USC hopes 2026 NFL Draft is program’s low ebb
The 2026 NFL Draft got here and went final week.
USC watched three gamers get chosen. USC and Notre Dame continued their toggle because the groups with essentially the most gamers drafted by the Shield. After Kamari Ramsey went within the fifth spherical with the 141st choose, the Trojans sat at 541 gamers drafted whereas the Fighting Irish completed the weekend with 545 gamers chosen. USC watched Makai Lemon go within the first spherical to the Philadelphia Eagles. Most felt Lemons’ No. 20 choice was a contact decrease than anticipated as many slotted him at No. 13 to the Los Angeles Rams. The Rams and common supervisor Les Snead shocked everybody by rolling with Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson with the No. 13 choose.
The Baltimore Ravens circled again to the USC receiving room and plucked Ja’Kobi Lane within the third spherical with the No. 80 choose. Ramsey went to the Texans on Day 3 Saturday, and USC’s draft output was completed. The Trojans tied duke, South Carolina, TCU, Illinois and Utah as colleges with three gamers drafted. These usually are not colleges with whom USC is accustomed to sharing a draft tier.
Ohio State had a whopping 11 gamers drafted this 12 months. When was the final time a USC draft class had 11? That can be 2009, when first-rounders Mark Sanchez, Brian Cushing and Clay Matthews headlined an 11-man Trojan march to the NFL. Let’s pause and replicate on the very fact USC despatched not one, however two linebackers to the NFL within the first spherical 17 years in the past. It by some means appears longer however Cushing and Matthews had been the final first-round USC linebackers despatched to the NFL.
The 2008 draft noticed USC ship 10 gamers together with first-rounders Sedrick Ellis, Keith Rivers (one other first-round linebacker!), Sam Baker and Lawrence Jackson to the large leagues. In 2006, Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush headlined one other 11-man draft class for the Trojans.
It’s not onerous to attract the road from excessive draft counts and program success. Besides Ohio State, 2025 playoff crew Alabama and Texas A&M watched the NFL draft 10 of their gamers. Miami had 9 gamers drafted. Georgia and nationwide champion Indiana had eight.
This was Lincoln Riley‘s fourth USC draft class and the second consecutive with simply three gamers drafted. Last 12 months no one drafted a Trojan till the Houston Texans indulged their affinity for USC defensive backs and grabbed Jaylin Smith, conserving alive USC’s now 25-year streak of getting a prime three spherical draft choose. The 2024 class had headliner and No. 1 total choice Caleb Williams go to the Chicago Bears. USC watched seven gamers drafted because the high-water mark of Riley’s tenure at USC.
There’s extra to the story, after all. Williams’ draft cohort included 5 gamers who transferred in below Riley and one other (Tahj Washington) who transferred forward of Riley’s arrival. Calen Bullock was the one homegrown participant drafted in 2024. All informed, eight of 17 USC guys drafted below Riley have been transfers.
common supervisor Chad Bowden and Riley clearly count on the ratio to tilt in direction of the homegrowns in drafts to return. USC’s 34-man 2026 highschool recruiting class was the nation’s finest and consists of a number of gamers with the expertise to play on the subsequent degree. Cornerbacks coach Trovon Reed is already framing conversations with Elbert Hill IV across the aim of being a first-round draft choose.
It’s an excellent measuring stick for the place USC’s roster stands headed into 2026. The Buckeyes’ roster is comprised of 5 (together with redshirt guys) courses much like the one USC simply signed. Consequently, it is not a shock to see the NFL store in heavy quantity of their aisle of the shop. This is the place USC is making an attempt to return. The Trojans in the mean time have the No. 3 2027 class based mostly on 11 commits. The message has been constant the 2027 group shall be smaller in quantity than the 2026, however the expectation is the standard will match the usual set by this 12 months’s freshmen.
Wins and championships are the best and most most well-liked markers as we observe USC’s efficiency over the following few seasons beginning with this one. However, the Trojans’ draft contributions must also stand up if the program’s championship window is open as Riley has stated on a number of events this offseason. It’s a powerful signal of each recruiting and growth when the NFL raids the roster. It’s the standing befitting the college that produced the second-most gamers drafted ever, and it is a part of the general profile USC is making an attempt to rebuild.
