USC’s Caleb Williams recruitment offers clear window into Lincoln Riley’s team-building philosophy

Adam Grosbard (OC Register)  —  LOS ANGELES — USC’s recruitment of quarterback transfer Caleb Williams was not without risk. Sure, the Trojans had an inside track given Williams’ relationship with new head coach Lincoln Riley.

But there are never any guarantees in recruiting. And USC already had a promising sophomore quarterback in place in Jaxson Dart. He entered the transfer portal a week after Williams, when it became apparent that Riley was interested in a reunion with his former QB.

That reunion came to be, with Williams announcing his commitment to USC on Tuesday. But even if it had not, Riley was comfortable with taking the gamble in his effort to improve the USC roster.

“My standpoint has been we’re going to be honest with all parties involved, whether it’s a current player on our roster, somebody that we’re recruiting, about what we’re doing, about future plans,” Riley said Wednesday at his national signing day press conference. “We’re not going to recruit or try to build our roster out of fear that people will leave. Just, you can’t operate that way and we’re not going to.”

It was an unusual February signing day for USC, to say the least. Or maybe just new usual. The Trojans had no new high school recruits to announce, having added none since the December signing period. Instead, Riley spoke to media about the baker’s dozen transfers USC has added, a crop currently ranked No. 1 nationally by 247Sports.com.

Chief among them was Williams, the former five-star recruit who as a true freshman wrestled away the Sooners’ starting job from preseason Heisman candidate Spencer Rattler.

When Riley was hired by USC, he was no longer allowed to talk with Williams or any of his former Oklahoma players due to NCAA tampering rules. So when Williams entered the portal at the beginning of January, their first conversation together was not about football.

“It was just kind of like, long-lost friend,” Riley said. “It was kind of good just to be able to reconnect.”

Even with their familiarity, Riley said there was still some ground to cover to ensure this was still a good fit for all parties. Williams already knew Riley and some staff members who had followed from Norman to L.A., but he needed to familiarize himself with the rest of the pieces in place as well as the educational opportunities at USC.

Once that was established, Williams enrolled late on Friday to ensure that he could participate in spring practices with USC starting next month.

With the Trojans, Riley said he expects Williams to take on a leadership role. So will other veteran transfers from this class, like former Oregon running back Travis Dye and Alabama linebacker Shane Lee. With the amount of roster churn USC has undergone, that will be vital to establishing Riley’s new culture.

“He works really hard at his craft and he does a great job of bringing people together,” Riley said. “I think that’s what he’s most excited about right now is to just go to class, like to get with the guys, like to get back just in the flow of being part of a team and part of a university.”

Riley does not expect his future USC recruiting classes to be as transfer-heavy as this one. The Trojans needed immediate on-field contributors, not a full crop of 25 true freshmen.

That won’t always be the case, but this cycle, the transfer portal was good to USC.

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