USC Football: Trojans Senior Wide Receiver Earning National Recognition
The last few Trojan football rosters have all had one commonality: an elite wide receiver.
In 2022 it was former Biletnikoff Award winner and eventual first-round pick Jordan Addison, in 2021 it was 8th overall pick Drake London, in 2020 it was eventual pro-bowler Amon-Ra St. Brown, in 2019 it was Michael Pittman Jr., and before that it was eventual pro-bowler JuJu Smith-Schuster.
Entering 2023, there were some questions regarding who the next elite receiver would be, and who would fill the void left by Addison.
Much to everyone's chagrin, that question has been answered by Brenden Rice.
The Colorado transfer joined the Trojan program in 2022, where he had 39 catches for 611 yard and 4 touchdowns, with two of them coming in the Cotton Bowl against Tulane.
As such, Rice's progression wasn't necessarily something that we could've seen coming, but the talent speaks for itself.
In just six games this season, "Rice leads the Trojans with seven touchdown catches through five games. He’s second on the team in both receptions (17) and receiving yards (338). Of those 17 catches, 15 of them have gone for first downs or touchdowns," per Erik McKinney of on3.com.
As part of a USC offense that loves to distribute the ball, Rice's stats are likely brought down by the sheer quantity of weapons USC has, as well as how the team often jumps out to massive leads early in games, giving the offense an opportunity to rest, and/or prioritize the run later in games.
Rice is a big red zone target standing at 6'3", and is a legitimate candidate to be an NFL player.
As USC enters their more challenging games, they'll need to pass the football more to keep up with high-tempo offenses and better defenses. In doing so, Rice will be called upon more to be a big part of the Trojan offense.
He's a name and number (2) to keep an eye out for on the field. If the Trojans want to make serious noise as a true national championship contender, Rice will need to be a significant contributor.
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