FOOTBALL

If It’s Friday, It’s Time For A USC Notes Column

Wide receiver Chris Henry said he will honor his commitment to Ohio State. If Henry had signed with Oregon, the Ducks would have the nation’s No. 1-ranked recruiting class.

That would have sent some people into orbit. But the bigger and more interesting point is that two West Coast schools have the nation’s best recruiting classes.

  • Here are a few recruits I think will make an impact next season with a major caveat: If Lincoln Riley allows them to flourish. I’m leaning toward skill positions because those are the easiest spots for recruits to make immediate contributions.
  • Elbert Hill, cornerback/tailback: He is a corner but has true breakaway speed and I hope Riley gives him a few carries. Watch this.

Luke Wafle, defensive end: Frankly, I’m tired of highly touted defensive linemen coming to USC and making a less-than-expected impact. But I’m hoping Wafle overcomes the Riley jinx.

Trent Mosley, wide receiver: Everyone in Southern California knows how good he is. And I don’t think he will get unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.

Mark Bowman, tight end: He is physically more gifted than any USC tight ends in recent memory. What I don’t like is how he didn’t get more chances at Mater Dei.

Shahn Alston, tailback: I kind of like that Alston and Hill are from Ohio. Hopefully, they bring a blue-collar mindset to the team.

  • Eric Musselman said Thursday that freshman guard Alijah Arenas could make his debut in mid-January. It always seemed weird USC said Arenas would probably miss the entire season with a torn meniscus, which should not have been a season-ending injury.

It was always probably just a safe bet in case Arenas decided to focus on playing in the NBA.

  • USC reserve offensive lineman Makai Saina has entered the transfer portal.
  • Former USC tailback Raleek Brown earned first-team All-Big-12 honors playing for Arizona State.
  • Defensive end Ezekiel Larry of Yale earned First Team All-Ivy League honors and was named after leading the league with 10.5 sacks, ending the regular season ranked fifth nationally in sacks per game (1.05).

He is the son of former USC defensive end Lawrence Larry, who will always be a member of my all-name team.

  • Next semester USC will offer a class titled “COMM 400: Crooked Studies of K-pop: The Case of G-Dragon.”

And now for some history:

This 1969 USC-UCLA photo features “Wild Bunch” defensive end Charlie Weaver (No. 84) and all-Pac-8 offensive guard Dennis Alumbaugh (No. 67).

  • Defensive end Andrew Williams of Fremont High School in Los Angeles signed with USC this week. It’s a good reminder to remember another Fremont graduate, USC halfback Don McCall, who played in the 1960’s and was a fifth-round draft pick by the New Orleans Saints in 1967.
Mike Taylor (77) on USC rugby team

One little-known fact: McCall was on the USC rugby team in 1967 with football players Mike Taylor (offensive lineman), Bob Klein (tight end) and Willard Scott (defensive tackle). The team’s record was 13-1-2.

  • Did you know USC tailback Manfred Moore was the first person to score a first-grade rugby league try in Australia and an NFL touchdown. Moore played a season for the Newtown Jets in New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership.
  • USC basketball star John Rudometkin was with the New York Knicks in 1962-63.

He is pictured next to former UCLA star Willie Naulls. Other notables in the picture are Johnny Green, Gene Shue and Richie Guerin, who averaged 21.5 points per game that season.

AN ALL-TIME USC COACHING STAFF: 1960

  • Who is in this picture? Going to left to right, John McKay, Ray George, Norm Pollom, Mel Hein, Charles Hall, Don Coryell, Marv Goux and Dave Levy.

Ray George was head coach at Texas A&M, where he beat coaching legends Bud Wilkinson (Oklahoma), Red Sanders (UCLA) and Bear Bryant (then at Kentucky). Norm Pollom became the Buffalo Bills’ vice president of player of personnel and drafted quarterback Jim Kelly in 1983.

Mel Hein, a longtime USC assistant, was NFL MVP in 1938 and member of the NFL’s 50th and 75th anniversary all-time teams. Charles Hall became director of player personnel for the Houston Oilers. Marv Goux is Mr. USC and the most inspirational coach in university history. Dave Levy is in the USC Hall of Fame, was John McKay’s right-hand man, considered perhaps USC’s greatest assistant coach and should have been promoted to head coach.

Then there was Don Coryell, one of the greatest offensive minds in NFL history and former head coach of the St. Louis Cardinals and San Diego Chargers.

Under Coryell, the Cardinals won division titles in 1974-75. They had not even been in the playoffs since 1948 when he took over as coach 1973. Then he went to the Chargers and won three straight division titles (1979-81).

