USC transfer portal recap: Trojans deep in the secondary, thin up front
A look at the changes for USC football between last fall’s roster and the end of the second spring window
Luca Evans (OC Register) — LOS ANGELES — It simply became impossible to block out the noise at times last season, the lack of size on USC’s defensive front a consistent talking point that burrowed its way into the heads of players themselves.
This group, veteran edge Jamil Muhammad emphasized after USC’s spring game, was “night and day” from last season, from philosophy to execution to simply size – bigger, stronger, more visibly physical.
“I know me, and I know the rest of the defense – the whole ‘too small’ comments and this and that, I mean, it’s an opinion, but we definitely take it with a grain of salt,” Muhammad said April 20.
Too small is not an issue anymore, after an offseason of mandated meals and weigh-ins. The problem is simply too few.
A few weeks ago, USC talked returning defensive lineman Bear Alexander off the edge, but even with his retention, the Trojans’ defensive line is still noticeably thin. After the departure of Texas A&M transfer Isaiah Raikes and being connected to a number of names in the portal, USC hasn’t brought in any help on the defensive front in the spring-portal window as of Thursday, leaving the Trojans with Alexander and several largely untested underclassmen up the middle.
It remains a major need after two portal windows have opened and now shut, despite clear areas of growth at other positions, namely the secondary. And with a now all-but-stable view of the roster – save for a few names still in the portal whom USC could still target – here’s a breakdown of USC’s transfer portal work this offseason and where the program stands entering its first season in the Big Ten Conference.
WHO’S GONE
DL Korey Foreman, Jr., Fresno State (fall window): Former blue-chip local recruit struggled through three seasons of nagging injuries, weight fluctuation and positional change at USC.
CB Domani Jackson, Jr., Alabama (fall): Another former blue-chipper out of Mater Dei, Jackson started at cornerback for USC in 2023 but struggled notably at times in pass coverage and surrendering big plays.
WR Mario Williams, Sr., Tulane (fall): Came from Oklahoma to USC in 2022 along with Lincoln Riley and was a key part of USC’s receiver room, but his production dropped off in 2023 (29 catches for 305 yards) amid season-long struggles with drops.
QB Malachi Nelson, Fr., Boise State (fall): Poised to inherit USC’s QB job in the years to come, Nelson seemed to fall off the radar at times in working with the scout team this past season, but his departure was still one of the most surprising twists in USC’s offseason.
WR/RB Raleek Brown, Soph., Arizona State (fall): Delivered a number of highlights in a six-touchdown freshman year in 2022, but fell off the map after a positional change to wide receiver this past season.
WR Dorian Singer, Sr., Utah (fall): Was projected as a difference-maker coming in from Arizona in 2023 after a 1,105-yard campaign, but never seemed to develop true chemistry with Caleb Williams and finished with just 289 yards this past season.
CB Ceyair Wright, Soph., unknown (spring): Wright’s status has been a strange sub-plot for months, a one-time starting cornerback last year dropping out of USC’s rotation come midseason and entirely away from the team since.
LB Tackett Curtis, Soph., Wisconsin (fall): Once USC’s “Captain America” and a highly touted freshman recruit, Curtis showed potential as a ball-hawk in the middle of the field but struggled mightily with coverage and missed tackles as a true-freshman starter.
OL Jason Zandamela, Fr., Florida (spring): Top-ranked offensive lineman in the class of 2024 surprisingly entered the portal in early April after just a few months at USC.
DL Isaiah Raikes, Sr., Auburn (spring): A fall transfer from Texas A&M, Raikes barely had time to put on a USC jersey before pivoting out and winding up back in the SEC.
DE Romello Height, Sr., Georgia Tech (entered fall, committed spring)
DL De’jon Benton, Sr., New Mexico (fall)
DL Stanley Ta’ufo’ou, Sr., unknown (spring)
OL Michael Tarquin, Sr., Oklahoma (fall)
CB Tre’Quon Fegans, Soph., UCF (spring)
WR Michael Jackson III, Sr., Georgia (fall)
RB Matt Colombo, Sr., University of San Diego (fall)
RB Darwin Barlow, Sr., North Carolina (fall)
S Xamarion Gordon, Jr., Coastal Carolina (entered fall, committed spring)
TE Jude Wolfe, Sr., San Diego State (fall)
LB Chris Thompson, Jr., Tulsa (fall)
CB Fabian Ross, Soph., Hawaii (fall)
OL Andrew Milek, Sr., unknown (fall)
OL Andres Dewerk, Sr., unknown (fall)
OL Cooper Lovelace, Sr., unknown (spring)
DL Deijon Laffitte, Fr., Fresno State (spring)
WHO’S COME IN
S Akili Arnold, Sr., Oregon State (fall window): Longtime veteran going on his sixth year of collegiate football who has stepped into a leadership role in D’Anton Lynn’s defense.
