USC Football's Strategy In The Transfer Portal? | More Targets Emerging?

[@rocboysfootball]

Branch Brothers Just Hit The Portal. Will Update This Conversation

[@GeraldWilliams-je5vz]

Zach can go a poor man’s Deebo Samuel… gonna end up being a 3rd down Gadget player. Zion can play, great size, aggressive inside the box… still need to mature in coverage… with more playing time and confidence.. could have been a starter.

[@htvlogs80]

Before USC & other schools use to be able to sell kids on the system, preparing them for the NFL, compete for championships. Now all that doesn't matter to these kids, all that matters to them is how much money you can offer them. I hate this new error of college football, there needs to be limits & rules.

[@JamesTyler-x1q]

Most want the money now since most are not NFL bound or scout team bound

[@htvlogs80]

@@JamesTyler-x1q I agree, they chasing that money cause they know they can't make it.

[@BYanez2662]

Absolutely

[@arturobarajas9094]

On the other hand, some will stay in college longer because they know that they will get paid more than if they go to the NFL and fail. Paiva, the QB from Vanderbilt, just got an injunction and will play a 5th year of football (2 Juco, 3 D1) because he knows that he is not NFL material but is making a cool mil in Tennessee.

[@mikem4864]

This channel is, without a doubt, one of the best places to get coherent USC recruiting information. Most of the others operate on personal feelings. Appreciate how you operate. No yelling, no rambling, and no personal connection to the players/ families that influence your opinion. Fight On ✌🏽

[@waldosilas919]

USC was slow in the portal last year and lost out on alot of talent.

[@DPMixing]

First portal window always has the better talent and should be attacked aggressively. Waiting to the 2nd portal window is a death sentence since it has lesser players that are usually unhappy with their depth chart position after spring camp. Also it means less time to integrate into the team coming in after 2nd window.

[@ohrick8707]

People forget, USC still has to get players through the admissions office, no matter what they are paid. Some of these guys are thick as a brick. SEC schools will get you in! ✌️

[@diggingmystyle]

the standard is low at USC. It has always accepted undergrads, JUCOs, and just about anyone who can play. USC is certainly not Stanford nor Notre Dame when it comes to admission standards for football players.

[@Bert2144]

Are we going to have a team for the bowl game with everyone leaving.

[@lawrencesmith9059]

I think that they should only focus on getting really great players and focus on developing their players on the roster. We need the following: - 1 very top quality wide receiver and 1 receiver for depth - 1 more high quality guy in the secondary - 1 experience linebacker, I think we need a bigger linebacker who can shed blocks - 1 big guy in the middle of the defensive line - 1 edge rusher - 1 great running back and 1 depth running back - 1 offensive line guy for development who can compete for starting time. I think they should develop the o-line from internal except for maybe one portal guy.

[@sageonthestage]

Purdue has hired USC offensive coordinator Josh Henson for the same role as coach Barry Odom's new staff takes shape with the Boilermakers. Henson, who spent the past three seasons with coach Lincoln Riley at USC and also coached the Trojans' offensive line, will also work with the tight ends at Purdue. He served as Missouri's offensive coordinator from 2009 to 2015, when Odom was the team's defensive coordinator. Henson, a former Oklahoma State offensive lineman, also has coached at his alma mater and at LSU and Texas A&M.

[@fischook1238]

USC needs to grab these guys. Show some urgency and get these players, especially the kids from California. I see USC losing many players but not getting any players. What are they waiting for ???

[@Brats-U-Tube]

Riley needs to give half his salary back to USC! 7-5 last year and 6-6 this year, what a joke. None of these kids want to play for Riley and I can’t believe that no one can see this

[@diggingmystyle]

because SC fans are used to bad seasons after Petey left SC in a hot mess.

[@walterclarke382]

Is it a slow start or do players back east and Midwest want to come to the west coast. USC made a solid offer to Harmon.

[@drivewithiv]

The Branch brothers hitting the portal hurts

[@Johnnie5213]

✌️✌️😎

[@GeraldWilliams-je5vz]

Don’t like the smaller LB’s…Manu played at Servite high school with Noah Fifita and TMac, all went to Arizona together. Smaller Lb’s don’t have that are length to keep lineman off them, have a hard time wrapping up bigger Rb’s…. I like that Lb from Oklahoma… other than that get everybody else you mentioned… but I can’t wait to see what Cordova and Jacobsen do for us, High motor, physical, play with a mean streak. Get them in the weight room add another 10-15 lbs of muscle on both and let them loose.

