Chasen Johnson’s Injury Recovery Fuels USC’s Cornerback Competition

USC was very high on redshirt sophomore cornerback Chasen Johnson last offseason.

The former UCF cornerback committed to USC during the winter transfer portal before flipping his commitment to SMU, but ultimately decided to return to school. Johnson jumped back in the portal during the spring portal and reunited with cornerbacks coach Trovon Reed, who left UCF to join the Trojans staff in January 2025.

Chasen Johnson Recovers from Knee Injury

USC Trojans Trovon Reed Recruiting Class Chasen Johnson Injury Recovery Rehab Spring Practice RJ Sermons Transfer Portal — Sep 3, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley reacts in the second half against the Rice Owls at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Johnson was expected to compete for a starting job last season, but a knee injury kept him out most of fall camp and through the season opener. He appeared in two games before having season-ending surgery on that knee.

“He's still a young player, and his best football is still in front of him,” Reed said about Johnson in February. “I just make sure I remind him of that every day as he goes through rehab and gets his knee back to normal, because it can be repetitive, right? You can get lazy. You can get lackadaisical, doing the same things over and over. But I also remind him over and over our plans before he stepped foot on this campus.

“Chasen has big goals and big dreams, and the goal is still the same: he wants to be a first-round pick," Reed continued. "So we got to do first round things, so you got to come back. You got to do first-round stuff in rehab. I remind him that every day. The bar is set in his own head for him, and you don't want it any other way. As a coach, you shouldn't want it more than a player. He really loves the game.”

Johnson remained out through the spring but has continued to progress. He began posting clips of himself doing drills on the field without a brace. And more recently this month, the Florida native has posted videos on his Instagram of himself training on the field and in the weight room ahead of his return to USC for summer workouts. Johnson has not been fully cleared yet, but that is expected to be announced sometime this summer.

The 6-1, 195-pound Johnson adds size to the cornerback room. USC wouldn’t have re-signed him, and Johnson likely wouldn’t have returned if there wasn’t a belief he could make an impact in 2026.

Post-Spring Cornerback Competition

Cornerback will continue be one of the more intriguing battles heading into fall camp.

Johnson isn’t the only cornerback returning from a significant knee injury. Iowa State transfer Jontez Williams suffered a torn ACL in late September but was still highly coveted in the portal. Rivals and 247Sports rated him as the No. 1 cornerback in the portal. Williams has recorded five interceptions over the past two seasons and was named a second team All-Big-12 selection in 2024.

After playing just nine snaps in 2024, redshirt sophomore Marcelles Williams started 11 games in 2025. The former four-star recruit took on more of a vocal role in the spring as he competes to hold onto his starting job. Redshirt freshman RJ Sermons was a late add to the 2025 class after reclassifying last summer. The former five-star recruit did not take a snap but is trending upwards after a strong spring.

The Trojans signed three cornerbacks in the 2026 class in four-stars Rock Hill and Brandon Lockhart, and three-star Jayden Crowder. Redshirt sophomore Carrington Pierce, the younger brother of senior safety Christian Pierce, came over from Oklahoma State.

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