USC Trojans’ Lincoln Riley Details Recruiting Surge, Direction of Program

USC Trojans coach Lincoln Riley may be entering his fourth season in Los Angeles, but it’s really year two of a rebuild.

When Riley first arrived in November 2021, the Trojans were coming off a disappointing 4-8 season and inherited a less than adequate roster. So, Riley dove into the transfer portal to overhaul the roster and the result was an 11-win season, trip to the Pac-12 Championship Game, a New Year’s Six Bowl and Heisman Trophy winner in quarterback Caleb Williams.

USC tried to follow the same approach in 2023 and after a 6-0 start, the Trojans season fell apart, losing five or their final six regular season games and ranked at the bottom of almost every statistical category.

Nov 30, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley reacts against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the second half at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Riley decided it was time to make some major changes to the program and brought in a new defensive staff in 2024, starting with defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn, who previously held the same role with crosstown rival UCLA. Defensive line coach Eric Henderson came over from the Los Angeles Rams and defensive backs coach Doug Belk came over from Houston, where he spent the previous five seasons as the defensive or co-defensive coordinator. Defensive ends coach Shaun Nua was the only position coach from previous defensive staff to be brought back.

The defense improved drastically in every aspect — schematically, physicality and execution. On the surface, the Trojans 6-6 seasons was very underwhelming. The inability to finish games late in the fourth quarter was disheartening, but something they solved as the season widened down.

USC was 1-5 in one possession games heading into their second bye week in early November, having held a fourth quarter lead in every single one of them. The Trojans then went 3-0 in one possession games to close out the season.

2024 served as a foundation year and for the direction the program is headed in. Riley used that to continue building his staff, both coaching and personnel.

USC hired longtime NFL assistant Rob Ryan to be the linebackers coach, former UCF cornerbacks coach Trovon Reed for the same position and Chad Savage, who is thought of in high regard by local high school coaches, from Colorado State to be the tight ends and inside receivers coach.

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The Trojans assembled an all-star personnel department that reflects that of an NFL-style front office, with general manager Chad Bowden at the head of the table. Pair all of that with an athletic department that is all-in on restoring USC football and you get what has shaped into the No. 1-ranked recruiting class in the 2026 cycle according to every site heading into the summer.

“I think the way that we play, the improvements we made, especially defensively,” Riley said in an interview with national analyst Yogi Roth. “The way the roster is trended, getting more away from the portal, getting more into the high school developmental process, which is what we want to be long term. If I have any regrets about our path up to this I would have started that after the first year, instead of after the second year.

“We would have decided to go all in after the success for the first year and really blow it out in year two and that was a mistake. But we’re one that path now and you can feel it and I think the momentum with the staff and the recruiting I think are a direct representative of the improvements and the shift in especially the philosophy from a recruiting standpoint and some of the staff changes we made a year ago and we’re feeling some of the aftershocks of that right now,” Riley continued.

Southern California is hotbed for recruiting, particularly the 60-mile radius around USC’s campus. 14 of the Trojans 27 commitments are within that reach, headlined by Rancho Cucamonga five-star cornerback RJ Sermons, Loyola four-star cornerback Brandon Lockhart, Santa Margarita four-star EDGE Simote Katoanga and four-star receiver Trent Mosley, Oaks Christian four-star running back Deshonne Redeaux and Mater Dei four-star defensive lineman Tomuhini Topui.

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

Riley and Bowden are following the recruiting philosophy laid out by former USC coach Pete Carroll, who lead the program during its dynasty in the early 2000s, build a fence Southern California and then branch out to other states. A large number of the Trojans commits have put on their recruiting hats to actively pursue other prospects to join them in Los Angeles.

Having 27 commitments in one cycle would be a lot for any year, but as official visit season is here, the Trojans are nowhere close to being done.

“I know it’s the right thing for us long term, we have some incredible advantages here and that’s one of them,” Riley said. “Some of the absolute best high school football in the country, some of the best programs, the academics where you can attract some elite guys from other parts of the country. It makes sense for us and this staff. I feel good about it and I’m really excited about what that means for this program going forward.”

USC certainly has attracted elite talent from all over the country, holding commitments from Gainesville (Ga.) five-star linebacker Xavier Griffin, Archbishop Hoban (Ohio) five-star cornerback Elbert Hill, IMG Academy (Fla.) five-star offensive tackle Keenyi Pepe, Richardson (Texas) four-star defensive lineman Jaimeon Winfield and Lincoln-Way East and (Ill.) four-star quarterback Jonas Williams, Harvey (Ohio) four-star running back Shahn Alston and Mount Carmel (Ill.) four-star defensive lineman Braeden Jones.

“I think I’m inspired by how this community, LA, the university, the administration, just everybody’s coming together right now," Riley said. "You feel more than any time I’ve been here, a real sense of people want to come together and see this thing great again. And I feel like it’s becoming important to all levels, both inside the walls of SC and outside the walls and the combination is so powerful. I feel when we're out recruiting, I feel it out in the community, I feel it in the walls, I feel it putting together staff, there's not one part of it where I don't feel it right now."

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