USC has made up a lot of ground but still appears a bit behind some notable programs in the pursuit of top flight program status. By this measure, they are a Top 15 team.. And barely in the convo for the NC, assuming eveything breaks right. Obviously based on these stats, ATM Texas Clemson Florida OU and even Auburn have been complete failures the last couple years. And in fact UM and the fighting Harbaughs, along with State Penn have overachieved. Based on this, USC was one injury and one half away from a miracle last year.
When Riley was hired An unnamed coach was quoted as saying that Riley , while at Oklahoma, was already the best recruiter in California . He is going to get the top three corners in the state with Williams, Brown and Fields but will miss on a top rated Oline from Mater Dei and will likely miss on the top Dline also from Mater Dei. Let’s see if he can build a fence around at least SoCal. So far he has lost a few key battles.
It really was quite a turnaround to 11-1 last year. Usually the teams with best QB do the best. More so in the NFL but in college too. What’s interesting with how Riley is approaching recruiting is how he is going national. Kiffin loved Florida, Helton was going heavy Texas. Pete took the best from California and selected NFL type guys from the rest of the country. Riley is going national too. So far this year:
Georgia Colorado Oregon Texas Florida Connecticut and California.