The start of the 2026 College Football season will mark the beginning of Lincoln Riley's 4th season at the helm of the USC Trojans. Thus far, the move has given the Trojans underwhelming results, as all the promise and Playoff runs Riley took at Oklahoma haven't followed him to Los Angeles. Heading into the 2026 season, it feels like the most complete team Riley has built, giving him a chance to make that run.
The Trojans signed the Nation's top ranked recruiting class this past cycle, and Lincoln Riley added to that haul with an impressive group in the Transfer Portal. Even with the losses of stars like Makai Lemon and Ja'Kobi Lane to the NFL Draft, it looked like the roster had the continuity to go on a deep run this season.
USC Football loses starting center Killian O'Connor
While the start of Fall Camp brings the excitement for the upcoming season to another level, it also raises the worries of every fan as the hope is that the team will enter the season healthy. On Thursday Afternoon, the mood at USC was hampered as Lincoln Riley shared that starting center Killian O'Connor suffered a season ending injury in practice.
Projected starting USC center Killian O’Connor suffered an injury in practice that will unfortunately end his season, head coach Lincoln Riley just announced.
— Keely Eure (@keelyismyname) August 6, 2026
When speaking to the media, the way that Lincoln Riley talked about his center made it clear the level of impact he has on the team as a whole.
"Tremendous leader … one of the heartbeats of this program, tough one for the guys to see. We’ll get him fixed up and get him back here with the guys, and he’ll be a big part of this team even though he won’t be on the field this year."Lincoln Riley
While the Trojans lost key pieces at wide receiver, Killian O'Connor was a part of the continuity that gave fans a ton of hope. Aside from Jayden Maiava returning at quarterback, the offensive line was returning all 5 starters, and continuity in the trenches is sometimes more important than the level of talent in thr group.
If there's any silver lining for the Trojans with this news, it's the fact that USC was in the same position last season when injuries kept O'Connor out for an extended stretch. The Trojans at least have an extended stretch of camp to fill the major hole, but it'll be an impossible task for a younger player to effectively fill the void.
Add us as a preferred source on Google