The 2018 USC Trojans football team represented the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8. ...

in the

2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season The 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the highest level college football competition in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in 2018. The regular season began on August 25, 2018, and ende ...

. They played their home games at the

Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (also known as the L.A. Coliseum) is a multi-purpose stadium in the Exposition Park, Los Angeles, Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Conceived as a hallmark of civic pride, the Coliseum was ...

and competed as members of the South Division of the

Pac-12 Conference The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its College football, football teams compete in the NCAA D ...

. They were led by third-year head coach

Clay Helton Clay Charles Helton (born June 24, 1972) is an American college football coach and former player, who is currently the head coach at Georgia Southern. He was previously the head coach of USC from 2015 to 2021. Helton has also been an assistant c ...

. Despite being ranked No. 15 in the AP Poll's preseason rankings, the Trojans finished the season 5–7, the program's first losing record since

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

. USC lost to both of its major rivals,

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a Normal school, teachers colle ...

and

Notre Dame Notre Dame, French for "Our Lady", a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, most commonly refers to: * Notre-Dame de Paris, a cathedral in Paris, France * University of Notre Dame, a university in Indiana, United States ** Notre Dame Fighting Irish, th ...

, in the same season for the first time since

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...

, and it also lost to all other California Pac-12 schools (UCLA,

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

, and

Stanford Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

) in the same season for the first time since

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 800, causing the plane to crash and killing everyone on b ...

. The team went 4–5 in Pac-12 play, tying

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States. It is the list of U.S. states and territories by area, 6th largest and the list of U.S. states and territories by population, 14 ...

for third place in the Pac-12 South Division. On November 25, USC athletic director

Lynn Swann Lynn Curtis Swann (born March 7, 1952) is an American former football player, broadcaster, politician, and athletic director, best known for his association with the University of Southern California and the Pittsburgh Steelers. He served on the ...

announced that head coach Clay Helton would return in 2019 despite the disappointing season.

Previous season

The Trojans finished the 2017 season 11–3, 8–1 in Pac-12 play to be champions of the South Division. They represented the South Division in the

Pac-12 Championship Game The Pac-12 Football Championship Game is an annual college football game held by the Pac-12 Conference to determine the season's conference champion. The game from the 2011–2021 seasons had the champion of the North Division against the champ ...

where they defeated

to become Pac-12 Champions. They were invited to play in the Cotton Bowl where they lost 7–24 to

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

Personnel

Coaching staff

Roster

Returning starters

USC returns 31 starters in 2018, including 11 on offense, 13 on defense, and 5 on special teams. Key departures include

Sam Darnold Samuel Richard Darnold (born June 5, 1997) is an American football quarterback for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at USC, where he became the first freshman to win the Archie Griffin A ...

( QB – 14 games),

Ronald Jones II Ronald Jones II (born August 3, 1997) is an American football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at USC. A heavily recruited high school running back out of the state of ...

( TB – 13 games), Deontay Burnett ( WR – 12 games), Steven Mitchell ( WR – 7 games), Jalen Greene ( WR – 5 games), Viane Talamaivao ( OG – 5 games), Nico Falah ( C – 14 games), Rasheem Green( DE/ DT – 14 games), Josh Fatu ( DT – 12 games), Uchenna Nwosu (

OLB ''OLB'' may stand for: * Oh Lord Buddha - Quotes related to Buddhism *Olbia - Costa Smeralda Airport, IATA airport code *Outside linebacker, a defensive position in American and Canadian football * Object Language Bindings (SQL/OLB) - a standard fo ...

– 14 games),

Jack Jones Jack Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music *Jack Jones (American singer) (born 1938), American jazz and pop singer *Jack Jones, stage name of Australian singer Irwin Thomas (born 1971) *Jack Jones (Welsh musician) (born 1992), Welsh mu ...

( CB – 13 games), Chris Hawkins ( S – 14 games), Ykili Ross ( S – 2 games). Other departures include James Toland IV ( TB), Matt Lopes ( S).

