2021 USC
4–8 (3–6 Pac-12), coached by Clay Helton, then Donte Williams (interim, remainder of season). Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat Washington State 45–14Sep 18
By 31 points, its widest win.
- Most excitingLost to No. 13 BYU 31–35Nov 27
The win probability swung the most, by CollegeFootballData.com’s excitement index.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 4 | vs San José State | W 30–7 | 63% |
| Sep 11 | vs Stanford | L 28–42 | 74% |
| Sep 18 | at Washington State | W 45–14 | 53% |
| Sep 25 | vs Oregon State | L 27–45 | 74% |
| Oct 2 | at Colorado | W 37–14 | 58% |
| Oct 9 | vs Utah | L 26–42 | 57% |
| Oct 23 | at 13Notre Dame | L 16–31 | 23% |
| Oct 30 | vs Arizona | W 41–34 | 84% |
| Nov 6 | at Arizona State | L 16–31 | 39% |
| Nov 20 | vs UCLA | L 33–62 | 52% |
| Nov 27 | vs 13BYU | L 31–35 | 30% |
| Dec 4 | at California | L 14–24 | 42% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Lost to California 24–14; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 8th in the Pac-12.
In program history: The 103rd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 112 on file).
AP poll, week by week
- Wk 1: 15
- Wk 2: 14
- Record
- 4–8
- Conference
- 3–6 tied for 8th in Pac-12
- AP final
- Unranked peak No. 14
- Points
- 344–381
- Coach
- Clay Helton, then Donte Williams (interim, remainder of season)
- Elo
- 1454 −136 this season
- SP+ rating
- -0.6 No. 81 of 130; offense No. 45, defense No. 106
- SRS
- −1.8 No. 79 of 130 in FBS
- Returning
- 71% of last season’s EPA, No. 69 of 128
- Recruiting class
- No. 8 roster talent No. 10 in FBS
- Offensive coordinator
- Graham Harrell
- Defensive coordinator
- Todd Orlando
- Captains
- Vavae Malepeai, Drake London, Isaiah Pola-Mao and Ben Griffiths
- Offense
- Air raid
- Defense
- 3–3–5
How good, play by play
| EPA per play | Success | Explosiveness | FBS rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 0.16 | 46% | 1.17 | 55th of 130 |
| Defense | 0.24 | 46% | 1.27 | 106th of 130 |
| Opponent-adjusted | 0.17 off 0.21 def | 47% off 45% def | — | 51st off 108th def |
How these are measured
Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.
Drives and havoc
| Points per trip inside the 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 3.8 | own 27 | 16% allowed |
| Defense | 4.0 | own 29 | 13% caused |
CORE rating -4.8, 86th of 130 (offense 3.1, defense 7.9).
A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.
Leaders
| Passing yards | Kedon Slovis QB | 2,153 yds |
| Passing touchdowns | Kedon Slovis QB | 11 TD |
| Rushing yards | Keaontay Ingram RB | 911 yds |
| Rushing touchdowns | Vavae Malepeai RB | 6 TD |
| Receiving yards | Drake London WR | 1,084 yds |
| Receiving touchdowns | Drake London WR | 7 TD |
| Tackles | Kana’i Mauga LB | 92 tkl |
| Sacks | Tuli Tuipulotu DL | 5.5 sacks |
| Interceptions | Xavion Alford DB | 3 INT |
Top recruits in the 2021 class
| Korey Foreman DL | ★★★★★ | No. 2 |
| Raesjon Davis LB | ★★★★ | No. 49 |
| Jaxson Dart QB | ★★★★ | No. 69 |
| Miller Moss QB | ★★★★ | No. 76 |
| Ceyair Wright CB | ★★★★ | No. 80 |
| Julien Simon LB | ★★★★ | No. 120 |
| Kyron Hudson WR | ★★★★ | No. 126 |
| Michael Trigg TE | ★★★★ | No. 130 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2021 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 2 | 4.0 | 0.968 |
| Running backs | 1 | 4.0 | 0.898 |
| Receivers | 5 | 3.6 | 0.905 |
| Offensive line | 3 | 3.3 | 0.872 |
| Defensive line | 3 | 4.0 | 0.934 |
| Linebackers | 2 | 4.0 | 0.960 |
| Defensive backs | 3 | 4.0 | 0.933 |
| Athletes and specialists | 3 | 4.0 | 0.913 |
| Whole class | 22 | 3.8 | 0.920 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
Drafted in 2022
The 2022 draft| Rd 1 | Drake London WR | Atlanta Falcons |
| Rd 2 | Drake Jackson OLB | San Francisco 49ers |
| Rd 6 | Keaontay Ingram RB | Arizona Cardinals |
Roster 129
The 2021 roster129 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2021 line; 64 have a stat line. See the roster
Transfers in 9
The 2021 portal Jake Smith WR | ★★★ | from  Texas |
| Keaontay Ingram RB | ★★★ | from Texas |
 Darwin Barlow RB | ★★★ | from  TCU |
| Xavion Alford S | ★★★ | from Texas |
 Chris Thompson Jr. S | ★★★ | from  Auburn |
 Ishmael Sopsher DT | ★★★ | from  Alabama |
 Tahj Washington WR | ★★★ | from  Memphis |
| K.D. Nixon WR | ★★★ | from  Colorado |
| Malcolm Epps TE | ★★★★ | from Texas |
Transfers out 9
 Palaie Gaoteote IV LB | ★★★★ | no new school on file |
| Jay Toia DL | ★★★★ | to  UCLA |
| Markese Stepp RB | ★★★ | to  Nebraska |
| Stephen Carr RB | ★★★ | to  Indiana |
| Abdul-Malik McClain OLB | ★★★★ | to  Jackson State |
| Caleb Tremblay DL | ★★★★ | to  Tennessee |
| Connor Murphy DL | ★★★★ | to  UNLV |
| Chase McGrath K | ★★★ | to Tennessee |
| Munir McClain WR | ★★★ | to  Utah |
2021 Pac-12 standings
| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Utah | 8–1 | 10–4 | 12 |
 Oregon | 7–2 | 10–4 | 22 |
| UCLA | 6–3 | 8–4 | |
| Arizona State | 6–3 | 8–5 | |
| Washington State | 6–3 | 7–6 | |
| Oregon State | 5–4 | 7–6 | |
| California | 4–5 | 5–7 | |
| USC | 3–6 | 4–8 | |
 Washington | 3–6 | 4–8 | |
| Colorado | 3–6 | 4–8 | |
| Stanford | 2–7 | 3–9 | |
| Arizona | 1–8 | 1–11 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.