Shane Lee, Caleb Williams define what a 'successful season' is for USC football

USC Football QB Caleb Williams and USC Football LB Shane Lee attended Pac-12 Media Day with Lincoln Riley. Maybe the most important and notable point of discussion that those two hit on during that event was what defines a successful season for USC.

It's an important topic, as nobody seems to agree on what defines success for the Trojans this year. Some analysts have SC making the College Football Playoff. Some have them going 8-4. The predictions for this team are all over the place. Lincoln Riley said his expectation is to win the National Championship.

That was rather expected, and one Trojans fans will probably like to hear. They also will surely like to hear what Lee had to say, and his unique perspective on what makes a successful season for USC:

It's hard to disagree with how Shane Lee is defining a successful season for USC football.

Shane Lee sees a successful season for USC football not measured by a win total, but by a culture being built, and a standard being set within. It certainly is true that if those two things are taken care of the way they need to be, the sky is the limit for this program.

He's also right to not care about what's coming in from the outside. True expectations undoubtedly are the very best and most accurate when the guys on the battlefield are establishing them. Hopefully, that culture and standard is built to where this team can beat anybody on any given Saturday.

In fact, that actually ties into how Williams defines a successful season:

Riley had a great definition, Lee had a great definition, and so did Williams. Williams is right that guys like he and Lee--competitors--want to win at all times. Winning has a broad definition when it comes to different aspects of a program, which Williams clearly hit on as well.

These two clearly have their heads on straight and are taking this offseason and upcoming season seriously. The season starts a month from today (Wednesday), and they're very obviously focused and taking success seriously.

This team has a great roster and coach; it just comes down to how quickly they can bolster this culture. If there's any core who can do it, one with Williams and Lee at the forefront is certainly a favorite.