PICTURES OF THE WEEK

Ingrid Boulting

Mariko Kaga

25 thoughts on “If It’s Friday, It’s Time For A USC Notes Column”

  1. “Elbert Hill, tailback: He has true breakaway speed. Hopefully Riley gives him enough carries.”

    I doubt that —>CB<— Elbert Hill will be getting any carries.

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  3. Outstanding recruiting class. Best since the glory days of Pete Carrol. Mark Bowman may have the biggest immediate impact on offense. He is tall, very fast, strong, and runs excellent routes. He also blocks very well. Will be a matchup problem for every defense. That is why USC was willing to pay big time for him. Expect Riley to go to more two and three TE sets with Bowman and Lyons. He will also play him at H back and shift him out to wide receiver.

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    1. The estimate is $9 million NIL for the incoming class, which would be a remarkable investment if these guys move the needle and can take USC to 10 wins in 2027.

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      1. Hope they move the needle to 12……

        [And hope we win our bowl game and get to 10 this year —no matter who we play it ain’t gonna be a cakewalk without Lemon]….

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    1. If Don mouthed off John beat him up.

      [Remember the poignant story about Marv Goux visiting John McKay at the hospital about a week before he died: McKay looked up and told Marv, “I might not look that great but I think I could still go 10 rounds with Mickey Rooney”]…..

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  5. Scott has unique taste in selecting beautiful women. But I like that he features women who may be new to many of us. Mariko Kaga has an innocence about her that is expressed in the photo. I had never heard of her. Turns out she was often referred to as “the Japanese version of Brigette Bardot.” High praise.

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      1. For example, Scottie’s grade for Bardot in her 20s:

        “She tried too hard to play the ingenue, which detracted from her natural young innocence, but then she would go on to age very quickly: B+

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      3. When the doctor told him he wanted to amputate John’s leg, John asked “what’ll that buy me?” Doc said “I don’t know.” John said “I’m keeping the leg.”

        #WentOutLikeA…M-A-N….

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  6. Jamieson Winfield was a key piece in this recruitment. An interior defensive lineman, it will be difficult for him to make an impact his first year. But he is a top 50 player at a position we need. Haven’t had a great interior lineman since maybe Leonard Williams a decade ago. If he can develop along with Jahkeem Stewart and Floyd Bouchard, watch out. Particularly if some of these top rated defensive backs like R.J Sermons and Elbert Hill become lockdown cornerbacks.

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  7. Shahn Alston the running back from Ohio looks impressive. Small but well built and can break some tackles. And don’t rest on Deshonne Redeaux from Oaks Christian, a speedster who some compare to Reggie Bush. This is an incredible running back room. Wamond Jordan, Star Miller, Harry Dalton, Riley Wormley, and now Alston and Redeaux. Will be difficult to keep all these guys happy but that is generally a good problem. Kind of like the receiver room.

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    1. I am a traditionalist guy. Like balance and order in design. Not a fan of Gehry and most of the moderns. But the Walt Disney concert hall has tremendous acoustics. Nice venue for a concert. Didn’t know he was an SC graduate.

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  9. Glad we didn’t go on a bidding war for Chris Henry Jr. We have Tanook Hines coming back along with Zach Williams and others. Like incoming Boobie Feaster, Trent Mosley, and Luc Weaver. We can get Marsh, the WR from Michigan State if we need some more experience and he will be much less than what Henry demands.

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  10. Linebacker Matai Tagoa’i from San Clemente entered the portal. Damn that hurts. Only a Freshman and showed real promise. One of our best prospects from last year. 6’4″ and could run. Forced a fumble in an exhibition game. I want to blame this on the coaches but that is probably unfair. Good young Freshman players like Tagoai and Gus Cordova should not be going into the portal. I wish they would tell us why they decided to transfer. My guess is that they think the coaches are not playing them even though they are excelling in practice and deserve to play.

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    1. KAM: Tagoa’i, a four-star recruit, was ranked as the No. 97 player in the nation by On3, No. 104 by Rivals, No. 158 by ESPN and No. 162 by 247Sports. He was rated as the No. 5 player in the state of California by On3, No. 8 by Rivals, No. 14 by 247Sports and No. 15 by ESPN. He was touted as the No. 9 linebacker in the country by On3 and Rivals, No. 13 by 247Sports and No. 19 by ESPN. He is 98th on the On300 List, 104th on the Rivals 250, 158th on the ESPN 300 List and 160th on the Top 247 List. He was named a 2025 Polynesian Bowl All-Star.

      DON: A big loss.

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      1. Hope we don’t live to regret his departure [as in “please don’t wind up at Oregon or Ohio State and cause us problems in the future”]….

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