By Sean Labar
Lincoln Riley and the USC Trojans have seemingly taken a major step back this season. For the first time in his coaching career, Riley hasn’t had a Heisman-caliber QB and USC has struggled mightily.
The Trojans were able to scrape out a 28-20 victory over Nebraska on Saturday, but are (5-5) in their first season in the Big Ten.
Riley has always been viewed as an offensive mastermind and has gotten credit for mentoring multiple Heisman winning QBs who went on to become first round draft picks in the NFL. Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray, Caleb Williams and even Jalen Hurts all learned from Riley and thrived under his tutelage.
The USC Trojans entered the 2024 season hoping Miller Moss — who had waited patiently for three seasons — would pick up where Williams left off. While Moss showed promise in nine games as the USC starter with 2,555 yards, 18 touchdowns and nine interceptions, his play began to deteriorate midway through the season, leading Riley to make a QB change ahead of the Nebraska game.
Riley turned to sophomore Jayden Maiava to start against the Cornhuskers and the UNLV-transfer played well. He finished the game with 259 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, leading USC to the 28-20 victory.
Lincoln Riley & USC Trojans Expected To Flip 5-Star QB Husan Longstreet
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On Sunday afternoon, On3 recruiting expert Steve Wiltfong reported that he expects 2025 5-star QB Husan Longstreet to flip his commitment from Texas A&M to USC.
FONG BOMB: On3's @SWiltfong_ has logged an expert prediction for USC to flip Texas A&M 5-star QB commit Husan Longstreet✌️
Intel: https://t.co/5gH3MP5Q9J pic.twitter.com/CPgfYaMXoz
— Rivals (@Rivals) November 17, 2024
The five-star quarterback is ranked the No. 6 overall prospect in the 2025 class. Longstreet is the No. 34 overall prospect in the class. He has been committed to Texas A&M since this past April. Longstreet is one of the top players in the class.
“Longstreet has one of the strongest arms out West and one of the quicker releases to go with it. He generates a ton of velocity with little effort and is able to easily throw from different arm angles and is equally comfortable rolling out and throwing right or left. He has big hands and spins the football as consistently as anyone. He’s an improving athlete and uses his legs as a junior a lot more than his first two years of high school ball and looked very comfortable in zone read situations,” 247Sports wrote.
This would obviously be a massive addition for Lincoln Riley and the USC Trojans, who are in desperate need of an elite QB for the future.
