USC’s secondary took another hit a week ago when safety Zion Branch, the brother of Trojan teammate Zachariah Branch, was knocked out for the season with a knee injury.
Zion saw action on a continuous basis this season and got his first start at Cal on October 28 before his injury. He had 22 tackles on the season, which included a season-high six against Utah.
“I hate it for him … Terrible luck, but he’s so headstrong and so positive and so driven. He’ll come back way stronger from it.” coach Lincoln Riley said.
The redshirt freshman was a top-75 recruit at Bishop Gorman High in Las Vegas and was rated as the second-best free safety in his class.
Branch told 247Sports he thinks he will be in good shape for 2024.
“I had a procedure on Tuesday. [The doctors] went in there and cleaned it up a little bit, but definitely feeling confident about where I’m at and heading into the spring feeling confident.”
Being able to participate in spring ball is a very positive piece of news for Zion and USC.
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