No. 12 — USC Trojans
It appears that ESPN values the Trojans much more than both USA TODAY and the Associated Press, where they rank 15, and 14, respectively. It’s all about the transfers for the Trojans, who will look to follow new head coach Lincoln Riley to a conference championship and hopefully be in contention for a New Year’s Six bowl, if not a spot in the College Football Playoff.
Here’s what ESPN had to say about the Trojans:
It would be easy to slot Caleb Williams in this spot and call it a day, but the reality is that USC’s running back room will be just as essential as the Williamses and Jordan Addisons of the world. Oregon transfer Travis Dye seems to be the shoo-in for the top spot in the backfield, but between Austin Jones, Darwin Barlow and incoming five-star Raleek Brown, there’s ample room for the entire depth chart to bring something to the table. As Lincoln Riley will be quick to point out, his offenses are more reliant on good running back play than meets the eye. With Dye as an anchor and the aforementioned trio shoring up the rest of the backfield, the running backs have the potential to set up this USC offense for success.
Up Next: Oregon Ducks