Tyler Stearns |
The USC Trojans capped off an odd 2024 season with a win against 8-4 Texas A&M. USC went 6-6 with losses to Michigan, Minnesota, Penn State, Maryland, Washington, and Notre Dame. They beat LSU, Utah State, Wisconsin, Rutgers, Nebraska, and UCLA. USC's biggest loss of the year was to Notre Dame, which was a 14-point close finish where the Trojans threw two pick-sixes in the last five minutes of the game to give the Fighting Irish the advantage. For all other losses, USC's largest deficit was seven points, meaning all defeats were within one score.
In terms of recruiting, USC had an improved 2025 class compared to their 2024 class with a thirteenth-place finish on average across On3, ESPN, Rivals, and 247 Sports. The class was highlighted by five-star QB Husan Longstreet and elite four-star defensive lineman Jahkeem "Thanos" Stewart. USC went mostly after the defensive and offensive lines this class. They also added to their incoming recruits with some talented front-seven players from the SEC and B1G, as well as important additions to the offensive line from other Power-4 programs.
But USC's class, though overall solid, was poor for such a historic program. USC was again out recruited by their in-conference West-coast foe, the Oregon Ducks, and they ranked below future conference rivals like the Michigan Wolverines and The Ohio State Buckeyes. The again underwhelming class by the Trojans marked important front-office issues that needed to be changed.
USC decided to go all in on their recruiting/player personnel team during the early post-season, headlined by former Notre Dame GM Chad Bowen and former Wisconsin director of player personnel Max Stienecker. They also added Chad Bowen (Inside WR and TE Coach from Colorado State) and Rob Ryan (Linebackers Coach from the Las Vegas Raiders) to their coaching staff.
USC immediately reaped the benefits of these additions with their high school '26 class. Not only did the Trojans maintain all recruits who have been committed before and during the 2024 season, but they also added four-star QB Jonas Williams (who flipped from Oregon) and four-star ED Simote Katoanga this past weekend. USC continues to get crystal balls for big-name top-100 players like five-star QB Ryder Lyons, four-star TE Mark Bowman, four-star CB Davan Benjamin, four-star LB Talanoa Ili, and four-star OL Malaki Lee.
The reason for this uptick in recruiting has to do with late-season on-field success, the defensive hires from this past season, and the efficiency of USC's revamped front office. USC finished the season 3-1 with wins against rival UCLA and a bowl win against a strong SEC team in TAMU. The bowl game, specifically, made recruits realize that even with a depleted USC team, the Trojans could still compete at the highest level. They also realized that USC is just a few strong players away from getting the playoff. The hires also are important. Many of USC's recent coaching decisions are very active on the recruiting trail, most notably Chad Savage, who has great relationships with many West Coast stars. The front office has made the process easy for Lincoln Riley and the staff, as they can decide where to send NIL funds and which players to target. The operation is much more sound now, and USC has the first-ranked class because of it.
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