[@PhncnMRchntz]

We need to start playing our freshman instead of paying a premium for other program's mercs

[@PedPad-v2m]

None of these are going to materialize. USC does not have the NIL pockets to compete with the power four because they spent 100M on a head coach and 200M in a new facility. Better luck with the JUCO transfer portal.

[@rahb2096]

That’s not how nil works no school can directly fund nil

[@wcfenderson5609]

All that was already in the making before NIL started.

[@arturobarajas9094]

@@rahb2096 They will soon enough- 20.4 mil per power 4 starting in the summer of '25. SC will also have about 12.5 mil through its collective. Times a changing.

[@diggingmystyle]

Don't forget the $1 billion settlement for sexual abuse.

[@JoshuaA25]

We’re just cheap! Unless we start spending I don’t think anyone will be excited going forward

[@Jaime-u5m]

We are just sensible, I tip my hat to the sound thinking. Fight On!

[@fredgarcia8566]

Need to spend the $$ on the coaches the players trust there future to be ready for the next level

[@arturobarajas9094]

I don't see it as doom and gloom as others do. Taking a look at who the team lost, most were not super productive. The media makes it sound like these guys were world beaters because some were 5 Star recruits. However, take a closer look and these guys were not major contributors. The skill position players? Well this is USC, where skill position players grow like palm trees. Anyway, here's my take: Zach hurts but was not better than Makai this year. Makai will get more looks and will produce and not drop balls like Zach did. Zach had l less than 50 catches and less than 500 yards receiving with only 1 touchdown. Same with Jakobi- he's better than Duce and will thrive barring an injury. One could argue that Zion might be a bigger loss than Zach simply because of depth. Zion leaving is a bit of a head scratcher as he was slated for a starting role next year. The loss of Joyner is a bit puzzling, but his production is not irreplaceable either. Mason Murphy? Please. That leaves players like Miller (expected) and a bunch of players that were not major producers: like Hughes, Hudson, (great catches but minor production) and Peevy. Personally, having Pregnon back is more important than any of these guys leaving. Pregnon, Noa, and Paige is a good foundation for next year, On defense, if Kamari stays, the back end of the D will be fine. Gentry coming back is huge as well. The DL with Asibi, Thompkins, Jones, Stewart, with Shelby and Fountain on the outside plus Lucas coming back is solid (better than this year's DL) I think Rilley's strategy of not going portal crazy and relying on guys that his staff recruited is a good strategy. These guys will step up and, hopefully, stay for 2+ years. I don't know, I am not so doom and gloom.

[@Rich-m5f]

USC is truly breaking my heart I dnt think they have a real plan honestly

[@mikebreezy0587]

If OU pushed out Eugene Brooks for EPL. Let’s you know he wasn’t that good to begin with. OU line was atrocious this season and it carousel of lineman getting a chance he didn’t even sniff the field

[@StandOutProd919]

They're not being patient. These players just don't believe in what Riley is selling them. He isn't the guy for the job. Every part of the college football ecosystem is reacting to him like he's not the guy....it is what it is

[@htvlogs80]

You're incorrect, players don't care who the coach is, now all they care is how much NIL will they be offered. Look at Joyner for example, he wants to be a Trojan, he wants to play for Riley, but he felt $30K still isn't enough for him to stay. He left USC because of money. The transfer portal & NIL in college is all broken.

[@avs9800]

Money is top priority for players

[@StandOutProd919]

@htvlogs80 that wasn't all there was to the story with Joyner. I'm definitely not incorrect about how players react to his style of leadership. Sure NIL is a huge factor. But that doesn't negate his results and decisions since taking over the job and how his play style translate to the modern game..he's not the guy

[@wishihadavette2392]

@@StandOutProd919Joyner literally did not want to leave the program at all. The only reason he did was bc SC was not willing to give him how much money he was asking for

[@StandOutProd919]

@wishihadavette2392 i didn't say he wanted to leave..I said more was at play there than simply what he was offered for NIL.

[@uscfootball4life3]

Brooks visiting UCLA , no USC visit scheduled, pathetic

[@Rich-m5f]

Until Lincoln get rid of his friends an get real coaches we won’t do much it’s about to get bad

[@Chewy-1428]

USC always shopping in the transfer portal never going to have a core group of players for 3-4 years. Horrible

[@BYanez2662]

Adapt or die. These are the times we live in. NFL has roster roll over every year , same with every team in pro sports. College basketball is full of one and done every year. It'll be the end of high salary coaches so the player pool money stays consistent.

