USC didn’t take the easy route at receiver, and fall camp is starting to show why.
With Biletnikoff Award winner Makai Lemon and Ja’Kobi Lane gone, the Trojans could have gone portal-heavy to patch the room. Instead, they brought in NC State transfer Terrell Anderson and leaned hard into a freshman class that’s already pushing for snaps around quarterback Jayden Maiava.
That approach is looking more and more like a real plan, not a gamble.
The biggest name in the group right now is Kayden Dixon-Wyatt, who appears poised to step in if sophomore Tanook Hines isn’t ready for the opener against San Jose State on Aug. 29.
Hines missed spring practice and has stayed out to start fall camp, leaving his status in question. Dixon-Wyatt, a Mater Dei product who once had Ohio State’s attention, has been one of the most obvious early standouts.
At 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, he already carries himself like a veteran. He’s smooth, explosive and natural when the ball is in the air. USC has seen enough to know he can be an immediate vertical threat, and his ability to make acrobatic catches only adds to the appeal.
Trent Mosley is right there with him. The former Santa Margarita star, who was named MaxPreps California Player of the Year after one of the most productive seasons in recent California high school history, has been trending toward the slot job since spring.
Coaches and veterans alike have been impressed by how polished he looks already, and tight end Tucker Ashcraft put it plainly: “When he's out there, he looks like he's been doing it for a few years. He's a really good player,”
Mosley’s game gives USC a lot to work with. He can help in the screen game, stretch the field vertically and contribute as a returner. With Dixon-Wyatt and Mosley both making strong early impressions, there’s a real chance the Trojans open with three freshman pass-catchers if Mark Bowman is in that mix as well.
Then there’s Boobie Feaster, who might be one of the youngest players in college football this season after turning 17 just days after enrolling this summer. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound receiver was a force in Texas high school football at the 6A level for three seasons, and he has brought that buzz straight into camp.
Offensive coordinator Luke Huard said, “He's a very talented kid. Just as important, he's a great character kid and he loves football," said offensive coordinator Luke Huard.
Football is important to him. That combination is exciting.“
Feaster has also drawn notice for how he carries himself. Anderson called him a “real quiet guy” on Media Day, and Lincoln Riley echoed that after Friday’s practice.
Riley said, "Boobie's very lowkey, just kind of works hard. He's pretty quiet," said coach Lincoln Riley.
"He's learning fast, he had a little soft tissue injury earlier in camp that limited him a little bit but got back out there pretty quick. He's shown the ability to create some explosive plays and like a lot of young guys, it'll be a battle of consistency for him.
"The explosiveness and wow plays are there but sometimes it's the ones the world doesn't see end up on highlights that obviously matter a lot to winning. Really bright future, humble, hard-working kid."
Tron Baker is another freshman to watch after turning heads in the spring and getting a nod from former USC All-American receiver Mike Williams.
The bigger picture is clear: USC didn’t build this room around a handful of veterans. It signed freshmen it believes can play now.
Maiava has helped bring them along from the start, taking it on himself when they first arrived to put his arm around them and get them comfortable. That connection matters, and it’s already showing.
USC is also expected to use a deeper receiver rotation than it did a year ago. Last season, the Trojans used about four receivers.
In earlier years, the number was closer to six or seven. Redshirt sophomore Zacharyus Williams is back after being limited to five games in 2025 because of a significant upper body injury that cost him two and a half months.
Corey Simms is another name in the mix. He was expected to factor into the offense last season, but that didn’t happen, as he played only 22 offensive snaps, 11 of them in the bowl game. He did appear in all 13 games on special teams, and that experience helped him adjust.
“Having that college experience on my belt was amazing,” Simms said. “It helped me a lot because being able to actually see the field and know the intensity and how fast the game.“
Simms had a strong spring and has continued to trend upward in camp. Riley said Friday the staff has a better read on the receiver competition now, though that battle could still shift once the season starts and live reps begin to sort things out.
In Other News...
USC Practice Just Raised Two Big Questions About This Team
USCs 12th practice of camp came with the kind of energy Lincoln Riley has been looking for, but it also brought a few reminders that August is about more than just tempo and competition. The Trojans spent the day working at a high intensity, and one of the more notable developments was the arrival of a new crowd-noise setup on the practice fields, designed to mimic game-day conditions and force cleaner communication. Riley also pointed to the running game and the defensive front seven as areas worth watching, with the defense drawing praise for how it showed up in practice.
Kilian OConnors season-ending injury remains part of the conversation, though he is still around the program in a leadership and mentoring role. The other issue that will keep drawing attention is the kicking battle, where Ryon Sayeri and Caden Chittenden continue to compete for the job as USC sorts out the details heading into the season. Special teams often gets settled quietly, but for a team trying to eliminate mistakes in a louder, more demanding practice environment, those reps can matter just as much as anything else on the field. [Read more 🡒]
USC Freshman Keenyi Pepe Suddenly Has A Real Path To Early Snaps
USCs loaded signing class from last December was always going to create some chatter about who might get on the field early, and freshman offensive lineman Keenyi Pepe has suddenly moved into that conversation. ESPN analyst Billy Tucker recently put Pepe among the top true freshmen with a chance to make an impact this season, pointing to the kind of size and technique that can get a young lineman noticed quickly once camp and depth-chart battles begin.
The door to playing time has also widened at center, where a spot has opened up and changed the equation for the Trojans up front. For Pepe, that does not guarantee anything, but it does create a more realistic path than most freshmen have when they arrive in a room full of older bodies and established roles, and it is exactly the sort of development USC will be watching closely as fall approaches. [Read more 🡒]