RB Jo’Quavious “Woody” Marks, Sr., Mississippi State (fall): Will step directly into MarShawn Lloyd’s vacated lead-back role after four years of consistent production in the SEC, and offers more versatility as a pass-catcher out of the backfield.
LB Easton Mascarenas-Arnold, Sr., Oregon State (fall): Has filled a veteran’s role in the middle of USC’s defense with aplomb after a 106-tackle season at Oregon State.
S Kamari Ramsey, Soph., UCLA (fall): A young, talented defensive back with proven starting experience in a high-quality scheme and a year of familiarity with former UCLA coordinator Lynn who’s positioned to help significantly upgrade the Trojans’ pass defense.
QB Jayden Maiava, Soph., UNLV (fall): Has moved quietly since transferring from UNLV, but had a strong spring-game showing that has turned up the heat ever-so-slightly on Miller Moss to continue to earn USC’s QB1 job come fall camp.
WR Jaden Richardson, Sr., Tufts (fall): Comes from dominating in Division III and has a real chance to play an intriguing role in USC’s passing game.
CB DeCarlos Nicholson, Sr., Mississippi State (fall): A lanky 6-foot-3 corner who coaches past and present insist still has more room for development, Nicholson showed his length can be a potential game-changer in USC’s secondary during April’s spring game.
CB John Humphrey, Sr., UCLA (fall): Was out with an injury for USC’s spring game, but was quietly among the better corners in the country in Lynn’s scheme in 2024, missing just two tackles and holding targets to a 58% catch rate, according to PFF.
DL Nate Clifton, Sr., Vanderbilt (fall): Experienced, versatile defensive lineman who recorded 5.5 sacks last year and will be crucial on a thin defensive front in 2024.
WR Kyle Ford, Sr., UCLA (spring): Started his career at USC, transferred to UCLA in 2023, and now is back with one message: “My fault I was trippin’.”
CB Greedy Vance, Sr., Florida State (spring): USC got Greedy here, beefing up an already-stout secondary late in the portal window with the addition of Vance, an experienced corner with excellent coverage skills who held opposing receivers to a 45% catch rate in 2023.
WR Jay Fair, Jr., Auburn (spring): Adds another threat to an already-deep receiver group, a sure-handed 5-foot-10 speedster who dropped just one pass in 2023 but trailed off in production towards the end of a 31-catch season.
LS Hank Pepper, Jr., Michigan State (fall)
K Michael Lantz, Sr., Georgia Southern (spring)
ocregister.com
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I want to focus on football, but add for those who have not been following it, for a time period unknown to me, a part SC campus was occupied by a Hamas support encampment, with the occupants being allowed to vandalize SC buildings and property, to harass SC students and to disrupt class attendance. My guess is enough pressure was put on Folt that she had to end it the occupation which ended at about 4:30 pm when the LAPD entered the campus at her request. Per an email I just got from SC, the occupiers left when confronted with… Read more »
“Some ideas are so stupid that only intellectuals believe them.” -George Orwell
University faculty, communists and anarchists think they are so much smarter than the rest of us. Put them in front of students full of TikTok propaganda and up is down, right is wrong.
GT, you would cringe if you dug deeply into the attitude of primary & secondary educators of today. It doesn’t help that the cirriculum chosen in the books mandated by agenda laced State Education Directors our kids are fed at school is full of anti-democracy & Christianity. It’s there and has been for decades since the 70s. Only it’s more prevalent now with no apologies offered. If you have a child, grandchild, neice-nephew studying to become teachers, just ask them what they are being told by their professors and the books they have to read that were written by those… Read more »
USC football adds commitment from Hawaii transfer punter Cameron Shirangi
Chris Trevino (USCFootball.com) — Shirangi began his career at Pomona-Pitzer College before transferring to Hawaii this past winter, leaving after one semester and spring camp. He averaged 46.4 yards per punt with a long of 77 yards in 2023, an average that would’ve ranked No. 10 in FBS. He was a perfect 8-of-8 on field goals with a long of 47 yards. Shirangi was named an American Football Coaches Association All-American first-team punter and second-team kicker.
