Fall camp is done, and USC heads into the 2026 season with the kind of buzz that only grows louder when the questions start getting answered. The Trojans are carrying a bigger roster, a deeper roster and, in this view, the strongest coaching staff Lincoln Riley has had in Los Angeles. But all of that still has to show up when the games begin.
At cornerback, Jontez Williams looks like a sure thing to open as a starter, with Chasen Johnson trending toward the other outside spot. Both are back after season-ending knee injuries last September, but that position still feels fluid enough that week 0 may not look much like week 4. Marcelles Williams, Rock Hill and RJ Sermons all have a chance to matter early, too.
Nickel is where things get especially interesting. Kennedy Urlacher appears to have the edge, but both he and Alex Graham are in the mix there.
At safety, the starting pair is Prophet Brown and Christian Pierce, while Urlacher and Graham have been getting work at both spots. Graham’s versatility could make him a useful chess piece for defensive coordinator Gary Patterson.
USC’s receiver picture is starting to sharpen as well. Tanook Hines and Terrell Anderson are lined up as the outside starters, and freshman Trent Mosley has pushed himself into the lead for the slot job after a huge spring and a strong camp. He’s been impressive since arriving, and he’s competing with Zacharyus Williams.
Another freshman receiver worth watching is Kayden Dixon-Wyatt, who won’t start but could grow into the Trojans’ third option for Jayden Maiava. His vertical speed gives USC a different gear, and the feeling here is that one of the star freshmen receivers will end up breaking through.
On the defensive line, USC is waiting on bodies and production. Jahkeem Stewart is expected to miss several weeks, so others will need to step forward.
Jarrett has shed a lot of weight and is moving much better than he did a year ago, which matters because the extra bulk last season contributed to lower-body injuries. That should translate into a real role in the rotation.
Luke Wafle may be a freshman, but the talent is loud enough that he could be the best defensive end on the roster before September ends. He was the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2026 class for a reason, and he does not look or play like a first-year college defender.
There’s also a lot to like about Nela Tupou, both as a player and as a person. He was one of the most engaging voices at USC Media Day earlier this month, and he’s carried that energy onto the field.
Tupou got meaningful reps late in his freshman year, including the Alamo Bowl, where he played the most snaps at the position. This season, he’s TE3 behind Mark Bowman and Tucker Ashcraft, and USC’s tight end room looks like the best one Riley has had.
Expect the Trojans to use more three-tight-end packages, just as they did against UCLA in the regular-season finale.
The bigger defensive question is the pass rush. USC had 31 sacks last season, which ranked tied for 36th nationally, but the number dipped badly in Big Ten play.
Five Power Four teams got to 40 sacks a year ago, with Texas the only one of that group to miss the College Football Playoff. The Trojans need to find something more consistent in 2026, especially with the quarterbacks on the schedule.
Whether that happens depends on several pieces. Kameryn Crawford and Jide Abasiri have to take a step in their junior seasons.
Wafle could become a force off the edge right away. Penn State transfer Zuriah Fisher and Jadyn Ramos are in the mix.
The interior has to bring more, too. For now, the answer is no, because live games are the only real test, and matchups with San Jose State, Fresno State, Louisiana and Rutgers won’t reveal much.
If USC gets after Oregon quarterback Dante Moore in week 5, that would change the conversation fast.
The secondary has its own personnel debates, but the standard here is pretty clear: eye discipline, angles and football IQ matter more than raw speed. Bishop Fitzgerald’s 4.55 40 and his five interceptions in 10 games last season are part of the conversation, but the bigger point is that good safeties play fast because they see it right. Kyle Hamilton’s 4.59 is the reminder that straight-line speed isn’t everything.
Brown offers more coverage ability than Pierce, and Graham will also see time at safety. Sophomore Dee Reddick and freshman Madden Riordan bring more coverage talent into the mix as well.
And that’s really the heart of USC’s optimism. Patterson’s job is singular: fix the defense.
He’s not out fundraising or working the recruiting trail the way he did for two decades at TCU. He’s in film, in the details, and all over the defense during individual periods.
It’s not just Patterson, either. Mike Ekeler, Paul Gonzales and Trovon Reed are part of a rebuilt defensive staff that has leaned hard into fundamentals, small details and overall player development. That’s a big reason there’s confidence USC can take a real step forward in 2026 and look far more disciplined than the D’Anton Lynn defenses.
The schedule is brutal, with five opponents ranked in the preseason AP top 20, and road trips to Penn State, Oregon, Ohio State and Indiana will tell the real story. USC has the talent and depth to reach the College Football Playoff, so the stock is up.
But at this stage of the Riley era, positive practice reports only go so far. Results are what count now.
In Other News...
USC-UCLA Has One Tradition College Football Should Stop Copying
When Alabama and Tennessee announced they would both wear their home uniforms for their meeting this season, it stirred up an old college football debate: whether more rivalries should embrace the look that has long defined USC and UCLA. In Los Angeles, the setup works because it is tied to one specific game, one specific feel and one of the sports most recognizable visual traditions, with the Trojans cardinal and the Bruins blue playing off each other in a way that instantly says something about the rivalry itself.
But making double-home uniforms a routine habit across college football would risk turning a special wrinkle into a gimmick. The NFL learned as much during its Color Rush experiment, where color-on-color matchups sometimes looked fresh and sometimes just looked awkward, and thats the caution here for USC fans who know the rivalrys aesthetic is part of the event. What makes USC-UCLA stand out is that it is not everywhere, and college football is usually better when it leaves a few traditions alone. [Read more 🡒]
Why USC Fans Still Treat One Enemy Different Than Everyone Else
For USC fans, the old grievances still have a way of dwarfing the modern rivalry map. ESPNs recent list of arch-enemies for power conference programs put the NCAA at the top of the Trojans board instead of a fellow school, a nod to how deeply the sanctions from the Reggie Bush investigation still linger in the fan bases memory. The punishment tied to improper benefits never faded into simple history around here; it became part of how USC supporters tell the story of what the program lost and who they blame for it.
The resentment is sharpened by the feeling that college footballs enforcement has never looked even-handed. USCs punishment remains a touchstone in debates over fairness because the NCAAs handling of violations has often seemed inconsistent, and Penn States less severe sanction for far more serious infractions is still a painful comparison for Trojan fans. So while rivalries usually come with a school, a mascot or a border war, USCs most personal beef remains institutional, and it is not hard to see why that edge has never really gone away. [Read more 🡒]
USC Secondary Hype Around Jontez Williams Comes With One Big Catch
Jontez Williams arrives at USC with the kind of rsum that naturally gets people talking. The Iowa State transfer was an All-Big 12 Second Team selection in 2024, and his reputation as a disruptive defensive back has already made him one of the more intriguing pieces in the Trojans secondary heading into the upcoming season. An analyst even slotted him 145th among college football players, which says plenty about the respect he carries and the level of expectation surrounding him in Los Angeles.
For USC, the appeal is obvious: Williams is expected to play a significant role right away in a unit that needs difference-makers. The catch is just as obvious, though no less important. His value to the Trojans hinges on health, and that makes his availability one of the quieter but more consequential storylines as USC tries to stabilize its defense and turn a promising addition into a real asset. [Read more 🡒]