COLLEGE STATION, Texas — On a night when the crowd at Blue Bell Park saw some of the most majestic home runs you’ll see in college baseball, USC’s Andrew Johnson showed why pitching is still paramount.
The sophomore right-hander delivered arguably the most important pitching performance of the season for USC on Sunday night, beating Texas A&M 14-3 to propel the Trojans to a winner-take-all College Station Regional Final on Monday.
After needing five pitchers in a rout over Texas State earlier in the day just to reach the regional final out of the losers’ bracket, USC coach Andy Stankiewicz rode Johnson.
Two nights after throwing 21 pitches over 1⅔ innings, Johnson threw 124 pitches over 7⅓ strong innings to beat the host Aggies (41-14) before a crowd of 6,934.
“I’ll say this, I’ve been here [as USC’s head coach] four years,” Stankiewicz said. “That’s the best pitching performance I’ve seen in four years, hands down.
“In a big moment when we needed somebody to step up to take the ball, there hasn’t been a guy that’s done that as well as [he] did … this evening.”
Leading 11-2, Johnson retired the first batter in the top of the eighth inning before Nico Partida singled to right. Jake Duer followed with an RBI triple to right field, prompting a call to right-hander Rohan Kasanagottu.
Johnson (8-2) held the Aggies to three runs on nine hits and two home runs with one walk and four strikeouts. Kasanagottu added 1⅔ perfect innings of relief with two strikeouts.
“It was just basically [Stankiewicz] coming up to me and looking at me, and me just nodding at him,” Johnson said. “And he’s like, ‘All right, let’s go.’
“I don’t know if I’ve thrown 120-whatever before, but I honestly feel pretty good. I’ll pitch tomorrow if it [means] we’re going to win some more.”
USC junior Kevin Takeuchi bats against Texas A&M in the NCAA regionals on Sunday.
(Chris Mora / USC Athletics)
The Trojans (46-16) have scored 48 runs over three wins since falling into the losers’ bracket. They beat Lamar 19-6 on Saturday, and then they beat Texas State 15-4 on Sunday afternoon before pummeling the Aggies (41-15).
Chris Hacopian gave the Aggies a 1-0 lead with a home run in the first. The Trojans countered with four runs in the bottom of the inning with Kevin Takeuchi’s two-run single and Andrew Lamb’s two-run double.
“Yeah, we never want to lose,” Texas A&M coach Michael Earley said. “We never want to get our [butt] kicked. That always sucks, but it is what it is. It’s baseball.
“They beat us, period, from the freaking first pitch. But we got a game tomorrow, and we’re excited to get out there.”
Lamb greeted reliever Cooper Powell with a three-run home run over the right-field bleachers in the third inning. Augie Lopez gave USC a 9-1 lead with a two-run home run in the fourth.
Gavin Grahovac tagged Johnson for a monstrous solo home run to cut USC’s lead to 9-2 in the fifth. Lamb, who singled in the fifth, added another two-run double in the ninth.
“I’m going to flush this thing here in about five minutes,” Earley said. “We’re going to move forward and we’re going to come out tomorrow and get to play in front of our home crowd.
“What more could you want, man? What more could you want?”
That’s the same mentality USC has taken since losing their opener.
“I think we’re seeing the ball really well,” Takeuchi said. “We’re sticking to the middle of the field and kinda just letting the park do its thing. Just trying to put [the] barrel on the ball.
“But when you have pitching like these guys have been, they’ve been lights out. They keep us in every ballgame, so it’s really good for us to just be able to compete for them and kinda just to rack up the hits. I think we’re just seeing the ball really well, and we’re going to continue to do that tomorrow.”
Jennifer Cohen has heard her peers this spring lament the precarious state of college football, with the College Football Playoff format in flux, the College Sports Commission under fire and the current model of college athletics hanging by a proverbial thread. As athletic director at USC, Cohen understands the reasons for their doom and gloom.
There’s little clarity about where things stand in college athletics right now, let alone where they’re going. Plus, it has never cost more to run an athletic department — or a football program, with the price tag of rosters exceeding $40 million this season — in part because of name, image and likeness rights.