247sports.com
Allen, Why so many kickers? Do you know?
???
Yet, my kingdom for an IDL!
Update — USC wins the Beach Volleyball National Championship over UCLA!
Fourth straight Beach Championship for the Trojans!
USC now leads UCLA for the Beach Volleyball National Championship, 2-0.
Just need one more match victory to win yet another Beach championship for the Trojans!
Always great to beat the Bruins in this sport dominated by USC. Fight On Trojans!
Can’t have a system where highest bidder wins, it’s not sustainable. There will be a an entirely new league, a salary cap, a union, and a commissioner within 5 years. Just my opinion.
My thoughts as well. If we thought CFB was unbalanced in the past, this will be “the haves and the have nots” on steroids. Some form of leadership needs to surface sooner than later, or this discussion board in a few years will just be relegated to discussing our past glory years and nothing else.
Chris…….the whole thing is a complete mess. I agree with you totally.
As Allen has stated, what is going to tie the students to the team……a team that changes its loyalty every year and cares less about the school.
This mess hopefully collapses……after all……in a few years the only conferences anybody is going to watch are the SEC and BIG. The rest are minor leagues to the NFL minor league conferences called SEC and BIG.
Pouring money at players is no guarantee of success. Looking at MLB, of the top 10 teams for salary, 6 are above .500, of the bottom 10, 4 are above .500. The Astros have the 3rd highest salary @ .375. The Cleveland Guardians are 28th in salary with a .625 record. Baseball is a team of individuals and money isn’t the whole answer. Football is the ultimate team sport and money is definitely not the answer. I still say give me a football team of 3-4 stars with a chip on their shoulders over a team of 5 star prima… Read more »
Chris, Totally agree. The present system is totally unworkable. My guess is the B1G and SEC will leave the NCAA and form a joint body that regulates these items, which, under present law, will mandate a union be involved, like in the NFL. I raise academics above. I have no idea how academics are going to play into this. How about years of eligibility?
Oregon just brought in Derrick Harmon….who might be the best remaining DL in the portal…… The game in Eugene between Oregon and Ohio St is going to be a war for supremacy in the BIG……and frankly Oregon is going to be tough to beat. Phil K is just blowing cash like it’s confetti. The ratings for this game are going to blow the roof off. The BIG is coast to coast. IMO until Riley understands that football is all about the lines….USC is going to have a tough time competing with the top powers. Many will disagree but IMO receivers… Read more »
At minimum LR’s got some formidable D coaches hired, but we’re an unnecessary year behind since LR held onto Grinch and company for a second year. I can see, kinda, the reasoning of bringing Grinch and retaining Donte. Stability until things get sorted out. All that competing coaches do, in the living rooms of top D recruits, is open their laptop and show LRs defensive records at OU, and to be continued at USC. That along with some reasonable NIL cash just makes the decision almost academic. Let’s hope we can squeeze out a few low scoring games and change… Read more »
Some of the BIG games I watched last season were slow lumbering low scoring games. A physical defense with a high power offense just might win a lot of games for USC.
Rumor is that Oregon paid $2.2 Million for one year to get him. Per the same rumor, SC was only willing to pay $850,000. Oregon right NOW has a significant advantage for transfers over SC – Oregon pays the most AND it has marginal academics. I think you must have a strategy in place as to how much you are willing to pay for transfer talent versus talent in place and in in the pipeline. For example, let’s say Bear is getting $1.0 million PLUS playing for the best AND the most connected to the NFL DL coach in the… Read more »
Well…..we better get some bodies that can stop the run……or else. Unless I’ve missed it…….I admit as I age I’am not as aware…….we don’t have anything up front except Bear.
Raikes in my opinion played USC. He could not transfer within the SEC without sitting out a year. So he goes to USC then transfers to where he really wanted to go to begin with.
More out than in but what causes me to pause is the fact that most of the incoming transfers are seniors. Great that they have experience but we will be in the same boat next off-season with lots of holes to fill.
Hopefully, LR will guide USC more and more out of the industrial strength mercenary transfer portal biz by relying on developing talented, culture-fitting preps.
That may still be a ways off, but I think that’s the plan more than ever, as the pitfalls of portal recruiting become more evident.