The beaches of southern California were turning into quicksand for USC Trojans’ head coach Lincoln Riley. As hard as he tried to escape the hole he was sinking into, he seemed to get hauled further in. Then came a helping hand. A messiah to lift not only Riley but the mood around the entire Trojans program. Under Lincoln Riley, USC has had a conspicuous downward spiral year upon year. They’ve gone from 11 wins, to 8 and now to 7. Conceded, 2025 isn’t shaping too well either. But 2026 on? A seismic shift is underway. With one man who came from an arch-nemesis at the epicentre. Anything but a Trojan Horse coming over from the enemy.
USC has just onboarded a new GM in Chad Bowden. He comes over from rivals and Natty finalists Notre Dame. How did they manage to pull off this coup? With all due respect, trading South Bend for LA is enticing in itself. But there’s also the small matter of the Trojans quadrupling his $250k salary to a cool $1 million. Bowden will just have to contend with the traitor moniker he’s about to be tagged with for joining the other side of the Jeweled Shillelagh trophy. At this current juncture, the USC program is a far cry from the Irish. But Bowden has already shown he’s a top recruiter who can awaken a sleeping giant. Something he himself called USC.
It’s not a coincidence that Lincoln Riley currently boasts of the No. 1 recruiting class in the country for ‘26. The Chad Bowden effect is very real. He addressed the Trojans faithful about his modus operandi of how to take this program back to its pedestal. One particular facet of Bowden’s masterplan has intrigued fans the most. Insider USC J of the “LOST IN THA SAUCE” podcast discussed the key talking points of Bowden’s presser. Where one thing “blew [his] mind”– Bowden’s insistence on recruiting locally. He was confronted about USC losing their stronghold in Cali. Something that was a foundational piece during Pete Carroll’s dynastic run. Bowden recognizes this, and is looking to go back to their roots-quite literally. “We’re going to do everything through the city…We’re going to do everything through the state. That’s going to be our primary focus,” he said, before elaborating.
“History repeats itself. It always does, and if you look into fine details of how programs are built and how the place is built and when success has happened, that was a key part of USC being at the top. My plan and my vision is to bring that back and to take care of this state. The state deserves it,” said Chad Bowden. A school on the Pacific coast, located in a city that’s probably the biggest sports market in the country. Meshed with an offensive whiz in Lincoln Riley. Attracting high-caliber recruits should theoretically be easy, and it’s finally clicking. The Trojans are making noise, and it’ll reverberate nationally soon enough.
USC GM, Chad Bowden, on USC’s recruiting history:
“Look back at Pete Carroll’s classes ’02, ’03, ’04, over 80 percent of the recruiting classes were from the state of California. History repeats itself. It always does…”
The best in California, play for USC
pic.twitter.com/iF64Gl4DQO
— Founders Edits (@FoundersEdits) March 3, 2025
The SEC and B1G have feasted on Cali for a while. The 33 other adversaries of Lincoln Riley and Chad Bowden in those conferences will now famish. The aforementioned USC J chimed in on what this local-focus means to fans like himself. “To USC fans, that should be music to our ears,” he remarked. “USC always had talent right in their backyard…[Bowden] understands the landscape and appreciates the California talent that we have.” The excitement boiled over into USC J claiming this hire of Bowden is a line in the sand that will cause a seismic shift in the program’s future.
“USC, as we knew it these past couple years, that is no more. You can forget about it. You could throw that out the window. That doesn’t even exist anymore. This is a new regime here. It’s a new plan, it’s a new strategy. It’s a new structure, and it’s really straight up go-time!” Well, the mood around the program is truly high at this juncture. But it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. Chad Bowden’s motion in the ‘26 class has been undercut with some bad news involving 5-star QB Ryder Lyons.
Chad Bowden and Lincoln Riley losing traction in Ryder Lyons’ recruitment to fellow B1G school
Lincoln Riley has rightfully garnered a reputation as a bit of a quarterback whisperer. Across OU and now USC, 4 of his quarterbacks are NFL starters today. 3 won the Heisman, including Caleb Williams whom he brought along with him from Oklahoma via the portal. Add to this, their explicit commitment to an MO of recruiting well within California. In-state QB Ryder Lyons from Folsom should be all over the Trojans. However, things aren’t transpiring like that. While USC are still a possible or even likely landing spot, another B1G contemporary in close proximity of Cali is taking strides in the Lyons sweepstakes. The sheen from Lincoln Riley’s rep as a young coach may be dulling. There’s others whisperers around too.
Dan Lanning’s Oregon are a bit more of a sure thing than USC right now. They’ve just won the conference, and are stacked to the brim with talent. If USC are in line for a top-5 recruiting class for 2026, Oregon have had those for a few years now. They’re a well-oiled machine with a very high floor and great coaches. Not to mention, the Phil Knight and Nike connection boosting the Ducks’ NIL arsenal. It’s easy to see why Ryder Lyons may indeed break the proverbial fence that Riley and Bowden want to build around their state.
When asked which school he’s in communication with most, Lyons said “Oregon. Pretty much all the time. Coach [Dan] Lanning, coach [Will] Stein. Those are pretty great relationships with those two with my whole family, which is pretty incredible.” Lyons even referred to Will Stein as the best offensive coordinator in the country.
Stein may be out of Eugene and a head coach somewhere by the time 2026 rolls around though. Lyons acknowledges this, but said he’s not worried about who Lanning will pick as a successor given his track record. He also said “I’ll see a bunch of places this spring…I’ll probably make a decision in July. I’m just going to take my time and once I commit, I’m not going to entertain other schools.” Lincoln Riley could do much worse than have Ryder Lyons as his next developmental project under centre. A huge decision beckons for the kid. Who sure would’ve had his ears to Bowden’s pledge about in-state recruiting. Lyons will be a great litmus test for whether there’s substance behind Bowden’s words.
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