a lot of the elite SoCal players who can’t get into SC(because SC can only take so many players) will choose to stay home and go to UCLA(because their program has blossomed). That will make it much harder for Oregon to come in here and steal many outstanding SoCal players. Makes sense to me.
That was Marc Kulkin, and I couldn’t disagree more.It is always in SC ‘s best interest for ucla to stink, period. ucla should get much better under it’s new coach, and if so, they will probably beat us, perhaps 1/2 the time. They will then beat us out for some top recruits in the process. So the bruins holding their own against us on the field, and taking recruits away from us is a good thing???? I enjoy his podcast, but he is dead wrong on this subject. If ucla is bad, only then are we assured of being the… Read more »
Ya, I have a hard time rooting for UCLA football. I’d rather beat the living crap out of them any day of the week. The now Chesney-led Bruins sound like a real likely threat to me. I like what this guy says publicly; he can obviously coach up a storm based on his record at several different places, and when UCLA is well-coached, they’re usually a very tough out, especially for USC. I also don’t see how their improvement helps USC in any way whatsoever. It’s not like USC needs any more motivation or competition than we already have to… Read more »
I must respectfully disagree. SC will always be SoCals football school especially since the administration is now behind the program(it wasn’t for a long time). Oregon, to me, is more of a threat than UCLA and this coming years Oregon roster has 30 players out of 104 on the Oregon roster that came from California. If UCLA regains prominence we will have some great games between the Trojans and the Bruins. The rivalry will be back. But SC will win most of them like we did under Pete Carroll. We are 1-6 in the last 7 games against Oregon. They… Read more »
I don’t disagree that Oregon is the bigger threat. But it was foolish for Culkin to imply that it would be good for USC is ucla became national relevant.And if the bruins start playing good football, they will steal some recruits from us. In a perfect world, ucla and Oregon would both suck.
There’s a lot of outstanding recruits in California. Most of the great ones, given a choice between UCLA and USC, will pick USC but some won’t. You can’t get every recruit. Some are going to choose to go somewhere else.
These 5 college football powers aren’t ‘back’ until they win a title Austen Bundy (fansided.com) — These schools still rest on their 20-year-old laurels and need fresh championships to reclaim their status as college football royalty. Multiple programs that used to look unbeatable can’t quite command the same respect in the modern era. They need a title to silence the critics. 1 MIA 2 TEXAS 3 ND 4 PSU 5 USC Did I say there wasn’t a team more desperate to be “back?” USC has no national championship appearances since 2004, only one conference title since 2008 and exactly… Read more »
Here’s what Austen Bundy said about the ‘Canes to justify their inclusion — (basically you gotta win it all to get the monkey off your back): The expansion of the College Football Playoff from four teams to 12 has given programs that had been stuck in competitive purgatory for the last quarter century the chance to reclaim some of their former glory. For example, the Miami Hurricanes hadn’t participated in a national championship game since 2002 before reaching the title game this season. Many fans would like to claim back their perennial prowess for that achievement alone. They’re jumping the gun. This… Read more »
Puka Nucoa’s issues demand the Rams seek a stellar wide out. If CC’s projections hold true, and there are no intervening trades 1-12, the Rams will land a future Hall of Famer.
Riley needs to find a complimentary WR opposite Hines, who has shown he can catch the ball and take the hits play after play which made USC receivers like Lemon so valuable & necessay for Riley’s offense to work. Slowly but surely this offense has evolved to where the opponent’s defense can no longer concentrate on one phase. We now can strike concern on both running & passing keeping the opponent very honest in not cheating up or back to defend. We are now getting fed a lot of O-line predicted success. If this offense can do what none of… Read more »
There’s nothing like being able to run the ball down their throats when it matters, and the game is on the line. As Trojan fans, we’ve all been there. But we haven’t done that in a long time. Hopefully, 2026 is the year USC shows it can once again dominate on the ground!
Most of us are all still wondering if Air Raid Lincoln Riley can ever even have a “truly dominating” run game at USC. Sure he can against total cupcake teams. Let’s see if we can finally do it against the big boys at the top of their games.
Yes, those cupcakes wins are misleading. We have yet to enter the fourth with a close score, consistently pound the rock and eat clock. Waiting for tBIG 2026 opponent linemen to stand with hands on hips, gulping air in the fourth. One of the cues of USC “taking over the game” on the ground.
Could OHIO ST stop Charles White in the 1980 Rose Bowl when it really mattered?
Nope. Not a chance. ✌
MVP White rushed for 247 yds on 39 carries, 71 on a late-game TD drive. He scored the winner with just 1:32 left which — with the PAT added — gave USC a mesmerizing 17-16 win over OHIO ST.
This freshman class may have a couple of young receivers that could make us forget what Branch did as a freshman. Trent Mosley and Tron Baker could really light it up.