[@wcfenderson5609]

It’s the new age of college football for every school.

[@diggingmystyle]

@@wcfenderson5609 no it's not. The playoff teams this year recruit hard from HS and plug in a few players from the transfer portal.

[@Thankyou423.3]

And just lost the branches wow

[@JamesTyler-x1q]

No big loss

[@diggingmystyle]

@@JamesTyler-x1q really? Lots of teams would love to have Zachariah and will pay big. He's an electric player with scary speed that a good team will find ways to use him to scare the crap out of opposing defenses. He's literally someone you need to pay real attention to on every play.

[@Rich-m5f]

USC I been wit u for thirty years I think they are scared they might be scared to spend money

[@sageonthestage]

Everybody leaving USC, cause they know Lincoln Riley is a joke. USC will go 7-5 in 2025 at best under Riley….and play in the holiday bowl or the LA Bowl.

[@BYanez2662]

Players are leaving cause they ain't the "guy " , the players who left were stars in high school and average to good in big time college so they're leaving to the highest bidder. If they were the guy they'd be the guy instead moving on to greener pastures like Korey Foreman who's still average at Fresno St.

[@sageonthestage]

@ Naw, that is so far from the truth! Been associated with USC football for a while. Leadership matters. I know we are in the transfer portal world, but leadership counts! Lincoln Riley is not Pete Carroll or John Robinson. The top kids in California, ARE NOT coming to USC….they are going elsewhere! This WAS NEVER the case. Also, Carroll and Robinson didn’t miss on their recruits. In as much as I USC floundered under Clay Helton, at lease he had 10-3 (2016) and 11-3 (2017) seasons with Sam Darnold. Caleb Flammed out! We ALL KNOW that Riley is about the QB. He’s a “Glorified OC” masquerading as a head coach. He needs to do what Colorado is doing, and get SOME REAL assistant coaches. When Riley was hired by USC in 2022, he signed a 10-year contract with $110 million dollars, a move that shocked the college football world. His buyout is reported to be $75 to 80 million dollars. Given the legal problems and law suits USC has had over the past decade, USC being fined, put on probation for 2022, 2023 coaching violations (Aside from a year of probation and the $50,000 fine, the NCAA Committee on Infractions approved further penalties. USC will be restricted from having the special teams analyst in practice and film review for six consecutive days during two weeks of the 2024-25 season), and the USC President Folt retiring on July 1, 2025, at the end of the academic year, the both the university and the football team, are “adrift”. USC has “rich boosters”, however, they won’t bail the university out on this bad decision. “People are unhappy about USC," an official on the "College GameDay" podcast reports. "My sources told me this week that Lincoln Riley would be owed $90 million if you were going to fire him. Right around $90 million. That's like Jimbo (Fisher) super-sized buyout. It feels like those two are a little bit stuck with each other right now, Lincoln Riley and USC." So there you have it! No one wants to stay on a sinking ship! USC will go 7-5 or 5-7 next year.mediocre talent on a team with mediocre coaches and staff. I hear Coach Carroll will be teaching a class in the spring.uSC would be best served if they can find a way to “utilize “ Coach Carroll in a “special capacity”, cause Riley ain’t it!

[@Brats-U-Tube]

Riley needs to give half his salary back to USC! 7-5 last year and 6-6 this year, what a joke. None of these kids want to play for Riley and I can’t believe that no one can see this

[@gusf645]

stop it.. you don't return half of your allowance when you do your chores poorly.

[@BYanez2662]

No player accountability? Coaches were the reason Zion is brittle (injuries)and can't win a starting job? Coaches are the reason Zachariah had the most touches and targets at his position and dropped passes and called for fair catches on punts . If a player was that player he'd be that player. Every time Drake London caught the ball it was fireworks. Same with Amon-Ra , Pittman , Adoree Jackson and many others. These players these days want the money and adulation without putting up the stats.

[@Brats-U-Tube]

@@BYanez2662 Lemon is all ball as well ✌🏽 Riley is just not a program builder and he does not fit SoCal culture. Former USC 5 ⭐️ Domani Jackson who transferred to Alabama is on social media praising the Branch’s decision to enter the portal. And Jackson is a SoCal kid. Riley cannot build a championship culture

[@deucefly1062]

@@gusf645 I think Riley should give some of that money back as he has not performed based off what he was paid to do. Mike Norvell is giving over $4mil back to Florida State. Brian Kelly is also giving some back.