USC Trojans 2026 College Football Preview
Posted July 22, 2026
2025 Recap
Record – 9-4
ATS – 4-8-1
“Yeah, baby!”
— Austin Powers, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997)
Now that’s more like it.
Sure, it wasn’t an epic season, but it was great to see USC look dangerous again. They reached the middle of November with a mark of 8-2 and wins over Michigan and Iowa on their resume. The Trojans could have booked their CFP tickets with a win at Oregon, but they couldn’t get the job done. Nonetheless, it was a nine-win season and a significant improvement over the 2024 campaign.
Can USC take the next step and contend for the Big Ten Championship in 2026?
USC Trojans 2026 Outlook
OFFENSE
2025 By The Numbers (Big Ten):
- Scoring: 35.8 PPG (#3)
- Total Offense: 465.5 YPG (#1)
- Rushing: 169.5 YPG (#6)
- Passing: 296.0 YPG (#1)
- Sacks Allowed: 15 (#2)
The offense moved like a TREMENDOUS MACHINE last season and they scored 20+ in every game, which is pretty amazing. That included contests vs Michigan, Notre Dame, Iowa, and Oregon.
QB Jayden Maiava is one of the best in the country and he’s coming off a great 2025 campaign (66%, 3,711, 24-10 TD to INT, 6 rush TD). The biggest question mark on offense is how Maiava adjusts to losing almost all of the key weaponry from last year’s squad including All-Universe WR Makai Lemon (1,156, 11 TD) who was taken in the first round of the NFL Draft. It’s hard to say if they have a true star left in the mix but sophomore WR Tanook Hines (561, 16.5, 2 TD) could be ready to take the next step, and the Trojans added Terrell Anderson from NC State who’s coming off a fine year with the Pack (629, 16.1, 5 TD). It might be wise to watch out for true freshman BOOBIE FEASTER who was the #1 WR in the country for the class of 2027 before reclassifying up to 2026. This is not the same Boobie Feaster who received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Low Budget Adult Movie.
The RB unit is still one of the deepest in the country, and that’ll be no different from last season’s group where King Miller came virtually out of nowhere to lead the team in rushing (972, 6.2, 8 TD). Waymond Jordan is one of those guys who had his 2025 season cut short due to injury and he’s back in the fold, along with several talented youngsters just waiting for their chance to shine.
The offensive line is one of the most experienced in the Big Ten and they’ve got high performers at left tackle in Elijah Paige and at center with Kilian O’Connor.
DEFENSE
2025 By The Numbers (Big Ten):
- Scoring: 23.0 PPG (#11)
- Total Defense: 350.8 YPG (#13)
- Rushing Defense: 143.2 YPG (#12)
- Passing Defense: 207.5 YPG (#9)
- Sacks: 31 (#6)
The defense has been decent the last two seasons, and new DC Gary Patterson — yes that Gary Patterson (TCU legend) — has quite a bit of talent to work with in 2026.
If you believe all the hype, the Trojans’ defensive line is going to be really good, and who are we to argue given the talent on hand. They retain their top-two sack producers including DE Kameryn Crawford (5.5 sacks, 10.5 TFL), have a bunch of big bodies on the interior, and several youngsters are waiting to bust out including sophomore DT Jahkeem Stewart who’s got impressive quickness and power. The middle layer of the stop unit will be fine with the return of leading tackler LB Desman Stephens II, sophomore Jadyn Walker, and the addition of guys like former Washington Husky Deven Bryant.
It’s been a minute since the Trojans have been good on the back end, but hopefully they can make some strides this year. We like the raw materials that Gary Patterson has to work with as he’s got at least two legit cover guys in CBs Marcelles Williams and Jontez Williams (Iowa St), and it doesn’t hurt that strong safety Christian Pierce (#3 tackles) is back for battle.
SPECIAL TEAMS
The Trojans look set in the kicking department as they signed former Memphis Tiger Lachlan Carrigan (41.5 net) to handle the punting chores, and PK Ryon Sayeri made 21/25 FG attempts last year (8/8 from 40+). They need to find new primary return men, but we think they’ll be fine given the talent at WR and DB.
Schedule Analysis
Overall – The Trojans are almost certainly going to open the season 4-0 after a soft non-conference schedule and a Big Ten opener at Rutgers, but then things get a lot tougher. They’ve gotta face all three of the Big Ten powerhouses (Oregon, Ohio St, at Indiana) and also have to travel to Happy Valley to battle Penn St.
Potential ATS Trouble Spot – at Penn St (Oct 10)
This will be the Trojans’ seventh consecutive game on the gridiron (bye week up next), and they’ll be coming off a pair of emotional games vs former Pac-12 buddies (Oregon, Washington).
Season Win Total
Market consensus – July 22
Over 8.5 +110
Under 8.5 -140
MEGALOCKS says:
No leanage.
This is an extremely talented team, but it’s not easy to back the over when you look at the last eight games of the schedule. We think there’s better value in the futures market.
Note – Our official list of season win total investments will be posted in the blog section of the website.
MEGAmazing Tidbits
Before Traveler the horse, USC’s official mascot was a car-chasing STRAY DOG named George Tirebiter. In the 1940s the scruffy mutt earned his name by racing down campus streets and chomping on moving tires. Students made him the official mascot in 1947 — he wore custom Trojan sweaters, rode to games in convertibles, and once famously bit UCLA’s live bear mascot on the nose. A bronze statue of George still stands on campus today, complete with a bitten tire at his paws. Our Trivia TASTERS don’t get better than this, bay-bee.
HC Lincoln Riley is a mildly-horrific 4-13 ATS as a road favorite with the Trojans.
MEGALOCKS Forecast:
USC showed some serious GREEN SHOOTS of growth last year when it comes to their ability to compete for a Big Ten Championship, and there’s a lot to like about this year’s version of Trojan football.
The offense is going to be top‑notch and the defense should take another small step forward. The biggest challenge is the schedule — specifically the small handful of games against the Big Ten elite — but at least they control their own destiny. The Trojans are in tough, but at odds of around 15‑1, longshot players might wanna get down for a small taste.
Fight On!