Lincoln Riley on USC's current tight end depth: 'Right now, today, not good'
LOS ANGELES — USC head coach Lincoln Riley addressed reporters following the Trojans' seventh spring practice on Tuesday.
The biggest take away from the press conference was Riley's opinion about his current crop of tight ends. When he was asked about how he feels about USC's tight end depth, he responded with a laugh:
"Right now? Today? Not good."
Six days ago tight end Malcolm Epps entered the transfer portal and redshirt senior Jude Wolfe is currently injured.
But a major reinforcement could be on the way.
Class of 2023 five-star tight end Duce Robinson will announce his college commitment on Thursday night at 5:30 pm, according to his Instagram. Robinson's finalists are USC, Oregon, Georgia and Texas.
The Pinnacle High School (Phoenix, Ariz.) product has experienced a whirlwind recruitment due to not only having to choose a school, but also having to choose a sport. In addition to being a top football recruit, Robinson is also a stand out baseball prospect. There's still a chance he gets selected during the MLB Draft in July, which could mean he never enrolls at the school he picks.
Here are the rest of Riley's comments regarding his current tight end room and the unit's depth:
"Lake McRee has been awesome. He's playing at a high level. He's really improved. He's improved physically...We've been able to do a little bit more with him this spring, which has been expected. He's really good. We moved Carson Tabaracci over there and he's done a nice job. He really has. He's got a cool skill set for that. I don't think there's any question that he's going to have the ability to have an impact. Not having Jude right now is tough for us, we'll be excited to get him back in the fall and then we'll get Kade Eldridge over here as well. [The depth] is going to be good. It's just currently at this moment right now not very good."
Watch Riley's full press conference above.
