USC and UCLA are both staring at the same ticking clock, and the margin between them could shrink fast if the Trojans don’t lock things down soon.
In the final installment of our USC Behind Enemy Lines preseason series with UCLA Wire editor Dylan McNeill, the question was simple: what does UCLA need to do to get past USC football?
McNeill pointed straight to winning as the quickest path.
"Winning is the best and quickest route for UCLA to surpass USC football in the big picture. Today’s college football players haven’t seen a UCLA football team in national title contention.
USC hasn’t won anything too recently but the legend of Reggie Bush, Troy Polamalu and even Caleb Williams gives the program some added aura that UCLA football doesn't currently have," McNeill wrote. "In the NIL era, UCLA can spend their way out of this problem, which is an area where the Bruins are improving but they’re still playing catch up to USC.
If UCLA can increase their funding and establish themselves as a winning program they can catch up to USC, unless USC takes that next step before the Bruins can."
The message for USC is pretty clear: don’t wait around. The Trojans need to be elite soon and start backing it up in the playoff conversation, because the hold on Los Angeles isn’t automatic.
Maybe Bob Chesney won’t have everything sorted out in 2026, but the window could open in 2027 if UCLA makes a jump and USC doesn’t. If the Trojans aren’t solid by then, and if they’re not competing for championships at that level, the Bruins could make this a real race in LA.
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Boobie Feaster Is Giving USC Fans A Reason To Get Excited
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For a Trojans offense looking for explosive playmakers after key departures at receiver, Feaster offers exactly the kind of upside that can change the feel of a passing game. The challenge now is translating all that promise into early production, but USC has every reason to believe he can be part of the answer sooner rather than later. [Read more 🡒]