Saturday Blitz
Fansided

5 former college football powerhouses that could be “back” in 2022

By Connor Muldowney

Nov 26, 2021; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns wide receiver Xavier Worthy (8) and defensive back Jahdae Barron (23) before the game against the Kansas State Wildcats at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 26, 2021; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns wide receiver Xavier Worthy (8) and defensive back Jahdae Barron (23) before the game against the Kansas State Wildcats at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
6 of 6
Next
Mar 1, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC football head coach Lincoln Riley attends the USC Trojans and the Arizona Wildcats men’s basketball game at Galen Center. The Wildcats won 91-71. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 1, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC football head coach Lincoln Riley attends the USC Trojans and the Arizona Wildcats men’s basketball game at Galen Center. The Wildcats won 91-71. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports /

1. USC Trojans (2021 record: 4-8)

The team that I could see making the biggest turnaround and achieving “back” status in 2022 has to be USC. The Trojans finished just 4-8 in Clay Helton’s last year and I’d be shocked if they didn’t flip that record around, at the very least.

Heck, an 8-4 season would probably be considered disappointing.

The Pac-12 is wide-open for USC and hiring Lincoln Riley away from Oklahoma was a power move on the same level as LSU swiping Brian Kelly from Notre Dame. However, Riley brought a huge name with him to Los Angeles as Heisman-hopeful quarterback Caleb Williams decided to join his head coach at USC and take over for the departed Kedon Slovis.

Williams will lead this offense to some wild numbers and while USC may just bring in the No. 65 recruiting class in the country, it’s ranked so low because it only has eight signees with an average rating of over 92, per 247Sports. Talent is coming in, especially through the portal.

Along with Williams, the Trojans added Travis Dye, Mario Williams, and Brenden Rice in the portal which is even more of a sign that this offense is going to take off.

Riley knows how to make the playoff, and he might just dominate the Pac-12 in 2022.

Next. NFL Mock Draft 2022: Super Bowl weekend edition. dark

Home/College Football News