O/NSO: USC’s historical success with transfers edition

The Obvious: Come Saturday, March 4, USC head coach Lincoln Riley and his staff will welcome a whole new group of players from the NCAA Transfer Portal, and those transfers will have 15 days of intense practices to strut their stuff to be in the mix for the 2023 season. The Not So Obvious: In the “old” days, USC used to rely on the junior college transfer pipeline, grabbing JC talent from places like San Francisco City College, Arizona Western, Long Beach City College, El Camino JC, Pierce JC, and San Diego City College to name just a few. However, times have changed with the junior college/community college pipeline seemingly non-existent thanks to the birth of the NCAA Transfer Portal and continued academic requirements. Regardless, a transfer is a transfer, and spring ball is a transfer’s moment to first reveal their value for the upcoming season in March and April.