Tag: usc athletics

USC’s player problem is bigger than just the transfer portal

When players transfer out of USC, it stings, but if the player never really plays well for USC, that’s not a portal problem. Other factors are at work.

Two years after his departure from USC football, C.J. Williams went back to the transfer portal once again. A four-star wide receiver in the class of 2022, Williams was one of Lincoln Riley’s first big recruiting wins upon his arrival in Los Angeles. After a freshman season in which he caught just four passes for 34 yards, however, Williams elected to enter the transfer portal.

Williams landed at Wisconsin, where he spent the past two seasons. In two years with the Badgers, he caught 31 passes for 396 yards and two touchdowns. With his team’s season now over, Williams recently announced that he will be entering the transfer portal for a second time.

This past September, Williams returned to the Coliseum with Wisconsin. He caught one pass for 15 yards against the Trojans in a 38-21 loss. Now, Williams is back in the transfer portal once again. With one year of eligibility remaining, he will look to find a landing spot that will allow him to finally showcase why he was such a highly-touted recruit coming out of high school three years ago.

The story of C.J. Williams brings up the important point that while a lot of highly-rated football players have transferred out of USC, what’s arguably worse is that most of those players never really played like elite players when the Trojans and Lincoln Riley had them.

Either these players aren’t being evaluated well when USC considers which players to add, or the players aren’t being coached well enough once they get into the program. In Williams’ case, his lack of production at Wisconsin suggests this was more of an evaluation problem than a development problem, but either way, USC can’t be making deficient decisions which lead to washouts.

Jury is still out on how much transfer portal losses will hurt USC

The overall net effect of various losses in the transfer portal is an unresolved question. Can Zach Hanson and other staffers make up the difference?

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.

USC women’s basketball assistant coach leaves for WNBA job

USC women’s basketball is losing a coaching staff member, but for the best possible reason: a WNBA head coaching job. This builds the USC brand.

Less than 48 hours after a statement victory, the USC women’s basketball program lost a member of its coaching staff, but for the best possible reason. On Monday, USC assistant Chris Koclanes was officially named the head coach of the WNBA’s Dallas Wings. He will take over a team that finished with the second-worst record in the league this past season at 9-31.

Koclanes was in his second season on Lindsay Gottlieb’s USC staff. Prior to that, he served as an assistant coach in the WNBA with both the Connecticut Sun and the Los Angeles Sparks.

“We are thrilled for Chris to be named the new head coach of the Dallas Wings,” Gottlieb said in a statement. “Chris has a unique ability to see the game, break down the game, and then transfer that knowledge to players in clear and relatable ways. He’s a true teacher with the ability to connect with people.

“Chris came to us from the [WNBA] and immediately brought a new and important element to our staff and players. He’s been a huge part of our growth trajectory at USC, and now we are proud and excited to see him lead the Wings.”

Although Koclanes will take over a significant rebuild, he does have one thing going for him: Dallas recently won the No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft Lottery. UConn star Paige Bueckers is widely projected as the top selection in next Spring’s draft.

Prominent college football analyst rips Lincoln Riley and USC

USC football is in a sad state, and even though the program has received good news the past week, that’s not enough to change the overall reality — not yet.

To say that it has been a rough few months for the USC Trojans would be a massive understatement. The Trojans just wrapped up an incredibly disappointing 6-6 regular season, and are headed for the Las Vegas Bowl rather than the playoff. Meanwhile, recruiting has not been nearly good enough, and the program has lost a significant number of players in the transfer portal.

On his show last week, college football analyst Josh Pate of CBS Sports discussed the current state of the Trojans.

“Let’s pretend it’s 2010,” Pate said. “I come to you and I give you a vision of the future of college football. And I tell you, we will have wide open free agency. There will be no cap on spending. And players will move all over the place at their discretion.

“I think USC would’ve terrified you. I think if I saw a vision of the future of college football, I would’ve thought, USC’s gonna be unstoppable . . . USC’s gonna dominate. They’re gonna go scorched Earth.

“And here we are all those years later, and that’s the format, and USC sucks.”

It should be noted that Pate has been relatively bullish on Lincoln Riley in the past. Hence, the fact that he is now skeptical of his ability to succeed at USC is a major cause for concern.