College football transfer portal WR rankings (top 20): Cam Coleman (TEXAS), Nick Marsh (IU) top the list Sam Khan, Jr (The Athletic) — Receiver has typically been one of the deepest positions in the transfer portal, and this year was no different. The 2026 crop of transfer receivers includes some game changers at the top, but there’s plenty of depth and playmaking beyond the elite pass catchers. Like our previous position rankings, we constructed this list by accounting for players’ abilities, resumes and the impact they could make with their new teams in 2026. 6. Terrell Anderson (6-2, 220; two… Read more »
The competition is going to be fierce and I can’t imagine all those outstanding receivers competing at a mediocre level. You’ll have at least 3 guys shoot up and rise above the rest. The hard part for the coaches is going to be deciding who to go with. That may be a problem but it is a good problem to have.
I think the transfer portal has actually helped both men’s and women’s basketball. The overall quality of teams has definitely improved IMO, and that’s because players are staying in college longer because of NIL and big-time compensation, and also because they can move to better teams very quickly through the portal, or profitably leave situations where they aren’t necessarily wanted that much anymore. If the USC women were stuck with all these disappointing players who are splitting after a totally mediocre season, our chances for a much better team next year would be greatly reduced. It’ll be interesting, and critical,… Read more »
USC is being consistently ranked in the top 20 for basketball next year. Mich St, Illinois and Michigan in the top 10. Purdue in the top 15.
Looks like a fun year for the Trojans.
Michigan won the NC with a starting 5 that were all transfers, 4 were somewhere else last year. Maybe Musselman is on the right track with his portal strategy. So many schools reloading every year will make it wide open every season.
“To my sisters, teammates, my girls for life, thank you for all of the laughs, smiles and memories,” she said in an Instagram post. “The bonds we built mean everything to me and will last forever. With that being said, I’ve made the extremely difficult decision to enter the portal. My drive to keep improving and compete never changes, and I feel like this is the best step for me moving forward.”
Iwuchukwu is the fourth player to confirm their departure from USC along with guard Malia Samuels (10), forward Dayana Mendes and center Yakiya Milton. Forward Gerda Raulsaityte has also been rumored to be on her way out, though that has not been confirmed.
Iwuchukwu arrived in Los Angeles as a part of the seven-member 2024 recruiting class that included guards Kennedy Smith, Kayleigh Heckel (now at UCONN), Avery Howell (pictured at UW), Rian Forestier and Brooklyn Shamblin plus fellow forward Laura Williams.
Expectations are high for USC’s 2026-27 season as superstar JuJu Watkins returns to the court for her fourth collegiate season, No. 1 overall prospect Saniyah Hall (2) and No. 10 prospect Sara Okeke both arrive on campus, though Okeke hasn’t signed with the Trojans yet, and the Women of Troy can add key pieces in the transfer portal to last season’s core that included Jazzy Davidson and Smith.
This teams defense was terrible under Alex Grench. Terrible decision on LR’s part to bring him from Oklahoma to LA and then he kept him too long. A fairly good hire with D’anton Lynn. We had 2 fairly good years under him but not good enough. Like I’ve said before 22 out of the last 25 NC’s finished in the top 20 on defense.11 out of the last 22 NC’s finished in the top 10 on defense.If you do the same study on offense, you don’t have nearly as many NC’s finishing in the top 10 and top 20 on… Read more »
We all need to realize that 2 years ago Riley really wanted Gary Patterson. GP did not want to get back in to coaching then and Riley had to settle for Lynn. Now he has the guy he wanted all along.
All successful head coaches have to deal with constantly losing their best assistants, or not getting certain ones they want for numerous reasons. It’s part of the job. And the best coaches win at very high levels regardless of changing assistants frequently. Just because Gary Patterson didn’t want to coach at USC two years ago was no legit excuse for USC to sink to a 7-6 record and barely even make a bowl game while sadly losing to doormat teams like MARYD and MINN. Riley’s sputtering offense only managed a paltry 17 points vs the dreaded Gophers. If LR’s career… Read more »
All we can do is hope now that LR has GP the defense, the whole team and even LR himself will perform better. You are right not have GP the last 2 years is not a reason for the blunders on offense and Lynn is more than capable DC.
It took a while but things do seem to be going in the right direction
I’d take a fantastic defense any day of the week over a great offense. From my perspective, not being able to move the ball, or get it into the end zone is absolutely the most demoralizing thing for a team to face. It reminds me of that line in Butch Cassidy said by Paul Newman, unable to ditch their posse, “Who are these guys?” Even the the best offenses can tend to be streaky depending on how a QB is playing, dropped passes, or if a runner can’t get into a groove, or fumbles/picks become a factor. Turnovers will kill… Read more »
I think you need both but, I agree, defense is more important. I didn’t always believe that but when I did some research I found that 22 out of the last 25 NC’s have been in the top 20 nationally defensively and 11 out of the last 22 NC’s have been in the top 10 defensively. I did the same thing for offense and there was not nearly as many NC’s in the top 10 or 20. Unless I’m using faulty logic, that seems to imply to me that defense is more important when vying for a NC.
Does anyone know what happened to Erik McKinney of WEARESC/on3? About a month ago his reporting disappeared. I haven’t seen any postings about his status. Hoping someone has some information. Thanks
There’s been a change in ownership/management there. On3 acquired Rivals from Yahoo Sports. I think Rivals might now be more focused on recruiting under the On3 penumbra. Yahoo Sports also now has a minority ownership stake in On3. I’m probably over-simplifying here. It’s basically a huge merger. You usually lose some people when that happens. But I have no specifics about Erik.
