USC wide receiver Mario Williams was jubilant after making a touchdown catch against Washington at the Coliseum on Nov. 4. Williams announced Friday he was entering the NCAA transfer portal. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Dennis Simmons has spent nearly two decades coaching college receivers. Last fall, he suggested that USC’s receiving corps was the deepest he’d ever coached. With so much talent, it seemed the biggest task facing the team’s receivers coach would be managing all the egos involved.
“Now I understand why Dr. Phil gets paid the amount of money he gets paid,” Simmons joked in August.
However, the depth Simmons once enjoyed has since disappeared, leaving USC with glaring questions at a position that not long ago seemed like a strong suit.
Read more: UCLA and USC football transfer portal tracker: Who’s in and who’s out?
USC’s two top receivers, Brenden Rice and Tahj Washington, made their intentions clear to declare for the NFL draft over the last week after accepting invites to the Senior Bowl and East-West Shrine game, respectively. Then, on Friday, Mario Williams entered the NCAA transfer portal, leaving USC without three of its four starters from last season.
Could it mean USC is left next season with two sophomores as its top receivers, albeit both of them five-star talents. Zachariah Branch might very well step into the No. 1 receiver role, after the electric freshman became the first Trojan to be named an All-American in his first year. Duce Robinson, meanwhile, finished tops on the team in average yards per catch (20.47) and flashed plenty of big-play ability as a freshman.
