Impressive current and future RB rooms have to become prominent features for USC

A lot of attention goes to the passing game. Think about the great past USC teams, though. The run game was a critical element of those offenses. Fast forward to the modern era. Even with the desire to see a quarterback air the ball out 40-plus times, being able to establish the run is just as important as it always was.

Maybe it is not as prominent, and the position has been devalued, as can be picked up from many NFL conversations.

The value of running backs has picked up again in football discourse. Or, perhaps more accurately, the glaring failing of an offense without a prominent run game is becoming increasingly viewed as something that cannot be allowed within a successful program.

USC will have three starting-caliber RBs at their disposal this year. Waymond Jordan, Eli Sanders, and Bryan Jackson are who coach Lincoln Riley will lean on to earn first downs the hard way and open things up for Jayden Maiava.

Then, the 2026 class has two excellent backs coming to campus in Shahn Alston and Deshonne Redeaux. For the recruiting efforts through the portal and high school levels to reshift the Trojan focus, ensuring that high-quality options can line up in the USC backfield can only be viewed as a positive continued development from the Cardinal and Gold.

Particularly for USC, Reggie Bush and LenDale White are still remembered throughout all of college football for what they used to do at the Coliseum.

Tapping back into these roots will only serve the Trojans well. As mentioned, the lack of a consistent emphasis in this department has hurt the offense and program as a whole. While coach Riley has mentioned in recent interviews some of the aspects that he has learned and wants to improve in his approach, this has to be one of the more welcoming signs among the fan base.

Huge responsibilities asked of the USC backfield

Having good backs and using them, or more accurately, not abandoning the run game, can often be an entirely different story. Coaches at all levels can become guilty of falling too much in love with the pass.

For coach Riley, Jordan, Sanders, Jackson, Alston, and Redeaux will have a tough task. Their place in seeing USC be an annual title contender will rest on everyone's shoulders. To a large degree, how they play and contribute as RBs will play an immense part in those aspirations.