USC football did not recruit nearly well enough in the 2023 and 2024 cycles to give itself the best possible chance of succeeding this season. That much should be clear. The Trojans have been playing second fiddle to Oregon and Dan Lanning in recruiting among West Coast schools. That matters. You can see the difference between the two programs and connect a good portion of that difference to recruiting results. Oregon has been pulling in generally better players than USC, and it shows. Let’s be absolutely clear: Recruiting is the primary driver and engine of program success in college football. It needs to be the main source of elite player acquisition. However, as much as recruiting success counts in this industry, we can’t dismiss or toss aside the crucial importance of the transfer portal. USC’s 2024 struggles magnify this, as do the Trojans’ many successes in 2022. We need to briefly but clearly mention this as we try to point a path to a better future for the Trojans under Lincoln Riley.
Yes, recruiting is the main area where college football programs create elite rosters. USC has not recruited well enough on the offensive line to give Miller Moss the best possible chance of succeeding. Moss was always going to need help from his offensive front, and in 2024, he is — on balance — not receiving enough of that help and support. Yet, as important and central as recruiting is, the transfer portal exists to help programs fill those two or three very acute needs at specific spots.
We know this USC offensive line is young. We know that there is a limit to this group’s level of experience. Therefore, USC really did need a junior or senior offensive tackle to hold down a crucial nerve-center spot on the line while the younger linemen were gradually developed and brought up within the program. USC basically needed what it gained in the transfer portal two years ago.
Bobby Haskins was that veteran offensive lineman, picked up in the portal, who became an essential glue guy for the 2022 USC offensive line. Without Haskins, that offensive line probably doesn’t click the way it did. Caleb Williams might not have won the Heisman. USC certainly would not have gone 11-1 in the 2022 regular season. That one key portal pickup at a hinge-point position mattered so much to USC. What also mattered for that 2022 team: transfer receiver Jordan Addison and transfer running back Travis Dye. USC picked up legitimate stars for its WR1 and RB1 positions. The portal can’t solve most of a team’s roster problems, but it can solve the most important ones. The transfer portal can fill the two or three key gaps with a veteran player who is ready to produce from Day 1, all while younger players can become developmental projects instead of being thrown into the fire. USC football is learning how important it is to make those key pickups in the transfer portal. This next portal cycle will be absolutely essential in improving the Trojans’ overall football product and giving this program a real future.
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