Thanks Allen.
USC pitching melting down again. They have given up 25 runs in 3 games. Today, can Trojans avoid getting swept by a pretty good Nebraska team and another 4 game losing streak?
Already blew a 3 run run lead. A couple of freshmen inserted in the lineup are killings us with errors and base running blunders. I don’t see how we avoid losing our 4th straight.The loss Friday night was brutal, and a great effort by Edwards was wasted. No way this team is hosting a regional. They better hope they can sneak into the post season, but they look awful against great teams
It’s amazing in baseball how teams start to figure you out. Sometimes adjustments can be made, sometimes not. But I don’t really know much about the game.
In today’s contest USC is losing to NEB 9-6, bottom of the 6th, and heading to being swept by the Huskers.
NEB is now up 13-6 with one out in the bot of the 6th. 3 runs away from a mercy rule win.
Wow, 2 mercy rule loses in a row. Not what we hoped for. Maybe some magic will happen in a month.
This team needs to develope some endurance…..start strong and finish strong….we’re halfway there.
Center Pania Davis joins Lady Trojans USC women’s basketball has added size and production to its front court with the signing of 6-6 center Pania Davis, HC Lindsay Gottlieb announced today. She immediately becomes the tallest player on the roster. A native of Perth, Western Australia, Davis joins the Trojans after competing at FSU and NEW MEX JC. “Pania will be such a dynamic new part of our frontcourt,” Gottlieb said in USC’s press release announcing the news. “Her length, athleticism, mobility and skill all fit not only a need for us, but our style of play. In addition to her abilities, she brings an experience,… Read more »
Just what the doctor ordered. She has the height they need. Her stats are not impressive. She played on a weak team last season. Hope she has the potential Gottlieb and Burns can coach up.
She chose USC over OU (26-8/11-5) and TT (26-6/12-6).
Here are some comments I picked up about her:
“Wow, another great low key signing. She is a pure rim runner right now, but really, really athletic. Badly needed,”
“She is quite tall and did gain some confidence with blocking throughout the season but her rebounds don’t match her height, her shooting isn’t great, and she has no mass/muscle so she gets pushed around. I had hope for her (as a FSU fan) but she needs to get in the gym.”
So coach Dormandy will have to bulk her up as well.
Anyone else see this signing?
Blue-chip edge rusher Mekai Brown commits to USC, explains joining nation’s No. 3 recruiting class https://share.google/mdvoGSa081X2j0FGs
I like his specs.
247 now ranks USC’s 11-commit 2027 class #3, behind only OU (20 commits) and A&M (12 commits).
Rivals has us at #4.
Absolutely. Our GM knows this game. He knows where USC needs to focus ( not always a wide receiver) and is doing better than any GM in the nation, especially under the circumstances our program has presented, especially with a HC that’s very singular focused. It’s awkward to be extremely enthusiastic about an administrative position, but he’s a game changer and needs to have his contract renegotiated.
Absolutely. Tie this guy up. He and D’Anton Lynn didn’t get along at all. I’m glad Lynn split come to think of it. I think Gary Patterson is an improvement. Hope it’s not just because of Kool-Aid season. But I don’t think it is.
Can’t wait until we play PSU on Oct. 10 in Beaver Stadium. Could be a classic.
Everyone knows this game, TFan, except our HC. He’s just an intern fleecing SC for stupid money.
By the numbers:
Lincoln Riley at USC (35-18, .66)
Clay Helton at USC (46-24, .66)
Clay Helton at GA SO (27-25, .52)
Brent Venables at OU (32-20, .62)
Lincoln Riley at OU (55-10, .85). By that stat everybody should have stayed pat. But nobody should believe Hugs would be .66 or better staying at USC and in the Big10. We wouldn’t have Gary Patterson with Hugs either. I still think USC is way better off with Riley than Helton. The road is never easy for USC football since the PC days.
Gee. You’re using Clay Helton as the benchmark for Lincoln Riley. 😂 😂 Talk about a low bar. Helton, basically a .500 coach at best, never had the benefit of GM Chad Bowden or Jen Cohen, as well as all the incredibly improved infrastructure and strength and conditioning that USC has implemented and paid for big-time to assist Riley, over and above Riley’s insane contract. Without those super important Trojan additions, Riley would still be flailing around, trying to figure out if California was a good place to recruit for USC. Duh, Riley. We all know most any coach would… Read more »
Riley has disappointed us all, and is on the hot seat. But there is no comparison between him and Gomer. Gomer took over a loaded roster from Sark, and was coaching in a weak conference. After a Rose Bowl, it went downhill, really fast. He destroyed the culture, and the recruiting followed. He left a sh*t show for Riley, who gave us fools gold with his first season. We will find out a lot about Riley this year. If we still can’t stop the run, continue to pass the ball in running situations, and can’t close games out, he is… Read more »
Allen, if you back out last year’s three USC “Cupcakes” what are Riley’s and Helton’s percentages?
Sounds like Clay Helton is a great coach. Of course, we all agree with that don’t we. Please, say something that we don’t already know.
