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USC Trojans Spring Practice: 5 Position Battles Lincoln Riley Must Evaluate

The USC Trojans are set to begin year four of the Lincoln Riley era as they open spring football practice on Tuesday, March 25. So what are some position battles to monitor as practice begins?

Kendell Hollowell

Oct 12, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley during a time out against the Penn State Nittany Lions in the first half at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Oct 12, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley during a time out against the Penn State Nittany Lions in the first half at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
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The USC Trojans are set to begin spring practice on Tuesday, March 25 as they prepare for coach Lincoln Riley’s fourth season at the helm. USC lost 21 players to the transfer portal and 16 players are out of eligibility. 

The Trojans added 12 players via the portal and 14 players from their 2025 recruiting class are on campus taking part in offseason workouts and spring practice. They will have several position battles, here are the top five to monitor. 

Lincoln Riley
Oct 12, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley during a time out against the Penn State Nittany Lions in the first half at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Running Back: How does the room shape up? 

Woody Marks was sensational in his lone season in the Cardinal and Gold. He became the first USC player to eclipse the 1,000-yard rushing mark since Ronald Jones in 2017. The Trojans second leading rusher Quinten Joyner transferred home to the Lone Star State to play for Texas Tech. So, for the fourth consecutive year, Riley went to the portal to fill out his running back room. 

After spending his first three seasons at Iowa State, Eli Sanders had a breakout season for New Mexico in 2024, rushing for 1,063 yards and nine touchdowns on 147 carries as a redshirt junior. Waymond Jordan, the No. 1 ranked JUCO running back ran for 1,612 yards and 20 touchdowns in 12 games this past season for Hutchinson Community College, the junior college national champions. 

Does either start to separate themself and or will the Trojans end up going with a healthy dose of both? And don’t count out sophomore Bryan Jackson carving out a role in the running back rotation. 

Wide Receiver: Who’s the 3rd option? 

USC has two stars at the receiver position in juniors Ja’Kobi Lane and Makai Lenon. The two former four-star recruits in the 2023 cycle had breakout seasons last season and after Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate, have a strong case for the second-best receiver duo in the Big Ten. But who can the Trojans rely on at receiver outside of Lane and Lemon?

Former Boise State receiver Prince Strachan would be the first choice. Strachan has excellent size at 6-foot-5 and 212 pounds. He caught 25 passes for 304 yards and one touchdown last season for the Broncos. Xavier Jordan, a former top 100 recruit in the 2024 cycle did not play in his true freshman season. The Sierra Canyon (Calif.) product showed flashes in last year’s spring game and is expected to take on a larger role this season. Four-star Corey Simms is among early enrollees taking part in spring practice. 

Right Tackle: Will Tobias Raymond become a full-time starter?

Redshirt sophomore Tobias Raymond earned his first significant playing time in the Trojans week four loss to Michigan when Riley made changes to the offensive line at halftime. He benched starting left tackle Elijah Paige, moved Mason Murphy over to left tackle and inserted Raymond in at right tackle. Raymond then started the Trojans bowl game against Texas A&M at right tackle after Murphy jumped in the portal. 

Raymond is the favorite to become the full-time starter, but redshirt freshman Justin Tauanuu will make his own case. Tauanuu played his first significant snaps in the bowl game when stepped in for an injured Paige at left tackle on the second possession of the game. Four-star offensive tackles Alex Payne and Aaron Dunn are also on campus this spring. 

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Defensive End: Does Jahkeem Stewart start as a true freshman?

One of the more intriguing battles that will be closely monitored from now until the Trojans first regular season game is the defensive end position. Senior Anthony Lucas returns after suffering a season-ending injury in early October. Lucas was having the best season of his collegiate career before he went down for the season. That paved the way for sophomore Kameryn Fountain to earn more playing down the stretch. The Atlanta native showed tremendous potential and is primed for a breakout campaign. 

Junior Braylan Shelby continued to progress down the stretch. He was excellent defending the run and showed signs to be an effective pass rusher. And there’s five-star freshman Jahkeem Stewart, who was listed as a defensive end on the Trojans updated roster. Stewart is up to 290 pounds and the New Orleans native is going to play in some capacity in his freshman campaign, the only question is how much?

Cornerback: Will a young player overtake a veteran? 

The Trojans will have a new look secondary in 2025 after losing four seniors in their cornerback room. San Jose State transfer cornerback DJ Harvey figures to be a plug-and-play player and redshirt senior DeCarlos Nicholson is expected to be the starter opposite of him. However, several young cornerbacks will certainly push them in the spring and into fall camp, lead by redshirt freshman Marcelles Williams. 

Williams, the younger brother of former USC safety Max Williams was a four-star recruit in the 2024 recruiting class. The St. John Bosco alum was turning heads last spring, but only appeared in one game this past season in a crowded cornerback room. Williams might be too talented to keep off the field another season. Redshirt freshman Braylon Conley and Isaiah Rubin are also members of the Trojans 2024 recruiting class that will be competing for playing time. 

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Kendell Hollowell
KENDELL HOLLOWELL

Kendell Hollowell, a Southern California native has been been covering collegiate athletics since 2020 via radio and digital journalism. His experience includes covering programs such as the USC Trojans, Vanderbilt Commodores and Alabama Crimson Tide. Kendell He also works in TV production for the NFL Network. Prior to working in sports journalism, Kendell was a collegiate athlete on the University of Wyoming and Adams State football team. He is committed to bringing in-depth insight and analysis for USC athletics.

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