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USC football: Realistic post-spring expectations for 2023

By Connor Muldowney

Jan 2, 2023; Arlington, Texas, USA; USC Trojans quarterback Caleb Williams (13) in action during the game between the USC Trojans and the Tulane Green Wave in the 2023 Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 2, 2023; Arlington, Texas, USA; USC Trojans quarterback Caleb Williams (13) in action during the game between the USC Trojans and the Tulane Green Wave in the 2023 Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /
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Caleb Williams and Lincoln Riley really worked wonders for USC football in 2022. After moving on from Clay Helton and hiring Riley, the Trojans became legitimate playoff contenders and Williams took home the Heisman Trophy.

Now that Williams is back with more weapons than a year ago despite losing Jordan Addison to the NFL, the Trojans will once again be Pac-12 favorites.

Williams is the best quarterback in the country and he has Arizona transfer Dorian Singer to throw to as well as some really solid freshmen led by the 2023 class’ No. 1 wideout Zachariah Branch. Austin Jones is back at running back after rushing for 705 yards and five touchdowns in 2022. He’ll be backed up by South Carolina transfer MarShawn Lloyd.

The offense will be elite once again, just as we saw this spring.

And I think the defense has nowhere to go but up after ranking 94th in scoring last year while giving up nearly 425 yards per game. There are some really talented transfers coming in.

Realistic post-spring USC football expectations

With USC returning its best offensive player while bringing in the No. 1 receiver in the country as well as an elite transfer from Arizona and an impressive running back from South Carolina, I think the offense will average around 40 points per game next season, at least.

And the defense will improve.

Looking at the schedule, the Trojans start their season with six sure wins. They’ll be 6-0 heading into a matchup with Notre Dame on the road. The back-half of the schedule is loaded with the Irish, Utah, Washington, Oregon, and UCLA all on the docket. I think the Trojans will win the home games against Utah, Washington, and UCLA and they should win at least one of the two road games against Oregon and Notre Dame.

Realistically, USC is a team that I think can go 11-1 and legitimately can go undefeated, but the most likely scenario is 10-2. Again, I do think 11-1 is very possible, but the back-half of the schedule is an absolute gauntlet. This could very well be a playoff team.

Next. College football's post-spring Top 25 projections. dark

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