USC’s push toward the College Football Playoff in 2026 may come down to one name ESPN singled out as the Trojans’ biggest X factor: defensive coordinator Gary Patterson.
ESPN ranked USC No. 20 in its top 25 and pointed to Patterson as the piece most likely to swing the Trojans’ season. He arrives in his first year as USC’s defensive coordinator after a long run as the head coach at TCU, where he spent more than two decades from 2000-2021. Patterson went 181-79 with the Horned Frogs and guided them to six conference titles.
His path back to a full-time play-calling role has taken a few stops. After leaving TCU, Patterson served as a special head coaching assistant with Texas in 2022 and later worked as a consultant for Baylor in 2024. Now he’s back in the booth and on the sideline in a major role for USC.
That matters because the Trojans’ defense was already moving in the right direction under former coordinator D’Anton Lynn in 2024 and 2025. Lynn left this offseason to take the defensive coordinator job at his alma mater, Penn State. In 2025, USC gave up 23.0 points per game, which ranked 51st nationally.
The question now is whether Patterson can help push that unit to a level that matches USC’s bigger ambitions.
“Patterson has the credentials, but he hasn’t been a full-time coach since he was fired mid-2021 amid TCU’s fall into mediocrity,” Kyle Bonagura of ESPN said. “Perhaps the Riley-Patterson pairing can allow both of them to recapture the high-level success they experienced earlier in their careers.”
Patterson and USC coach Lincoln Riley know each other well from their Big 12 days, when Patterson was at TCU and Riley was leading Oklahoma.
The Trojans are coming off a 9-4 season in 2025, and Riley now owns a 35-18 record over four seasons at USC. That was a step forward from the year before, but it still hasn’t quieted the bigger question around the program: when does USC take the next leap?
For this team, that leap means the playoff. If USC misses the College Football Playoff in Riley’s fifth year, the pressure around the program figures to grow louder.
The road there is steep. USC’s Big Ten schedule includes regular-season matchups with the conference’s top three teams from last season: Oregon, Ohio State and Indiana. DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Trojans at +240 to make the 12-team playoff this season.
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USCs New Defensive Identity Is Starting To Feel Very Real
Alex VanSumerens move from Michigan State to USC was one of the quieter offseason additions, but it fits neatly into the kind of defensive makeover the Trojans have been trying to sell around the program. At Big Ten Media Days, the lineman talked about what drew him west, pointing first to the coaching staff, then to USCs tradition, and then to the culture he says has taken shape under Lincoln Riley. For a team trying to convince the rest of the league that its identity is changing, those are the kinds of details that matter.
VanSumeren also described a competitive environment inside the program, one that has pushed him while still making the transition feel welcoming. He said the support from teammates has stood out, which is hardly a small thing for a transfer trying to find his footing in a new locker room. For USC, the larger takeaway is encouraging: the defensive side of the roster is not just collecting bodies, it is beginning to sound like a group that believes in where it is headed. [Read more 🡒]
USC Fall Camp Is Turning Up The Heat On Rising Playmakers
Fall camp is starting to sort out which USC newcomers can push for real roles, and a few names have already begun to separate themselves in practice and scrimmage settings. True freshmen Boobie Feaster and Kayden Dixon-Wyatt have drawn notice for promising early work, while King Miller and Luke Wafle are also among the young players creating enough buzz to keep the coaching staff leaning in. On the other side of the roster, transfer cornerback Williams has been part of the conversation too, as USC keeps evaluating who can help most once the season gets rolling.
For a team still putting pieces together before the opener, those kinds of flashes matter because they can change the depth chart quickly. The coaches have talked about the challenges of transition and what it takes to look ready in camp, and that is where the next few practices will matter most for this group of rising playmakers. The talent is clearly there, but the real question is how much of it will translate when the Trojans stop practicing against each other and start playing for keeps. [Read more 🡒]
Jide Abasiri Is Setting The Tone For USCs New-Look D-Line
Jide Abasiri has spent this offseason doing more than just adjusting to a different spot on USCs defensive front. The junior has embraced a bigger leadership role while moving to the outside of the line more often, a change that asked him to reshape his body and play style for what the Trojans need from him now. Even with the adjustment, he still carries the reputation as one of the strongest players on the roster, which makes his presence especially important for a unit that is trying to come together quickly.
USCs defensive line looks a lot different this year, with returning pieces mixing alongside transfers and freshmen to create more depth and experience than the group had before. In that kind of setting, Abasiris blend of physicality and growing responsibility matters beyond his own snaps. The real question now is how much that expanded role can translate once the Trojans start leaning on this new-look front in games. [Read more 🡒]