Offense (11)

Defense (13)

Special teams (5)

Transfers

The Trojans lost 5 players due to transfer.

Depth chart

* Depth Chart 2018 ''True Freshman''
Double Position : *

Recruiting class

Scholarship distribution chart

/ / * Former walk-on – 85 scholarships permitted, 81 currently allotted to players – 78 recruited players on scholarship (Three former walk-ons) – OT Jalen McKenzie took an advanced scholarship or "blueshirt" limiting USC's class of 2018 to 24. Projecting Scholarship Distribution 2018

2018 NFL Draft

NFL Combine

The official list of participants for the 2018 NFL Combine included USC football players WR Deontay Burnett, QB Sam Darnold, DE Rasheem Green, RB Ronald Jones II, WR Steven Mitchell Jr. & OLB Uchenna Nwosu.

Team players drafted into the NFL

Schedule

Game summaries

UNLV

Stanford

Texas

Washington State

Arizona

Colorado

Utah

Arizona State

Oregon State

California

UCLA

Notre Dame

Rankings

Statistics

Preseason

Pac-12 Media Days

Pac-12 media days are set for July 25, 2018 in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a metonymy, shorthand reference for the Cinema of the United States, U.S. film industry and the people associated with i ...

(

Head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other Coach (sport), coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manage ...

), Porter Gustin (

) &

Cameron Smith Cameron Smith may refer to: * Cameron Smith (rugby league, born 1983), Australian rugby league footballer * Cameron Smith (rugby league, born 1998), English rugby league footballer * Cameron Smith (golfer) (born 1993), Australian golfer * Cammy Sm ...

( ILB) at Pac-12 media days. The Pac-12 media poll was released with the Trojans predicted to win the Pac-12 South division title.

Awards and honors

Midseason award watch lists

Weekly awards

Major award semifinalists

Honors and Awards Source: 2018 Arizona Media Notes

Players drafted into the NFL

Notes

* November 16, 2017 – USC's 2018 Football Schedule Announced. * December 1, 2017 – No. 10 USC Beats No. 12 Stanford, 31–28 for Pac-12 Title. * December 20, 2017 – USC Football Announces Early Signing Period 2018 Class. * December 22, 2017 – Juco Defensive Lineman Caleb Tremblay Signs With USC. * December 22, 2017 – No. 1 2019 QB recruit JT Daniels skipping senior year and enrolling at USC a year early. * December 29, 2017 – No. 5 Ohio State Tops No. 8 USC 24–7 in Cotton Bowl Classic. * December 29, 2017 – Defensive Back Talanoa Hufanga Signs With USC Football. * January 3, 2018 – Sam Darnold Declares for 2018 NFL Draft. * January 5, 2018 – USC Tailback Ronald Jones II Declares for NFL. * January 5, 2018 – Porter Gustin reportedly set to return to USC Football for 2018 season. * January 6, 2018 – Amon-Ra St. Brown commits to USC over Stanford, Notre Dame. * January 8, 2018 – USC WR Deontay Burnett declares for 2018 NFL Draft. * January 10, 2018 – Toa Lobendahn to return to USC Football for 2018 season. * January 10, 2018 – Cameron Smith announces return to USC Football for 2018. * January 11, 2018 – USC Football reportedly promote Bryan Ellis to quarterbacks coach. * January 12, 2018 – Deland McCullough leaves USC Football for Kansas City Chiefs. * January 12, 2018 – USC DB Iman Marshall will return to USC for the 2018 season. * January 13, 2018 – USC DL Rasheem Green Declares for 2018 NFL Draft. * January 18, 2018 – Ronnie Lott added to College Football Playoff Selection Committee. * January 19, 2018 – Keary Colbert reportedly promoted to tight ends coach for USC Football. * January 20, 2018 – Tee Martin gets multi-year extension to stay with USC Football.

References

{{Pac-12 Conference football champions USC USC Trojans football seasons

USC Trojans football The USC Trojans football program represents University of Southern California in the sport of American football. The Trojans compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Ath ...