Okay. Here you go. Did you know this 007? Probably you did, but here goes. For the 2025 Valero Alamo Bowl, which USC lost in typical fashion to unranked TCU 30-27, over a dozen key USC players—including at least five starters (Kamari Ramsey, Eric Gentry, Makai Lemon, Ja’Kobi Lane, and Lake McRee)—opted out. There were also at least another 10 Trojans who skipped the affair for one reason or another, leaving USC short of almost 25 players. Since LR has so far never been able to even get USC to a decent enough bowl game that the players all wanted to actually suit up… Read more »
I did already know that and I think it is sad. These coaches(as I understand it) sleep in their office until the weekend. They really put a lot into this program even if they are not great coaches. They give it their best shot. I think it is down right arrogance for a good player to think…..”Is this bowl game a good enough game for me to honor my team with my attendance?” Sad
Speaking of so-called “Blue Bloods.” Here’s a somewhat wacky list, demonstrating the amorphous confusion and contradictions the description now inspires. This is what other USC fans said about it: “I call bs lol this is so Homer!!! USC has how many national titles??? USC has how many players in the NFL Hall of Fame? How many Heismans? How many in the CF HALL? HOW MANY Rose bowls? Has a winning record over all those teams but ND AND BAMA!” “Texas has won 5 national championships; USC has 11. Texas has won two Heismans, USC leads all schools with 8. Florida… Read more »
You said it all…..wacky.
Alabama’s 6 NCs in 12 years will never be repeated again. Georgia’s back to back in ’21 and ’22 may be repeated but it will take a special team that can stay together over 2 seasons. Notice the current NC did not make the list. Indiana ranks 101st with 534 wins. Oregon ranks 33rd with 731 and no title. Who on this list would still be considered Blue Bloods and who did not make this list that would be current Blue Blood? Who’s a current Blue Blood that will regularly make the playoffs but never win a title?
LOL…..ok….how do you define Blue Blood? I consider Notre Dame a Blue Blood but they have not won a NC in 38 years! I don’t consider Penn St a Blue Blood any longer even though they won a NC just a few years before ND and have just about the same number of all time wins. Why? I guess it’s just a feeling that ND is college football. I will say if ND does not win a ND in the next 10 years even that crown for me will have slipped off. Into ancient history. Some would consider any program… Read more »
I guess a “current” Blue Blood would regularly make the playoffs as a top 10 seed. Penn St and ND could do that but never get a NC as will many others. I envision in a few years a graphic like the one above, “Top 25 Most Playoff Wins With No NC”.
Good points. “Blue Blood” has become much more of a subjective term with the advent of NIL and the portal. We’re all self-serving to some degree in our opinions. I am sure there are quite a few non-USC fans who don’t even think of USC as a Blue Blood anymore. In fact, they joke about it. And even though USC rarely beats ND any more, it’s easy to rank on ND because they haven’t won it all since 1988 under Lou Holtz. And ORE has basically taken over football dominance in the west ever since Pete Carroll split for the… Read more »
I think we will have to wait another 3-8 years or so for a definition of “Current Blue Blood”. Say most “appearances in the 12/24 team playoff era”, “most wins in the 12/24 team playoffs”, or “NCs won in the 12/24 team playoffs”. 2 years in, Indiana, Ohio St, Georgia, Oregon, and Texas are in the Blue Blood consideration.
After reading Allen’s post it seems like we could have three separate Blue Blood pools. The pure dinosaurs that have not won NC’s in decades yet carry some aura due to past performance. I’d cut this off at 1970 or so or teams like Minnesota or Illinois might decide to reach….and even as an Illini fan….no way. Red Grange died before most of our dad’s died. The dinosaurs that have kept winning a NC or more within the past 25 years or so and have a positive program. The current monsters……excluding those programs that are dependent on some quirk that… Read more »
As I explained above, “Blue Blood” is now a totally outdated, meaningless term. I know you love the term “Blue Blood”, but to me it’s just a lazy, overused moniker that fits about 10 different sizes. I’d much rather be a current big-time winner than a so-called Blue Blood any day of the week, Anybody, including ORE, IU, NEB, PSU, LSU, CLEM and OU can legitimately call themselves “Blue Bloods” if they want based on their accomplishments. I’m sure all their fans truly believe it, regardless of how they’ve done on the field lately, or what anyone else thinks of… Read more »
Just win….baby!
I don’t love the term, Blue Blood, it’s just what others have used. You are right it is probably outdated with the playoffs and having to prove yourself on the field. Getting wins in the playoffs is what will define programs going forward.
Ucla would never be more than a mere “baby blue blood”.
😂 😂 I like it. We’ll call ’em the Triple Bs!
Those were the days when the SEC cheated like hell and the NCAA rules committee constantly looked the other way because the powers that be wanted the SEC to rule. When the rules changed and it was now legal to buy players with a bag of cash, Nick Saban decided that it was time to get out and sell his new cars to real people instead of giving them to big time recruits and Alabama has not won a Natty since and the Big 10 has won the last 3.
Very good analysis. Although I will say Saban was a great coach. He just did what was expected at the time.
