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USC's revamped recruiting strategy has the Trojans ranked No. 1 in 2026

Chad Bowden has a strategy to make USC football great again.

The Trojans’ new general manager has built out a robust front office staff not only with bodies but some of the best recruiting and scouting minds across the country.

Bowden came from Notre Dame where he helped build an Irish roster that made it to the national championship last season. Dre Brown came from Illinois after a phenomenal season where the Illini won 10 games for the first time in more than two decades. Max Stienecker is one of the best young minds in the game and he came over from Wisconsin.

A whole host of others were brought in as well and Bowden sees them not only as co-workers but family members all with the same mission: To get USC back to national prominence.

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“We have a collaborative approach,” Bowden said. “That’s how we’re going to do it. Me and coach (Lincoln) Riley are going to work hand-in-hand together. We hired one of the best front offices in college football. We have the best front office in college football.

“This is the best front office that I’ve been around. I’m so proud of what we’ve assembled. They all love each other. That’s the thing that’s cool. This is a family. This isn’t a staff that’s trying to figure everything out. We all kind of know the game and we’re coming together to build the best class in our minds and help coach Riley and this program enhance.”

What’s the plan to get that done?

It starts with building a big, old fence around California and not letting the best players out any longer. USC already has 14 pledges in its 2026 class - nine from the state - and the early top-ranked class nationally.

The Trojans flipped four-star quarterback Jonas Williams from Oregon. They’ve locked in high four-star defensive back Brandon Lockhart. And many of the biggest fish are still out there, especially now with five-star Chatsworth (Calif.) Sierra Canyon teammates Richard Wesley and Havon Finney Jr. reclassifying to the 2026 class.

After winning 11 games in Year 1 under Riley, the Trojans stalled out and went 8-5 and 7-6 the last two seasons. With this new front office staff in place and elite assistants with tons of NFL experience, USC feels headed in the right direction.

“We talked about this class when we were first talking about me going to USC, we were really just talking about the California class in 2026 and 2027 and what’s really there and what we can do and how we can approach it,” Bowden said.

“It was always on top of my mind when I first got here and we hit the ground running. Everything we do is collaborative and everything me and coach Riley do is together. It was both of us coming together to see how we were going to attack California. It’s going to be really positive for the program and positive for the kids and the city of L.A. and the state of California to keep kids that are homegrown home.

“We want the very best players that are in this city and in this state to play for USC and stay home. We have respect for every high school and I believe the best high school football is played in California. That is my true belief and it’s always been my belief.

“The main focus needs to be keeping these kids close to home and keeping them in California. California is such a big state and it has such great high school football players not only in L.A. but San Diego, Oakland, the Bay Area, everywhere in between there is such great high school football. We keep these kids close to home, keep them in the state and build a fence around California, build a fence in L.A. it’s going to pay huge dividends.”

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California is the top priority and Bowden said he thinks USC can get “anything we want” in the state, meaning across the spectrum of positions, it’s all there in the Golden State.

There has been a belief in recruiting circles that when it comes to quarterbacks and skill position players, there might be no better place than California but for offensive linemen, edge rushers and the beef to win in the trenches, the Trojans need to go nationally.

Bowden doesn’t necessarily subscribe to that idea but going national will be a priority as well as the Trojans already have a commitment from Williams and four-star defensive end Braeden Jones, both out of Illinois, four-star linebacker Xavier Griffin from Gainesville, Ga., and and have offered many others throughout the talent-rich Southeast.

“We’re still going to go out of the state and get the very best players out-of-state that value this place that want to be a part of what we’re building and doing,” Bowden said. “They know who they are.

“I’ve heard that notion that you can’t get good linemen or edge rushers or you can’t get the best corners in California, I just don’t believe in that. You can get anything you want here. You have to be able to acquire and get the best ones that are here.”

USC was snake-bitten by decommitments last recruiting cycle especially by elite Southeast prospects. At one point, five-stars Justus Terry, Isaiah Gibson, Julian Lewis and Hylton Stubbs were all committed along with four-stars receiver Jerome Myles, Hayden Lowe, offensive lineman Carde Smith, defensive back Anquon Fegans, linebacker Ty Jackson, defensive back Shamar Arnoux and others.

Decommitments will always happen especially in an NIL world but that’s not going to stop Bowden’s plan of attack.

“You have to get the right ones,” Bowden said. “We have the right ones on our team and in our class that value this place, what USC can do for them not only when they’re here as a football player but academically, the network, the degree, the connections, they’re going to have every opportunity when football is done to not only be successful in the NFL but to work in the real world. We’re going to give them opportunities that no one else in the country can give them.

“We have everything for them. We want to make sure that the kids who are far from home understand all that they’re getting. The ones we have on our team and the ones we’re recruiting, they will.”