July is the season of seemingly endless college football preseason rankings and lists. This week, however USA TODAY released a different sort of rankings.
In a recent story, writers Paul Myerberg, Blake Topmeyer, Jordan Mendoza, and Eddie Timanus ranked the top 25 programs in college football. USC came in at No. 10 on the list. Here is what they had to say about the Trojans:
“The dominant power in the Pac-12 through the Pete Carroll tenure, the results haven’t been there for USC since NCAA violations hammered the program,” they wrote. “It still hasn’t made the College Football playoff, and the transition to the Big Ten hasn’t been smooth. Things may be looking up after a nine-win 2025 season and the arrival of one of the nation’s top-ranked signing classes. Still, they have several rungs to climb before reaching the top of the Big Ten.”
The story was somewhat unclear whether these program rankings were all time or only factoring in recent seasons. While the past 15 years have not been great for USC, it would be extremely difficult to argue that the Trojans are not one of the top five college football programs of all time.
Regardless, Lincoln Riley and USC will have a major opportunity to take a step forward as a program this fall. The Trojans are looking to finally make their first College Football Playoff and return to the top of the sport, where they stood for much of the 1960s, 1970s, and 2000s.
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This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USA TODAY ranks USC as top 10 college football program
Reporting by Adam Bradford, Trojans Wire / Trojans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Adam Bradford, Trojans Wire | USA TODAY Network
