Over the past month, USC football has endured a lot of losses in the transfer portal. Among them, former USC defensive lineman Sam Greene committed to Kentucky. As it turns out, he will not be the only Trojan headed to an SEC school next season. Joining him in the South next season will be former USC offensive lineman Mason Murphy. After appearing in every game for the Trojans over the past three seasons, Murphy recently announced he will play his final season of college football at Auburn.
The Tigers will host the Wildcats on November 1 next season. After going up against each other in practice the best two seasons, Murphy and Greene will have a chance to battle it out in game action.
The loss of Murphy is a notable one for an offensive line that struggled mightily at times in 2024. Although USC shuffled several different O-line rotations, Murphy remained a constant, starting all 12 games at right tackle.
Having to rebuild the unit will present a major challenge for new offensive line coach Zach Hanson. However, Hanson did get some very good news when he learned that offensive guard Emmanuel Pregnon will be returning for his final season of eligibility in 2025.
Losing Mason Murphy could be seen as a deficit for USC, but given that Murphy made some key mistakes in 2024, the jury is still out on how severe a loss this actually is. If Zach Hanson can build a better offensive line in the transfer portal and do things Josh Henson could not, USC might still come out ahead. Much remains to be seen about the final composition of the 2025 USC offensive line.