“There’s no doubt that this last year’s been frustrating, and that’s because we tried to fly a plane and build a plane at the same time,” Cohen told The Times last week. “So it’s certainly not going swimmingly, right?”
Before discussing all that’s wrong with the current college sports landscape, Cohen wants to remind everyone that it hasn’t all been bad.
“It’s important to talk about what are the positives that came from what’s happened,” Cohen said.” And from my perspective, student athletes have benefited now more than ever, you know?”
At USC, Cohen has managed to steer the athletic department through the chaos. As costs have risen exponentially with the advent of revenue sharing, Cohen says department revenue at USC is up almost 60% over a three-year span, sponsorship values have doubled and USC donors have poured money into the Trojan Athletic Fund, which is up 707% since she started.
Jennifer Cohen, left, and university president Carol Folt, right, flash the “V for Victory” hand sign during a news conference in 2023 introducing Cohen as USC’s new athletic director.
(Ringo Chiu / For The Times)
And later this summer, USC will open a $200-million football facility — a rarity in an age when such spending has more often taken a backseat.
None of that is to say USC is immune to the coming financial crunch in college sports.
“We also have to manage expenses, and we’re trying to do that and still support what we think is part of our DNA, which is [keeping all] 23 programs,” Cohen said. “As you look at the financial benefits that football brings to this place, the more you’re gonna take those revenues from football and put it back into football and to football student athletes versus other programs, you’re gonna feel the pinch. And so we’ve tried to mitigate that with new strategies on revenue generation.”
But what about when football rosters costs balloon to $50 million … or $60 million? What about $100 million?
“Hopefully not,” Cohen said. “We’ve gotta match roster spends with revenues and, and, and, and how we run a business.”
“I don’t think there’s one simple answer to this, and I do think that we are at a point where we’ve got to figure out as an industry, how do we do this in a smart way and not just let our competitiveness get the best of us? But that’s hard when football winning is the only way that you pay your bills.”
The Times sat down with Cohen last week to discuss the state of affairs in college football and USC’s athletic department. The following conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
With college football in such an uncertain place, do you feel like there needs to be some form of outside intervention? Or some major governance change that would help solve these problems?
“I think at some point in time we’re gonna have to find something. I mean, obviously we’re a year in. So I think first we all need to look in the mirror — myself included, as a leader — and say, ‘What did we do in this new system that worked? And what have we done in this new system that doesn’t work? And the question becomes, ‘Can you get everybody across the Power Four [conferences] to do that exercise and be honest enough to find some sort of solutions together? Or do you need to start looking at other solutions? I, for one, fully believe in federal support. I understand why it’s needed. I’m somebody that spent a lot of time on that earlier in my career, and, you know, the patchwork situation of laws is not fair from a competitive standpoint. It’s also very confusing to student athletes and to their families and to our coaches. But I am absolutely not holding my breath for that.
Eric Musselman and athletic director Jennifer Cohen hold a jersey with Musselman’s name during his introductory news conference as the Trojans’ basketball coach in 2024.
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
“The most important place where I’m spending my energy is figuring out how we are going to win in whatever environment that we’re dealt. Because I don’t have as much control in my current role to solve for all of those national issues. I am 24/7 thinking about how USC is going to compete in whatever environment we’re in. And I feel really confident that we will. But as somebody that loves college sports, I also think that we are gonna have to find a different alternative than how we’re operating right now to have a sustainable and durable model.”
USC seems to be in a really strong place with NIL, stronger certainly than when you were hired. How would you say that USC has gotten to that point?
“ When we got here, my mantra was if you’re not ahead, you’re gonna get behind. And so there were a lot of areas that we focused on to just try to improve and get ahead, and NIL was one of them. There’s a natural ability here to be really competitive in NIL — especially in the third-party space with brands. You know, we were just looking at some data the other day just in this new CSC-NIL Go model. Our brand deals are valued 2 1/2 times more than the national average, and I think that really speaks to both USC, the city of L.A., and obviously the quality of the student athletes that we have. And I think it’s just been a strategy of embracing the new era, recognizing that it’s really cool to be able to have student athletes benefit in that new era, and it’s important, and that you have to be competitive in that space.