Now that cash is the real driver……..all you have to do is look at where per capital income is the highest……and the BIG country is the power. Having California and Washington and even Oregon join enhanced the difference. They have tons of cash.
Saban was truly a phenomenal coach. One smart cookie. He even came up with the term “rat poison.” That alone explains just how much he knew about what it takes to win big, all the time. I really enjoy him much of the time on GameDay, even though his SEC bias is so ridiculously high.
As you point out, the B1G has taken over CFB. USC’s move to the deep pockets B1G was such a smart move. Lots of short term pain in exchange for long time gain IMO.
Yep!…….Just think of all the good times coming up. USC is going to roll big time in just a short while.This is the first year in a long long time that I believe I can say our OL is going to be competitive. The rest of the team has some weaknesses which may show this year but they are being addressed and I hear our new defensive coach……wow! Just stay out of the way Riley. It may take a year or so to get his entire system operating the way he likes. Everybody talks about the new south, and they… Read more »
“Just stay out of the way Riley.”
My sentiments exactly. That’s one of the main challenges for Lincoln at this stage.
I guess Gary Patterson can talk a mile a minute, and forever at that. Maybe this will help keep Lincoln in his lane. One can hope.
Sad but true. It’s ruining college football. The teams with the money will almost always be the best teams. Indiana is an anamoly
Your opinion is respected……I somewhat agree…….IMO the variable of coaching and getting good ones is one of the issues, probably the biggest, that will preclude cash from being the only factor. Example…..others may disagree……Oregon has a good coach…..but I’ve watched every game he has coached as head coach…..I also have a couple friends near the program due to my residence in Portland for 15 years…… The final judgement on Lanning is still out…..as far as I’am concerned. No one directly connected to the program will say that. He is god like there. He seems to make some bizarre judgements at… Read more »
Look at TEXAS. They have the biggest budget in college football, but only finished at 11-3, didn’t make the playoffs, were forced to play in the Cheeze-It Citrus Bowl, and crawled to a final AP rank of 12. Why? Their HC is Sark. Getting a great HC is the key to consistently winning big in CFB. Money sets you up, but you need a great HC and staff to consistently close the deal by finishing at or near the top most every single year. Personally, I don’t think it’s fair to compare anyone to Saban. JMHO. He makes every coach… Read more »
I sincerely agree with your entire post. My comparison with Saban was a bit much.
After reading your posts with the same interest as I use with the financial news…….it seems you have decided that Riley is a guy we are carrying……??? Still thinking he might progress or just waiting for the day the contract is up?
I actually still have hope for Riley at USC, as long as he stays in his own lane and lets what I think is finally an outstanding staff do its work without his interference. He knows nothing about successful D or special teams. But now we have people coaching the kids who do, and a much better admin set up as well. He’s not a great leader or recruiter by any means, but with people like Jen Cohen to fund the program, and GM Chad Bowden to run the talent end of things, Riley can focus on his offense, and… Read more »
I agree. As Illini head coach…..he would beat Southern Illinois most years…..Purdue would be the big game of the year. Maybe 35 to 34……with a ball bouncing off of a cheerleader for a score……LOL.
All that may be true but we can’t ignore LR’s expertise when it comes to offensive football. SC may be carrying LR but not the way SC carried Clay Helton or the way Tom Brady carried Bill Belechick. Neither Helton nor Belechick could say “we’re winning partly because of my expertise in this one vital part of the team” because neither one possessed any such expertise. But the offense is a vital part of the team(although I would say that the defense is more even important) and LR has real talent in that area. I really don’t think Pete Carroll(as… Read more »
The good thing about LR is that he really is a great offensive coach. If you can just get a great defensive coach, you have everything else. We have money and most of all, we have the administration solidly behind the program. That wasn’t always true.
I think he has a lot of issues……but….what the heck…….it is what it is……let’s win them all this year!
Is this really an accurate telling of wins? How many Division II teams has Michigan, Ohio St, Alabama(who still sneaks these games in) played?
I’d like to see how the wins would change if showing these teams playing Division I teams only. We might be very surprised at those totals.
I look at this list and just say “wow” what a difference a couple of lazy ADs and awful coaching hires makes.
There’s lots of talk about prospects’ “stars” here. It’s a pretty complicated subject actually. Who doesn’t want a bunch of 4 and 5-stars on their team? Nobody that I know. Bring ’em on. Load ’em up. Stack ’em. Hopefully, spread ’em out at different positions so you’re not too heavy at some spots and too light at others. It’s called balance. Some teams have it. Others have lots of high star guys, but they still have too many weak links that get exploited. Frankly, USC’s experienced a lot of that problem over the last 15 years or so. Unfortunately, star… Read more »
Well stated. Coaching…….
Hmm…middle paragraph sounds very familiar…
😉
Could he be describing us? Talent only takes you so far…….and a lack of great talent can be somewhat overcome…..see Indiana. Heck…..see Illinois.
The “star” ratings well explained.
Elite 2027 EDGE/Top 30 prospect Mekai Brown (6-6, 235, Greenrich Country Day, CT) will commit this Friday on the Rivals YouTube channel.
