Tuli Tuipulotu thinks USC doing a 'good job' of getting back on top

The USC Trojans were a game away from the College Football Playoff but the team came a long way from the 2021 season. Star defensive lineman Tuli Tuipulotu saw it all: a 4-8 team in 2021 to an 11-2, Pac-12 runner-up season this fall. USC still has the Cotton Bowl against Tulane to conclude the season, so a New Year’s Six Bowl isn’t too bad for Lincoln Riley’s first season. Tuipulotu tipped his cap to the head coach.

“I mean, yeah, that’s the plan for sure,” Tuipulotu said on The A Team Podcast. “Bouncing back from a pretty bad season last year going 4-8, this year went 11-2, so I think we’re doing a good job of just trying to get us back up to the top. Coach Riley has been doing a great job for sure of bringing us back to the top.”

Riley had the sort of impact that Deion Sanders could have at Colorado. Sanders did not mince words about what he would want to do with the Buffaloes and Tuipulotu made sure to make it known his coach had a similar attitude prior to the 2022 campaign.

“I mean, I think you’re pretty familiar with that video that came out with Deion Sanders and Colorado,” Tuipulotu said. “I felt like for us it was kind of the same, telling us that like he’s coming in and he’s gonna bring a whole different vibe and culture and that’s what we had to buy (into). And so yeah, I mean, we had a pretty good season. So, that’s thanks to him and all the staff that he brought in.”

In his third season with USC, Tuipulotu had the best year of his career, with one game to play. In 13 games, he had 44 total tackles, 29 solo tackles, 21 tackles for loss, 12.5 sacks, three pass deflections and two forced fumbles.

“Yeah, well, we had a bunch of transfers come in this offseason and it wasn’t too hard adjusting to,” Tuipulotu said. “They came in, became brothers and we just went from there.”

As a member of the Class of 2020, Tuipulotu was a four-star prospect out of Lawndale (Calif.) High, according to the On3 Consensus. He was the No. 34 overall prospect in the state, the No. 40 defensive lineman prospect in the class and the No. 374 overall prospect in the class.

No. 10 USC takes on No. 16 Tulane in the Cotton Bowl Jan. 2 at 1:00 p.m. ET.