“And so I think it was just a matter of having intentionality in a plan and getting all of our stakeholders aligned around that plan, and it was an urgent matter to keep trying to get ahead in that space. Because if we weren’t, other people were. That’s how we’ve been tackling it, and so we’re really proud of how robust the program is now. But we’re gonna have to keep getting better at it. We’re gonna have to keep evolving.”
The Big Ten has come out in favor of expanding the College Football Playoff to 24 teams. What are your thoughts on that?
“We’re unified as a league around 24, there’s no doubt about that. And obviously that’s gaining traction in some of the other conferences as well. And so where we’re unified, USC’s gonna support that. I think that there’s merits in the 24 model. I also think there’s plenty of fair questions around that. It has to make sense for everybody. So that’s kind of where we stand on it.
USC athletic direct Jennifer Cohen wears a headset with microphone as she’s interviewed before a football game in 2023.
(Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
“I think personally speaking, I would have absolutely no problem staying at 12. I think we’ve experienced a lot of change in college sports and in college football. I think we need to understand how that change is impacting not just us, but our fans and others. And so if we end up at 12, I’m confident that we’re gonna find our way in that 12 every single year. And again, uh, that’s where my focus is. I mean, I am nonstop thinking about how USC athletics can compete in whatever model that we’re in, and I feel really good about the plans that we are developing and will continue to develop because we’re gonna have to keep changing to, to make sure that we’re competitive.
Being that it’s now Year 5, is it fair to say that the expectation is that Lincoln [Riley] needs to take USC to the Playoff this year?
“The expectation has always been the same. That’s the thing, that’s the reason why I came here, is that the standard is high. We do expect to make the playoff. We do expect to have a championship run. We do expect to be competing for championships every single year. I think that’s what’s awesome about USC, is that that’s what we all expect of it. And I know that I’m not the only one that expects that. I know our fans expect that. I know that he expects that. And so I really like this team. I really like the kids that we brought in. I love the returners. I love the leadership of this team.
“We’ve got some really outstanding older young men in this program that get it, that have been through a lot and really care about this place and this program. The young guys are awesome. They’re really challenging the older guys. So I feel really good about the talent level of this team, and I feel really good about what Lincoln’s done. I think with this staff, I think we have a highly competitive staff. I think we have a really experienced staff. And then you can’t dismiss what Chad’s accomplished. You know? I think that that’s been the benefit of bringing in not just Chad, but an entire front office staff, taking the pressure off of Lincoln, taking the pressure off of the other coaches so that they can be at their best. I mean, he’s been really energized about that and really focused on taking the strengths that he has. So yeah, the expectation, I mean, we haven’t been shy about that. We expect to win, and I, I feel confident that we’re going to.”
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — USC couldn’t hold on to the lead Adrian Lopez provided with a home run in the bottom of the eighth Friday night.
Texas State’s Chase Mora greeted reliever Adam Troy with a monstrous two-run home run to left field in the top of ninth inning, propelling the Bobcats to a 5-4 upset before a crowd of 6,956 at Blue Bell Park.
The Trojans had plenty of chances, and they wasted most of them in the opening round of the NCAA tournament’s College Station Regional.
Even though the Bobcats’ shaky defense spotted USC two unearned runs, the Trojans will surely lament stranding runners in scoring position in each of the first seven innings.
The Trojans will face Lamar University, which blew a five-run lead in a 7-5 loss against host Texas A&M, on Saturday at 1 p.m. PT.
If coach Andy Stankiewicz’s Trojans return to the Men’s College World Series for the first time since 2001, the 12-time national champions must do it out of the losers bracket.
USC right-hander Grant Govel, an All-Big Ten First Team selection, settled for a no-decision after giving up three runs on four hits with two walks and six strikeouts over 5⅔ innings.
