LOS ANGELES — The USC Trojans officially join the Big Ten Conference ready to make an immediate impact, powered by an improved and committed collective, major new facilities projects and a revamped defensive coaching staff.
For USC Football, a key focus heading into the Big Ten era of Trojan Athletics has been maximizing student-athlete NIL (Name, Image & Likeness) opportunities. Partnering with House of Victory – USC’s donor collective dedicated to providing NIL opportunities to student-athletes – and powered by the generosity of the Trojan Family, USC Football’s NIL support has more than doubled year-over-year, positioning the program in the upper tier nationally respective to collective support.
“Being a member of the Big Ten will enable us to further invest in the student-athlete experience by providing us with additional resources; to create exciting new rivalries with like-minded institutions; to celebrate and share our storied traditions with Trojans across the country and with new generations of fans; and to provide our student-athletes and university with unprecedented national exposure and opportunities,” said Director of Athletics Jen Cohen. “Our entire Department has committed time, effort and energy to ensure our Trojans are best positioned to capitalize on these opportunities.”
Another area of continued growth is USC’s investment in athletics facilities, which includes the $200 million construction of a new football performance center. The first phase of the project, the addition of a new full-length practice field, was completed earlier this week in time for the start of fall camp. Construction of the three-level football performance center – featuring locker rooms, recovery suites, weight and training rooms, and more best-in-class amenities – will now commence and continue throughout the fall. More than half of the $200 million for the project, set to conclude in 2026, has been raised.
“Our collective is probably the most improved collective in the country,” said USC head coach Lincoln Riley. “We can’t thank the donors and the staff of HOV enough for their efforts. We feel great about where we are heading into the Big Ten, but NIL continues to evolve, and we have even bigger goals to accomplish. We live and operate in the best market in the country with a passionate and generous fanbase, and we will keep working to improve our NIL efforts to continue to ensure that USC is the place to be for student-athletes who want to build their brands and capitalize on their NIL opportunities.
“We’re excited to open up our new turf field,” he added. “We will have the old turf for the duration of fall camp, and then they will rip that up and start building the best college football facility in the country. That construction will be ongoing during the season but won’t affect our preparation. It’s a big-time step for our program.“
The new addition of defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn who arrived from UCLA in the same position, the Trojans began practice this week for the upcoming 2024 season. This team has their work cut out for them with entering a new conference, new opponents and a new era of Trojans football that will be tested every week.
USC will face the LSU Tigers in Las Vegas on September 1 at Allegiant Stadium in the Modelo Vegas Kickoff Classic at 4:30PM PT.