To Riley’s credit, he has landed several key transfer targets in recent days, while also securing the return of two of USC’s best players for 2025. But the Trojans will need to do a lot more than that if they want to be legitimate contenders next season and beyond.

USC fans dream of better days as Notre Dame hosts, wins playoff game

The misery of USC football is self-evident on its own terms, but that misery was magnified when Notre Dame hosted and won a playoff game on Friday night.

Friday night was a historic one for the sport of college football. It marked the first ever game of the new 12-team College Football Playoff.

Under the new format, first round games will be played on college campuses. Throughout the sport, fans and analysts took to social media to celebrate how amazing it was having a playoff game in front of 80,000 screaming fans in a historic venue, as opposed to in a generic NFL dome.

Unfortunately for USC fans, the team that got to host the first ever on-campus playoff game was their hated for Notre Dame. After defeating USC 49-35 to finish off an 11-1 regular season, the Irish secured the No. 7 seed in the playoff and a first round home game.

In front of a raucous Notre Dame Stadium crowd, the Irish defeated No. 10 seed Indiana 27-17. Now, Notre Dame moves on to the quarterfinals, where they will face No. 2 seed Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.

Watching the game, USC fans could not help but dream of a College Football Playoff game at the Coliseum. But instead, the Trojans are related to a mid-tier bowl game, while their archrivals got to enjoy the spotlight.

USC women’s basketball’s victory over UConn proves last season wasn’t a one-off

USC showed real staying power in women’s college basketball by beating UConn. The Trojans are here to stay. They’re not going anywhere.

On Saturday night, USC women’s basketball took down UConn 72-70 in a highly-anticipated, top-10 showdown.

It was a statement victory for Lindsay Gottlieb and the Trojans. Coming off of last season’s Slite Eight run, USC entered 2024-2025 with the program’s highest expectations in decades. However, in their only other game of the season against a top 15 opponent, the Women of Troy were upset at home by Notre Dame.

Heading into Saturday’s matchup, the 2024-2025 USC team had yet to prove that they could beat an elite opponent. Against UConn, the Trojans did just that, putting together a gutsy performance to grind out a victory on the road in a hostile environment.

In addition to earning a major resume boost, USC made a statement by beating UConn. They proved that last season’s run to the Elite Eight was not a one-off.

Last season was obviously an incredible one for the USC women’s basketball program. While the expectation was that the Women of Troy would build off of that success, you can never be certain of such in today’s landscape of college sports. While USC returned superstar Juju Watkins and added several key players in the transfer portal, the Trojans did lose three of five starters from last year’s team.

Saturday night, however, but to bed the notion that the Women of Troy would be a one-hit wonder. By taking down the sport’s premier program of the past two decades, USC proved that this program under Gottlieb is a force to be reckoned with. And if the current trend is any indication, that will be the case for years to come.

USC, Eric Henderson get another big defensive line transfer

Eric Henderson. Click, clack. That’s it. That’s all we need to say right now at USC. The Dawgwork continues.

For the second time in three days, USC football and Eric Henderson have landed a huge transfer portal addition along the defensive line. On Saturday morning, USC landed a commitment from transfer defensive lineman Jamaal Jarrett. Jarrett comes to USC from Georgia, where he spent the past two seasons. He will have two years of eligibility remaining.

Jarrett spent his two seasons with the Bulldogs primarily in a reserve role. At Georgia, he recorded just nine tackles, with no sacks or turnovers forced.

At 6’5” and 350 pounds, however, Jarrett’s potential is clearly there. Now, it will be up to USC defensive line coach Eric Henderson and company to realize it.

Jarrett is USC’s second defensive line addition from an SEC school in the past three days. On Thursday, the Trojans added Keeshawn Silver, formerly of Kentucky.

USC fans will certainly hope that Jarrett will pan out better than the last defensive lineman that the Trojans brought in from Georgia.

Sam Darnold finally found the good NFL situation Caleb Williams currently lacks

Sam Darnold finally has a competent coach and organization. Caleb Williams? Not yet. That’s the difference between the two.

