USC football hired Trumain Carroll as strength and conditioning coach in the spring of 2025. Technically, Carroll is not a new member of the Trojans’ coaching staff this year. However, we all know a thing or two about strength and conditioning programs. We aren’t experts, but we can all agree on something obvious about this part of athletic performance and player development: Strength programs take time to take root.
When a strength and conditioning coach enters a college football program in the spring, he has no real time to install his full training regimen in the summer, to the extent that he can get the results he is hoping for. We entered the 2025 season not expecting Trumain Carroll to instantly turn around this team. There just wasn’t enough time. People understood that. Other people were going to need to take on a leadership role at USC in 2025.
Now, entering the 2026 college football season, it’s different. Trumain Carroll has had the entire offseason – eight months – in which to make a real difference. This is in addition to working with the 2025 roster during the 2025 regular season. Carroll has been on the job more than 15 months. Now he has had enough time to create his vision and make it come alive for USC. Now is when we need to see the fruits of Carroll’s plan. Now is when USC, especially on defense, has to be a lot tougher and stronger than it has been in the past.
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This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USC season preview: This is the year Trumain Carroll’s plan must work
Reporting by Matt Zemek, Trojans Wire / Trojans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Matt Zemek, Trojans Wire | USA TODAY Network
