Countdown to kickoff is back! USC will kick off its 2026 football season on August 29 when the Trojans host San Jose State at the Coliseum. In this series, we will be counting down the days until the season opener by highlighting a notable Trojan who wore each number.
Today, we take a look back at one of the heroes of the Trojans’ 2016 upset of Washington, former USC tight end Daniel Imatorbhebhe.
Position: Tight end
Years played at USC: 2015-2019
Career highlights: After redshirting his first year on campus in 2015, Imatorbhebhe saw solid playing time at tight end over the next two seasons. Between 2016 and 2017, he caught 25 passes for 394 yards and four touchdowns.
Unfortunately, however, injuries caused Imatorbhebhe to miss the entire 2018 and 2019 seasons. In 2018, he won USC’s Community Service Award.
Imatorbhebhe is best remembered for his performance against Washington in 2016. Playing on the road against a top-five opponent, he caught four passes for 78 yards, including a fourth quarter touchdown that put USC up by two scores. The Trojans would go on to upset the No. 4 Huskies, helping them earn their first trip to the Rose Bowl in eight years.
After USC: Due to his injuries Imatorbhebhe was granted a sixth year of eligibility in 2020, for which he transferred to Illinois. For his extra COVID year of eligibility in 2021, Imatorbhebhe transferred again, this time to Kansas State. With the Wildcats, he had a career-high 314 receiving yards.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Imatorbhebhe currently works as a wealth management associate for UBS.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USC countdown to kickoff: Recalling Trojans TE Daniel Imatorbhebhe
Reporting by Adam Bradford, Trojans Wire / Trojans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