When former USC quarterbacks Sam Darnold and Caleb Williams faced off last month, they produced an overtime classic. This time, it was not nearly as exciting. On Monday night, Williams and the Chicago Bears traveled to take on Darnold and the Minnesota Vikings in a nationally televised matchup. Minnesota entered the game having won six in a row, while Chicago had lost seven straight.

It became apparent early on that both trends would continue. The Vikings jumped out to a 10-0 first quarter lead and never looked back, cruising to a 30-12 win.

Once again, Darnold was the better of the two QBs, although not by a significant margin. He completed 24 of 40 passes for 231 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Williams, meanwhile, completed 18 of 31 passes for 191 yards and a touchdown.

The Vikings have officially clinched a playoff spot. They are currently tied with the Detroit Lions for first place in the NFC North.

The Bears, meanwhile, are eliminated from playoff contention. They are currently in the market for a new coach, and hope to hire someone who will be able to develop and get the most out of Williams as he enters his second NFL season.

The difference between Sam Darnold and Caleb Williams boils down to the quality of an organization and its coach. Minnesota has a sound organization led by Kevin O’Connell, one of the best coaches in the league. The Bears were headless horsemen this season, and general manager Ryan Poles did not give Caleb a remotely competent offensive line. It’s amazing what can happen for Darnold when he’s not saddled by the Jets’ or Panthers’ futility. Caleb Williams needs that same taste of freedom in Chicago with a coach who knows what he’s doing.

Calen Bullock makes a case for NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year

Calen Bullock goes against the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday, during the College Football Playoff.

It has not taken long for Calen Bullock to make a name for himself with the Houston Texans. On Sunday against the Miami Dolphins, the rookie safety had yet another interception. It was the fifth of the season for Bullock, whom the Texans selected in the third round out of USC this past April.

In addition to his five interceptions, Bullock currently has 44 tackles and a fumble recovered. He should find himself squarely in the running for NFL defensive rookie of the year.

Bullock and the Texans will now go against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs on a loaded football Saturday in which the NFL goes head to head with the College Football Playoff.

USC fans are quite familiar with seeing Bullock make an immediate impact. As a true freshman at USC in 2021, Bullock was thrust into an immediate starting role after senior captain Isaiah Pola-Mao tested positive for COVID and was forced to miss the season opener. Bullock held his own in his first start, and became a force in the USC secondary over the next three years.

Bullock’s best season as a Trojan came in 2022. That year, he recorded 48 tackles, six passes defended, and five interceptions, one of which he took back for a touchdown. For his performance that season, he earned first-team All-American honors.

If Bullock continues to play at a high level, he could have more hardware in his trophy case soon enough.

Former USC defensive lineman Bear Alexander lands at Oregon

You wanted him, Oregon? You got him. The Ducks now have to deal with Bear Alexander drama.

Back in September, USC defensive lineman Bear Alexander elected to redshirt and leave the team due to frustration over his playing time. Three months later, Alexander officially has a new home. On Friday, Alexander announced his commitment to Oregon. Thanks to his redshirt this season, he will have two years of eligibility remaining.

Alexander’s journey has certainly been a wild one. In high school, he attended four different schools in four years. A blue chip recruit, he committed to Georgia, and saw playing time as a freshman on the Bulldogs’ 2022 national title team.

Alexander entered the transfer portal following his freshman season and committed to USC. As a sophomore in 2023, he had a solid season, and was one of the few bright spots on an otherwise abysmal defense. He entered spring 2024 projected as one of the top defensive linemen in the country.

Since then, however, Alexander’s story has been a mess. He briefly entered the portal again last spring, before removing his name a few days later—essentially an NIL holdout of sorts. Then, after clashing with the new defensive coaching staff due to concerns over his attitude and work ethic, Alexander was relegated to a reserve role at the start of the season.

Even though he was not starting, Alexander still saw significant snaps in USC’s first three games of the season. Following the Michigan game, however, he decided to redshirt and depart from the team, with the intention of entering the transfer portal once it opened.

Now, Alexander is headed up to the Pacific Northwest. When he enrolls at Oregon in January, it will mark the seventh different school that he has attended in eight years.

If the Ducks’ coaching staff is able to work Alexander out of his attitude and work ethic issues, he has the potential to be one of the top defensive linemen in the country. But if they cannot, his addition could prove to be a massive headache for the program.