Burning Questions Surround USC Trojans Program During Crucial Bye Week

The USC Trojans are in the first of its two bye weeks, and it couldn’t have come at a better time. Southern Cal is coming off their first loss of the season and the injuries have started to pile up.

So, I asked fans on X to send in their questions about the team through the first five weeks of the 2025 season.

Do you think the defense will look more like they did the first four weeks or last week the rest of the way?

USC Trojans College Football Jayden Maiava Husan Longstreet Michigan Wolverines Big Ten Recruiting Class Lincoln Riley — Aug 30, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley watches from the sidelines against the Missouri State Bears in the first half at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

I believe the Trojans defensive performance against Illinois will be the worst we see them play on that side of the ball because it was a rough showing at all three levels.

For one, they will get safety Kamari Ramsey back after he missed last Saturday’s contest because of food poisoning. Ramsey has been playing nickel this season, so his statistics don’t jump out of the screen. His impact isn’t seen on the stat sheet, and it was apparent, they desperately missed him.

The pass rush, which ranked first in the country in sacks heading into the contest, was nonexistent and provided no resistance to the Illinois passing attack. And for a secondary that has struggled early in the season, it was completing exposed and no pass rush really brought it to light.

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They have to better in man coverage in the backend. Redshirt freshman Marcelles Williams and Braylon Conley have been the two primary cornerbacks to play opposite of redshirt senior DeCarlos Nicholson.

I may be in the minority, but I still have a high optimism about Williams and Conley. They’re young and have only played five games. The only way to grow at that position sometimes is trial by fire and a long run this could be beneficial for them. The question is will they learn this season.

USC has to have better gap discipline and have more movement on the defensive front against the run. The Trojans have size, depth and experience, and they need them to become a dominant group.

Michigan can run the football, so they are going to test that defensive front.

Penalties have been an issue, especially drive extending penalties. That comes from better discipline, something that is easily controllable.

Who is one player that you really liked covering or talking to such as in interviews, articles, or in a 1 on 1 conversation?

There’s a lot to choose from. The best conversation I had is the one I had with linebacker Elijah Newby. We had an extended discussion and a lot of it wasn’t about football. Some of it included talking about faith and reading the Bible, improving mental health, becoming a better person and having gratitude. Something I appreciated and something I know what Newby wanted to talk about. Newby is someone that is easy to root for.

I got to know quarterback Husan Longstreet very well last fall. He’s obviously incredibly talented on the fiend but Longstreet is just as impressive off the field. Longstreet is very mature. The administration and coaching staff at Corona Centennial (Calif.) always talked about the person over the player.

I can highlight a few other players that I’ve really enjoyed talking with. Defensive ends Kameryn Crawford and Braylan Shelby always have big smiles on their faces. Tight ends Lake McRee and Walker Lyons, running backs Eli Sanders and Waymond Jordan, cornerback Chasen Johnson, safety Christian Pierce and defensive lineman Jahkeem Stewart have been great. But again, there is a lot of them.

Do you think we will keep the 26 class together and continue recruiting at a high level in 27 class if we are 8-4 or worse this season, and the defense doesn’t get significantly better this season. I’m afraid the narrative will kill the recruiting momentum.

The 2026 recruiting class is different for many reasons. This is a very close group, evident by how much they’ve been around each other for Junior Day, spring practice, summer official visits, summer camps with the coaching staff and gameday visits in the fall. They stay in constant communication with each other. A commitment feels like a commitment with them and will stay intact.

I believe the 2026 class knows they’re some of the missing pieces and see the vision of what’s being built from inside the program and it is trending upwards. A large number of those guys will be on campus in the spring and immediately push whoever is on campus for early playing time.

They want to build something special together and have not been shy this calendar year when it comes to talking about their lofty goals as a group.

Madden Riordan, a safety commit from nearby Sierra Canyon has been committed to his hometown school since his sophomore year. His dad, Matt, chimed in on social media.

“26 class kids want to b the class to out USC on top again. The local kids not going NO WHERE especially mine," Matt Riordan wrote.

USC Trojans College Football Recruiting Class Official Visit Jayden Maiava Big Ten Lincoln Riley Husan Longstreet Recruit — Running back Deshonne Redeaux finds an opening during the first quarter of Oaks Christian's 35-0 Marmonte League win over St. Bonaventure Friday night at Redell Field. | JOE LUMAYA/SPECIAL TO THE STAR / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Of the 32 commitments, 19 are either in California or originally from California. The Polynesian connection is very strong, those guys are family. All of it matters.

USC implemented a new rule under Chad Bowden that doesn’t allow recruits that are committed to visit other schools and with a majority of the class locked in before the summer, almost all of them have publicly announced they shut down their recruitment. None of this was happening last season.

Mater Dei (Calif.) five-star tight end and USC commit Mark Bowman has been at all three home games this season. More than a dozen commits were at the Michigan State game on Sept. 20. That will be a theme for home games in the fall. You would be surprised the number of times even some of the out of state commits have been on campus this year.

What’s the morale like in the locker room?

Morale is still very high. This team lost one game, not its fifth and it was by two points on the road to a ranked opponent. Is it frustrating for the fans to see another last minute collapse, absolutely, but the season is far from over and the loss to Illinois doesn’t have to define it.

From talking with the players this week, the mood hasn’t changed. They know there are areas they need to be better, but are eager to get back to work and prepare for Michigan.

Who's your starting QB in 2026?

Everything is a year to year basis in this era of a college football, but right now it would be Jayden Maiava. This is his football team and he’s playing at a Heisman level this season. The entire country needs to wake up about him.

Freshman Husan Longstreet is incredibly talented and will continue to push Maiava every day until he gets his opportunity. But it’s Maiava, who would be a redshirt senior in 2026.

Regardless of how the rest of the season plays out, Maiava should return to school for another season. Quarterbacks need reps and a lot of them. I know Maiava started the one year at UNLV in 2023, but as far as I’m concerned, everything reset when he got to USC.

There are exceptions to being a one-year starter, like Cam Newton, who is a physical specimen at the position. Newton arguably had the greatest single season in college ever, next to 2019 Joe Burrow at LSU, leading Auburn to a national championship in 2010.

Do you think the defense will look more like they did the first four weeks or last week the rest of the way?

Who is one player that you really liked covering or talking to such as in interviews, articles, or in a 1 on 1 conversation?

Do you think we will keep the 26 class together and continue recruiting at a high level in 27 class if we are 8-4 or worse this season, and the defense doesn’t get significantly better this season. I’m afraid the narrative will kill the recruiting momentum.

What’s the morale like in the locker room?

Who's your starting QB in 2026?

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