USC’s search for a real edge rush answer is what puts Luke Wafle on this list.
That has been a problem for the Trojans for too long in the biggest games under Lincoln Riley. Early last season, USC piled up sacks against weaker opponents and looked statistically strong.
But as the year went on, the sack total and the more meaningful pressure numbers both fell off. Defensive ends coach Shaun Nua said plainly that both the quality and the quantity of edge pressure have to get better.
Last season, USC leaned on a three-man rotation, and Nua pointed to fatigue as a factor as the year wore on for Kameryn Crawford, Anthony Lucas and Braylan Shelby. Crawford and Shelby are back and expected to be at the top of the rotation again, but Wafle lands at No. 28 in the Top 30 Most Important Trojans for 2026 because of what he could add to that group.
Wafle, a freshman from Middletown, N.J., and Princeton (N.J.) Hun School, finished his prep career with a fifth star. He came in as a 247Sports five-star edge rusher, ranked No. 6 nationally, No. 2 at his position and No. 1 in New Jersey.
What stood out in spring wasn’t just the recruiting profile. It was how he carried himself.
Trojan players and coaches who saw him up close were impressed by the discipline he showed in the weight room and at the training table. Veteran transfer Zuriah Fisher singled out Wafle’s conditioning and professionalism.
"He's a pro when it comes to taking care of his body," Fisher said. "The way he eats breakfast.
It's like, 'Dang, you younger than me [and] you doing better than me.' It's crazy.
He's professional, man. He's a dog.
That's all I can say. He's a dog."
Nua used a similar word when describing the freshman’s makeup.
"Just his mentality," Nua said. "Maturity for someone that's straight out of high school [and] still should be in high school for his last semester. Very hard on himself and everything that he does, but also still withholds the confidence to still believe in himself and his strengths."
USC didn’t get a live, fully padded look at Wafle during spring, so there’s no way to say exactly how much pressure he was creating in actual reps. Even so, all signs point to him being in line for Lucas’ spot and a regular role off the edge this season.
His ranking here is tied to upside as much as immediate importance. If Wafle hits the level USC thinks he can, the Trojans’ ceiling rises with him.
But even then, the defense still needs more than just Wafle, Crawford and Shelby to become dependable at defensive end. He’s ranked ahead of Trent Mosley and Rock Hill because those rooms have more options to step forward than USC’s edge group does right now.
There’s also a real case that Wafle could end up having the biggest impact of any of USC’s standout freshmen if he grabs the role the staff expects him to fill.
Last year’s No. 28 on this list was safety Kennedy Urlacher. He was a key special teams contributor and then saw his defensive role expand after injuries to Kamari Ramsey and Bishop Fitzgerald.
Urlacher played 52 defensive snaps over USC’s first nine games, then never dipped below 34 in the final four. He logged 83 snaps at Oregon and enters this season as one of the Trojans’ candidates to round out Paul Gonzales’ safety two-deep.
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