Recent projections by both Brian Dohn (247Sports) and Scott Schrader (WeAreSC) land him at USC.
We are rapidly approaching a CPC level roster. Not quite yet……and it may be impossible to have that kind of depth given the NIL available for top notch backups.
So…….I’ll just say this…….with this potential roster…… in year or so…..a blind man without a guide dog would make the playoffs.
In 2 years making the playoffs should be a given. Going far in the playoffs should be the expectation.
Agreed.
Talent-wise, SC is still a long ways from the big Kahunas. On the 2026 roster Ohio state has eighty 4 stars and sixteen 5 stars. USC has fifty one 4 stars and six 5 stars. That might be a little off. I had to combine a few websites to get that figure but it is still in the ball park. To be honest, I don’t think too many teams would compare with OSU.
Ohio State….. The Ohio State that Indiana kicked around? How many 5 star on Indiana. Heck….how many 4 star on Indiana. Besides…..Making the playoffs has very little to do with Ohio State. Making the playoffs in most years is being the 4th or 3rd best BIG team. That might be a team ranked in the top 15. Even with our current level of talent that should be doable…..not to mention with what we are bringing in. Nationally, even with Riley’s lousy reputation the polls are ranking us consistently in the top 15 pre season. They believe we have the talent… Read more »
The “star” rating system is very misleading. Too many variables ……
Absolutely, but with a number 1 class followed by a 3 or so……the team should have a good level of talent. A miss or two or three is expected…..two entire highly ranked classes turning out poor…..seldom….with capable coaching.
If stars mean little, than why are all the programs chasing the 5’s with millions.
If you are suggesting stars don’t mean anything I disagree but I do agree there are other variables. So…..the classes are our coaching staffs best guess. If they are a poor judge of talent……that may be another discussion about Riley and crew.
You bring up a very “telling” aspect that questions common belief. You have to have the horses to win games assuredly. But coaching takes those horses to a certain level of overall success. Lincoln Riley is still the HC here due to circumstances favoring him. He was hired as a championship level HC. But under that title did he really earn it? He took over a program already set up by the retiring HC. If Oklahoma was in the same shape as USC was when he took over, would the results show the same? He didn’t know how to rebuild!… Read more »
Lincoln Riley is the luckiest coach alive. Why, outside of his ridiculously over-inflated contract? Because he somehow landed at USC. That’s why. Without our brand, power, location, logo (yes Larry, they do win championships), amazing heritage, massive financial support from Jen Cohen, and blue blood lineage, LR would be dawdling along as a so-called QB Whisperer with a bad D and crappy special teams. One of the well-known reasons Riley was so willing to leave OU in the dust was because he feared playing in the SEC would definitely expose his weaknesses. Basically, LR has used his elite position at… Read more »
You are spot on, playoffs or Riley is a bust in ’26. Just looking back on the events since Riley was hired at the end of Nov. ’21. April ’21 the 1 year transfer rule begins and July ’21 NIL begins to takeoff. USC is slow to embrace what others jumped on. May ’23 Bohn is fired and Cohen is hired in Aug. Grinch is fired and Lynn is hired Dec. ’23 after Riley could not convince Patterson to return to coaching. Early ’24 USC finally gets aggressive with NIL. Jan. ’25 Chad Bowden is hired. USC has the #1… Read more »
As I always say GT, you know, there never were any excuses. Just our ability to tolerate weakness. ✌
I know, you hate the word, excuses. But you got to admit there has been a lot that has happened in the last 5 years with college football and USC that Riley had no control over. Hopefully, since we were stuck with Riley, he has had long enough for him to finally put it together.
Hate excuses? Not at all. Plenty of people have totally legit excuses which deserve acknowledgement. They have their justified place sometimes. But you’ve always been an apologist for Riley. Poor Lincoln. I don’t buy for a second all this blather about his lack of control. He’s made so many bad decisions that he had total control over, it’s ridiculous, and came at a horrible cost to USC football. As I said, he’s been on his training wheels at USC the entire time, and much too often, it hasn’t been pretty. I could easily list over a dozen hugely dumb Riley… Read more »
I draw a distinction between excuses, which abound from LR, and reasons. There simply is no good reason for LR to have not gotten USC back near the top by now.
Indiana has sixteen 4 stars and no 5 stars. But they have a pretty good coach.
and thank you…….for me…..its all about coaching…..most all the other variables connect to it. Although, as Allen stated so well…..who would not want to have a roster loaded with talent……you can’t coach 4.2 speed. I realize you already know everything stated…..it just gets so frustrating watching a team that has pretty good talent get wasted.
Trojans break the 4 game losing streak with a 3 game sweep of the Hawkeyes.
They still have a long ways to go but I think that they have the right coach. They need to build up a better fan base. I think that they only got around 900 to their last game.
