Lincoln Riley is all done with spring practice at USC for this year. The head coach canceled the spring game to focus more on building the team and has also been significantly active in the recruiting cycle. The Trojans had a No. 11 recruiting class in the country, thanks to their five-star QB Husan Longstreet and 11 four-star recruits. However, a lot needs to improve for Riley if he has to better their 7-6 finish in 2024. That was a downgrade from their 8-5 finish in 2023. However, the first year in the Big 10 was never going to be easy. Second year? It could be easier. For that to happen, the head coach needs a fit roster- especially for some players to return from their injuries.
Riley has already lost TE Lake McRee for the remainder of spring to prevent his body from further wear and tear. Makai Lemon returned towards the latter part of practice, in much-needed relief for Riley. However, the HC just lost a developing talent right at the end of practice, who could make for a useful addition in the secondary. Among everything that went wrong for USC, the defense was a significant upgrade from its shoddy 2023 season.
Safety Christian Pierce will be out for the remainder of spring, Riley told the media after practice. “Small little injury thing; he had a doctor’s appointment this afternoon,” Riley said, acknowledging Pierce’s absence from practice. “Nothing serious, but won’t do anything else the rest of spring,” the HC declared. Pierce has mostly appeared on special teams for the past two seasons and has had a total of 15 tackles after appearing in 2023 games. Pierce was the third safety on the depth chart and was looking to get more playing time this season.
Led by returning safety Kamari Ramsey, Pierce looked like he was growing into a better player this season. Ramsey told the media, “[He’s] a lot more comfortable.” “It’s been great to see him grow from last spring to this spring. Just the confidence in him being more comfortable in the system and just taking over. He’s not doing too much thinking. He’s just focused on his assignment, alignment, and technique,” he added.
In the safety room, Pierce’s going down proves to be a problem. After Ramsey and the transfer-addition Bishop Fitzgerald, Pierce seemed to be the only dependable option. Should either of the two also go down, Pierce would’ve been the person to rely on. Though Riley seemed not to be too bothered by his injury, it can begin to worry him if Pierce’s absence from practice gets prolonged. On the other hand, Riley also had to make a tough call about his quarterback race, where two serious contenders are giving each other a strong fight.
Lincoln Riley sets the record straight about Husan Longstreet’s role
Husan Longstreet has been a serious damage-inducing talent since his high school football days. He is a five-star recruit, which is why USC sits at the No. 11 rank in the 2025 class of recruitment. Arriving at USC, he got to work on filling a spot that was vacated by Miller Moss. However, the freshman’s competition is against the season’s returning quarterback – and a favorite for the QB1 role—Jayden Maiava.
Even with his career total of 8,595 yards, Longstreet will not be preferred over Maiava. At an earlier press conference, Riley said, “I mean, Jayden’s clearly the number one quarterback right now. I mean, that’s, that’s which is not surprising at all.” He added about his plans for Longstreet, “Husan has done a really nice job. He makes a lot of explosive plays. I would expect, you know, in there in the summer, he would have an opportunity to get a lot better — just like I kind of told you guys the same thing about Jayden last year. I mean, last year in spring, you know, Jayden was doing some good things but was still learning. And the summer and fall camp was really helpful for him. I’m sure it will be for Husan.”
The QB room at USC is packing some serious power. Along with Maiava and Longstreet, there’s also Sam Huard. Both he and Longstreet are 5-star prospects of their respective classes, but Huard has seen limited time on the field. Given the current state of the QB competition, it appears that Longstreet and Huard will compete for the backup position to Maiava, who is expected to start.
Riley has given his all to building this 2025 team. D’Anton Lynn has been at USC for over a year, which has proved beneficial. So there’s no way he can afford to have gaps here this time. The safety depth chart looks a little concerning with Pierce not being available for spring anymore. On the offense, it looks like Longstreet will have to wait until the next season to get a bigger role in the team. With all these factors in play, will Lincoln Riley be able to pitch in a better record than the 2024 record?
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