Three Intriguing Storylines for USC in Hypothetical College Football Playoff Bracket

With the 2026 season on the horizon, USC Trojans fans will like a recent hypothetical College Football Playoff bracket.

Nov 7, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley watches game action against the Northwestern Wildcats during the second half at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Following another season where the USC Trojans and coach Lincoln Riley were unable to qualify for the College Football Playoff, the pressure has only continued to ramp up.

While there is heavy pressure for Riley to lead USC to the CFP, the Trojans have brought several players through the transfer portal who could make solid contributions next season. In addition to the transfer portal additions, Riley was also able to strengthen the recruiting classes for both 2026 and 2027, which should help USC to find success next season and for the future.

With most of the key offseason moves having already been done, many college football analysts have begun to make predictions for the College Football Playoff. When looking ahead to next season, college football analyst Josh Pate believes USC can finally qualify for the College Football Playoff and potentially make some noise.

Dec 28, 2023; San Antonio, TX, USA; Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brett Venables at a press conference after the Alamo Bowl against the Arizona Wildcats at Alamodome. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Lincoln Riley Returns To Oklahoma

In Pate’s most recent hypothetical for the CFP, designed for the most storylines and drama, he has the USC Trojans making it all the way to the semifinals with several intriguing matchups along the way. 

Sadistic CFP script writing on last night’s show pic.twitter.com/qOFmxkHKbj

— Josh Pate (@JoshPateCFB) June 8, 2026

Pate has the Trojans as the No. 7 seed, which means they will go on the road for the first round to play the No. 7 seed, which, in his bracket, is the Oklahoma Sooners. For USC to make a CFP appearance is a major storyline, but for Riley’s squad to travel to his former school could be an even bigger headline.

The Sooners are led by coach Brett Venables, who has become one of the more consistent defensive coaches in all of college football. While the storyline could gain lots of attention in this game with Riley's return to Oklahoma, the matchup between Riley and Venables will be very interesting to watch. Riley’s offense against Venables defense would have a major impact on this game, and if Riley can win this coaching matchup, the Trojans would have a great chance to move on.

Dec 1, 2025; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU new head coach Lane Kiffin speaks at South Stadium Club at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

USC Plays SEC Powerhouse In Quarterfinal

In the quarterfinal, Pate has USC taking on the LSU Tigers and coach Lane Kiffin. This could be an even bigger storyline than the Trojans’ first-round matchup, with the famous story of Kiffin being let go by the Trojans on the tarmac after a brutal loss.

In Pate’s CFP bracket, he has LSU winning the SEC and is seeded as the second overall seed. Winning the SEC is a tough accomplishment and could help the Tigers to be prepared for a great Big Ten-SEC duel against the Trojans. 

This game is a battle between two of the more innovative offensive minds in all of college football and could result in a classic game with points being scored all game long. One of the big keys to this game would be which defense can get more stops and which quarterback makes fewer mistakes.

For USC, quarterback Jayden Maiava has an opportunity to emerge as one of the best quarterbacks in the Big Ten, and if he does, this could be the moment where he puts it all together on the biggest stage of college football. LSU will be led by Arizona State transfer Sam Leavitt, who has proven to be solid as well.

Following this mathcup with LSU, Pate has USC set to take on another SEC opponent which could also grab healdines.

Oct 11, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian before the game against the Oklahoma Sooners at the Cotton Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Lincoln Riley vs. Steve Sarkisian

In the semifinals, Pate's bracket has USC matching up with the six-seed Texas Longhorns. One of the interesting parts about this matchup is the fact that this is a rematch of the 2006 BCS national championship game, which was one of the most renowned games in college football history. With the history involved in this game, in addition to the coaching matchup, this could be one for the ages.

Texas is led by coach Steve Sarkisian, and similar to Riley, Sarkisian has pressure to win at a high level, but with previous success in the CFP, many fans and analysts around college football believe that Sarkisian needs to win a national championship to quiet the criticism and eliminate the pressure.

In this scenario, USC and Texas are both coming off two wins in the CFP and have great momentum. USC has beaten Oklahoma on the road and LSU at a neutral site, while Texas has defeated Big 12 champion Texas Tech at home and three-seed Alabama at a neutral site in the quarterfinal.

USC's championship dreams come to an end against Texas in Pate's hypothetical as he projects the Longhorns to advance and beat Oregon to win the national title.

Still, a run to the CFP semifinals would be a great showing for Riley and the Trojans and could help USC to become an even more attractive destination for recruits and transfers.

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