USC’s 10-man 2027 class is now ranked #3 by 247Sports and #4 by Rivals. Three-star San Mateo (CA) Serra TE Jace Cannon (6-5, 210) announced his commitment to USC on Saturday over hometown STAN and CAL, as well as MICH and A&M, among many others. Cannon is Rivals No. 35 TE nationally and the No. 50 2027 recruit in California. He already has close to an 80” wingspan and is an incredibly versatile athlete with a penchant for mountain biking. Well-coached from a traditional Northern Calif power, Cannon is an acrobatic, highly competitive, smooth, polished route runner with a strong basketball background, good vertical ability and nice… Read more »
I don’t think any true Trojan fan would take seriously the idea of rooting for UCLA. I am very concerned about the Chesney hire as Allen has alluded to. Looking at his resume, but more importantly his core beliefs in coaching a football team, will be a thorn in the side of our program for years ( unless we counter with a like hire). Chesney is a fundamentals first guy. Develop first from the center and nose guard on out, tackling, line control, and defense. A Cignetti type if you will. Similar backgrounds. Our current culture. ( hopefully GP can… Read more »
True. I don’t get being happy in the least that the little gutties now have a far superior football coach. Gee. How cool? 😂 UCLA, fielding one of the worst 3-9 teams in CFB last season and even without a permanent HC, was actually leading the Trojans 10-7 at half on Nov. 29, while USC looked totally lost in the Coliseum and fans booed. It was only in 2023 when UCLA beat the living hell out of us 38-20 before Chip Kelly split. That sure was fun. USC has enough trouble with the always highly motivated little gutties as it… Read more »
I was listening to one USC pundant and he was pulling for UCLA to succeed under Chesney and become an outstanding team again. His reasoning was that SC will always be the team that the best California players want to go to but a lot of the elite SoCal players who can’t get into SC(because SC can only take so many players) will choose to stay home and go to UCLA(because their program has blossomed). That will make it much harder for Oregon to come in here and steal many outstanding SoCal players. Makes sense to me.
That was Marc Kulkin, and I couldn’t disagree more.It is always in SC ‘s best interest for ucla to stink, period. ucla should get much better under it’s new coach, and if so, they will probably beat us, perhaps 1/2 the time. They will then beat us out for some top recruits in the process. So the bruins holding their own against us on the field, and taking recruits away from us is a good thing???? I enjoy his podcast, but he is dead wrong on this subject. If ucla is bad, only then are we assured of being the… Read more »
Ya, I have a hard time rooting for UCLA football. I’d rather beat the living crap out of them any day of the week. The now Chesney-led Bruins sound like a real likely threat to me. I like what this guy says publicly; he can obviously coach up a storm based on his record at several different places, and when UCLA is well-coached, they’re usually a very tough out, especially for USC. I also don’t see how their improvement helps USC in any way whatsoever. It’s not like USC needs any more motivation or competition than we already have to… Read more »
I must respectfully disagree. SC will always be SoCals football school especially since the administration is now behind the program(it wasn’t for a long time). Oregon, to me, is more of a threat than UCLA and this coming years Oregon roster has 30 players out of 104 on the Oregon roster that came from California. If UCLA regains prominence we will have some great games between the Trojans and the Bruins. The rivalry will be back. But SC will win most of them like we did under Pete Carroll. We are 1-6 in the last 7 games against Oregon. They… Read more »
I don’t disagree that Oregon is the bigger threat. But it was foolish for Culkin to imply that it would be good for USC is ucla became national relevant.And if the bruins start playing good football, they will steal some recruits from us. In a perfect world, ucla and Oregon would both suck.
I have always thought it was more fun when both teams were good. Sure made the rivalry week more interesting.
There’s a lot of outstanding recruits in California. Most of the great ones, given a choice between UCLA and USC, will pick USC but some won’t. You can’t get every recruit. Some are going to choose to go somewhere else.
What’s a “pundant”? Did you mean pundit?
yes….I stand corrected
A pundant is like a pundit, but they tend to be more unpleasant people and they smell more. 😎
You mean kind of like a “pungent pundant.” 😉
Yes, but with a more elegant use of the language. 😎
Awesome!!!! We’re starting a movement here like the MAGA movement. Pundamania!!!!
Awesome!!!! I’ve learned so much about pundology
These 5 college football powers aren’t ‘back’ until they win a title Austen Bundy (fansided.com) — These schools still rest on their 20-year-old laurels and need fresh championships to reclaim their status as college football royalty. Multiple programs that used to look unbeatable can’t quite command the same respect in the modern era. They need a title to silence the critics. 1 MIA 2 TEXAS 3 ND 4 PSU 5 USC Did I say there wasn’t a team more desperate to be “back?” USC has no national championship appearances since 2004, only one conference title since 2008 and exactly… Read more »
I’d probably have Florida in there instead of Miami given Miami’s recent success.
