HC Lincoln Riley praises USC football newcomers Husan Longstreet and Sam Huard

Officially, it's an open three-way quarterback battle at USC football. Most expect Jayden Maiava to be under center for the first snap when coach Lincoln Riley and the Trojans take on Missouri State. A lot can happen, though, and the team is only in spring camp as of right now. By all means, a big individual jump can happen over the summer, and the decision becomes that much more obvious to the staff come the fall.

For now, all three are preparing and improving as best as they can while learning the offense. Most expect the true race to be for the backup position. Between Husan Longstreet and Sam Huard, there is a lot on their plate right now.

Huard saw time as QB1 while with Cal Poly and hasn't been on the field since 2023. As a former member of the Utah team, an injury prevented him from seeing playing time, but he was able to preserve his eligibility. He'll look to make a push for the starting role under the guidance of his uncle, QB coach Luke Huard. First things first, getting comfortable again after needing to take a lot of time off and picking up where he left off takes immediate priority.

Longstreet is an early enrollee who was a five-star recruit out of high school. The freshman will look to adjust to the college level of preparation and training. Although a new underclassman, he too will believe and make an effort to force the staff to at least consider him for the starting spot.

Again, either Longstreet or Huard could potentially see themselves running out with the first-team offense come the fall. Most would agree, however, that it's Maiava who is in the driver's seat in that aspect. That being said, QB2 is often the most overlooked position. It's unfortunate, but the nature of the sport means that at any time, the backup at any position is only a play away from needing to take over.

USC football coach happy with current QB progress

Having a competent backup who can execute at a level so that, at the very least, the wheels don't completely fall off is the goal within every quarterback room. Coach Riley spoke on the progress of both Trojan newcomers. It's only spring camp, but the USC HC seemed optimistic about their current progress within the program. He explained:

"We're reppin' all three of those guys quite a bit right now, so they've both shown why we brought them here... All three guys have done a lot of good things that we're very excited about."

With Longstreet, coach Riley specified that coming in early has allowed him to get something of a running start as a first-year player. His talent and what he's shown the staff have impressed so far. The HC specifically noted how Huard has excelled in situational parts of practice. He credited a lot of this to the quarterback's prior experience.

In the case of both QBs, they are doing what they need to be doing at this point in the season. More importantly, based on what coach Riley is saying, if it comes to a point during the season where either of the options needs to go out and move the chains for the USC football offense, the staff will be able to turn to someone they can trust.