LOS ANGELES — Three days after USC lost Quinten Joyner to the transfer portal, Waymond Jordan sent a text to his agents with a screenshot of a FaceTime call. It came from Lincoln Riley.
Joyner, seemingly, was set to take the graduating Woody Marks’ mantle as USC’s RB1 entering 2025. But a month ago, with Joyner’s surprising departure, USC needed sudden help in the backfield. They needed skill-position help, in general, with wide receiver Duce Robinson and later Zachariah Branch following suit. So as Jordan backed away from an early portal commitment to UCF, Trojans head coach Riley and company came from the woodwork.
“They just kinda made the full-court press,” Jordan’s co-agent, Chase Moss, told the Southern California News Group. “And they’re like, ‘You’re the dude.’”
A few days after taking a visit to Southern California, Jordan officially committed to the Trojans on Sunday over programs like Ole Miss, UNC and Mississippi State, continuing to bolster what’s shaping up as a talented USC backfield come 2025. A three-star ranked by 247Sports as the number-one JUCO running back available, Jordan authored some truly eye-popping stats as a sophomore this past season at Hutchinson Community College: 1,612 rushing yards, 7.4 yards per carry, 21 total touchdowns in just 12 games.
The 5-foot-10, 200-pound Jordan runs with a mix of power and elusiveness, nearly the exact same stature as USC’s 2024 star back Marks. Suddenly, Riley has a bevy of options on his hands for his 2025 offense, a crowded room brimming just a month after Joyner’s departure left the cupboard thin. USC added quick 5-foot-11 back Eli Sanders two weeks ago from the portal, who authored a strong 2024 season at New Mexico and told the Southern California News Group the opportunity to “compete” for a role at USC was a large part in his transfer decision. The Trojans, too, still have freshmen Bryan Jackson and A’Marion Peterson returning, both of whom showed flashes as a two-headed tandem in USC’s Las Vegas Bowl win over Texas A&M.
Jordan, though, was looking for a situation where he could “be the guy,” as Moss put it. And Moss’s co-agent, Darren Wilson, told the Southern California News Group that USC’s NIL collective House of Victory had “met all (Jordan’s) demands,” and were competitive with other NIL offers he’d received.
“They have a young room,” Moss said of USC’s messaging to Jordan and his camp, “and they see him as the starting running back.”
USC adds an offensive lineman
A day after starting left guard Emmanuel Pregnon stunningly entered the portal, the Trojans added some help Sunday to soften the blow, with multiple reports that Purdue offensive lineman DJ Wingfield was set to transfer to USC.
He’s a potential starter on new offensive-line coach Zach Hanson’s 2025 unit and brings key depth in any case at a few spots. Once a local product out of Redondo Union High, Wingfield authored an up-and-down season in 2024 in starting all 14 games for Purdue. He was elite as a right tackle the previous season at New Mexico, though, allowing just seven pressures in 591 snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.
Branch brothers head to Georgia
A couple weeks after announcing their transfer from USC, brothers Zachariah Branch and Zion Branch both committed to Georgia on Sunday, landing unsurprisingly in SEC territory and officially bringing an end to their time in Southern California.
Wide receiver Zachariah Branch tied for USC’s regular-season lead in catches in 2024, but never quite found his legs as the game-breaking force he flashed as a returner in his freshman season. Safety Zion Branch, meanwhile, will look to establish himself in a more consistent role at Georgia after a few years of fighting for opportunity in USC’s secondary.
Source link