Here’s what Austen Bundy said about the ‘Canes to justify their inclusion — (basically you gotta win it all to get the monkey off your back): The expansion of the College Football Playoff from four teams to 12 has given programs that had been stuck in competitive purgatory for the last quarter century the chance to reclaim some of their former glory. For example, the Miami Hurricanes hadn’t participated in a national championship game since 2002 before reaching the title game this season. Many fans would like to claim back their perennial prowess for that achievement alone. They’re jumping the gun. This… Read more »
Colin Cowherd’s Top 15 Draft Picks 1 Raiders — QB Fernando Mendoza (IU) 2 Jets — EDGE Arvell Reese (OHIO ST) 3 Cardinals — EDGE David Bailey (TT) 4 Titans — RB Jeremiah Love (ND) 5 Giants — LB Sonny Styles (OHIO ST) 6 Browns. — WR Carnell Tate (OHIO ST) 7 Commanders — OT Francis Mauigoa (MIA) 8 Saints — EDGE Rueben Bain, Jr (MIA) 9 Chiefs — OT Spencer Fano (UTAH) 10 Bengals — S Caleb Downs (OHIO ST) 11 Dolphins — CB Mansoor Delane (LSU) 12 Cowboys — CB Jermod McCoy (TENN) 13 Rams — WR Makai… Read more »
Puka Nucoa’s issues demand the Rams seek a stellar wide out. If CC’s projections hold true, and there are no intervening trades 1-12, the Rams will land a future Hall of Famer.
We’re gonna miss Makai. What a baller. But USC is always stacked at WR and Tanook Hines looks like he could become another Trojan great.
Riley needs to find a complimentary WR opposite Hines, who has shown he can catch the ball and take the hits play after play which made USC receivers like Lemon so valuable & necessay for Riley’s offense to work. Slowly but surely this offense has evolved to where the opponent’s defense can no longer concentrate on one phase. We now can strike concern on both running & passing keeping the opponent very honest in not cheating up or back to defend. We are now getting fed a lot of O-line predicted success. If this offense can do what none of… Read more »
There’s nothing like being able to run the ball down their throats when it matters, and the game is on the line. As Trojan fans, we’ve all been there. But we haven’t done that in a long time. Hopefully, 2026 is the year USC shows it can once again dominate on the ground!
LR was marginally improved in the run game last year. Previously he ran only to give the WR’s a rest.
Most of us are all still wondering if Air Raid Lincoln Riley can ever even have a “truly dominating” run game at USC. Sure he can against total cupcake teams. Let’s see if we can finally do it against the big boys at the top of their games.
Yes, those cupcakes wins are misleading. We have yet to enter the fourth with a close score, consistently pound the rock and eat clock. Waiting for tBIG 2026 opponent linemen to stand with hands on hips, gulping air in the fourth. One of the cues of USC “taking over the game” on the ground.
You mean like this?
Could OHIO ST stop Charles White in the 1980 Rose Bowl when it really mattered?
Nope. Not a chance. ✌
MVP White rushed for 247 yds on 39 carries, 71 on a late-game TD drive. He scored the winner with just 1:32 left which — with the PAT added — gave USC a mesmerizing 17-16 win over OHIO ST.
This freshman class may have a couple of young receivers that could make us forget what Branch did as a freshman. Trent Mosley and Tron Baker could really light it up.
Poor Mendoza, from the top in college to the bottom in the NFL. That’s the way for #1 drafted QBs.
So true. I’d get in touch with Sam Darnold, the latest living proof that if you truly have what it takes, you can still make it to the very top.
Get drafted then get outta Dodge as quick as you can. Then travel the west till you find gold.
College football transfer portal WR rankings (top 20): Cam Coleman (TEXAS), Nick Marsh (IU) top the list Sam Khan, Jr (The Athletic) — Receiver has typically been one of the deepest positions in the transfer portal, and this year was no different. The 2026 crop of transfer receivers includes some game changers at the top, but there’s plenty of depth and playmaking beyond the elite pass catchers. Like our previous position rankings, we constructed this list by accounting for players’ abilities, resumes and the impact they could make with their new teams in 2026. 6. Terrell Anderson (6-2, 220; two… Read more »
If you can believe the highlight film, he looks good.
The problem with highlight reel eval is that it never shows this stuff.
“He’ll have to hang on to the ball better as his drop rate (7.4%) was on the higher end.”
I suspect our receiver group will be just fine, if not great. We ALWAYS produce big at the WR spot.
The competition is going to be fierce and I can’t imagine all those outstanding receivers competing at a mediocre level. You’ll have at least 3 guys shoot up and rise above the rest. The hard part for the coaches is going to be deciding who to go with. That may be a problem but it is a good problem to have.
The transfer portal will have negative consequences to Women’s NCAA basketball. It has become the “one-and-done” syndrome on steroids.
I think the transfer portal has actually helped both men’s and women’s basketball. The overall quality of teams has definitely improved IMO, and that’s because players are staying in college longer because of NIL and big-time compensation, and also because they can move to better teams very quickly through the portal, or profitably leave situations where they aren’t necessarily wanted that much anymore. If the USC women were stuck with all these disappointing players who are splitting after a totally mediocre season, our chances for a much better team next year would be greatly reduced. It’ll be interesting, and critical,… Read more »
USC is being consistently ranked in the top 20 for basketball next year. Mich St, Illinois and Michigan in the top 10. Purdue in the top 15.
Looks like a fun year for the Trojans.
It’ll be very exciting to see JuJu come back. Just how spectacular will she be after all this rehab time off and dealing with her knee injury?
Michigan won the NC with a starting 5 that were all transfers, 4 were somewhere else last year. Maybe Musselman is on the right track with his portal strategy. So many schools reloading every year will make it wide open every season.