He was relieved by freshman left-hander Sax Matson with one on and two outs in the top of the sixth. Matson escaped unscathed in the sixth, but he was relieved by right-hander Andrew Johnson with one on and two outs in the seventh.
The Trojans (43-16), who reached the Big Ten Tournament semifinals, have lost four of their last five games.
Mora’s sacrifice fly to right field gave the Bobcats a 1-0 lead in the second inning. The Trojans countered to tie the score with a run in the bottom of the second.
With runners on first and second and two outs, Abbrie Covarrubias hit a grounder to first. Texas State first baseman Jaquae Stewart booted the grounder for an error, allowing Isaac Cadena to score. Stewart almost made the situation worse with a wild throw to second, but Dean Carpentier was thrown out trying to reach third on the poor throw to second.
The Trojans benefited from more poor defense in the third. With one out in the inning, Augie Lopez reached on an error by Mora at third. Kevin Takeuchi followed with a double off the center-field wall. Jack Basseer broke the tie with an RBI single through the left side.
Covarrubias hit a solo home run to left in the fourth to put USC ahead 3-1. Texas State sophomore shortstop Brady Boles, who entered the regional with only one home run this season and two in his college career, tied the score 3-3 with a two-run home run to left field in the top of the fifth.
Mason Edwards has first-round hype ahead of July’s 2026 MLB draft for a reason.
USC’s ace takes the mound like a boxer enters the ring, eager to land blow after blow. And as the Trojans (43-15) open the NCAA tournament in College Station, Texas, at 6 p.m. PDT Friday (ESPNU), the southpaw packs a serious punch. He carries a nation-leading 160 strikeouts and the second-best 1.43 ERA.
“They’re getting a competitor,” Edwards said of what people can expect when he pitches. “There have been a lot of situations where I’ve had to battle and fight adversity. So, I think you’ll see a good fight when I toe the rubber. I’m not going to shy away from any type of competition.”
If anything, the competition probably shies away from Edwards.
Named the Big Ten 2026 Pitcher of the Year after stacking a record 113 strikeouts in conference play, Edwards is integral to what has been USC’s best team since the early 2000s.
The junior enters Friday’s regional matchup against Texas State with a perfect 8-0 record through 15 starts and 88 1/3 total innings and has collected nine-plus strikeouts in all but two games during the 2026 season — earning a career-high 16 in a 9-2 home win over Iowa on April 10.
MLB.com ranks Edwards No. 36 in its latest draft prospect rankings. Despite being on his way to becoming a professional baseball player, Edwards remains focused on helping the Trojans pursue their first national title since 1998.
“It’s important to stay present,” Edwards said. “I still play at SC, so I’m still concerned with how USC’s doing and how our team is doing. At the end of the day, that’s what’s important right now. It’s a team sport, it’s not tennis or golf. Got to stay grounded with what’s important. Team winning; going to a regional, winning that; trying to take this team to Omaha. That’s the biggest thing.”
Edwards, 20, is having fun while focusing on the Trojans.
Describing himself as playful, “cool with everyone” and as an “all-around happy” person, Edwards is enjoying his third year at USC, particularly as a teammate everybody can rely on.
Underrecruited during his prep career at Palisades Charter High, Edwards was inconsistent during his first season with the Trojans. He had some promising outings but finished with a 7.88 ERA and 1-3 record through 37 2/3 frames.
Edwards improved as a sophomore, serving as a starter and reliever, finishing with a 3.86 ERA and 3-0 record over 32 2/3 innings. However, he dealt with minor arm injuries and still didn’t have a clear-cut role.
Today, though, Edwards is one of the best pitchers in the country. And his skipper couldn’t be prouder.
“His development’s been really good,” USC coach Andy Stankiewicz said of Edwards. “He’s gotten better. That’s the thing we’re proud of. He’s a guy that’s been in our program for three years. Mason was trying to figure out who he was gonna be. ‘Is he going to be a starter? Is he going to be a reliever? So, he was kind of that spot starter … When he was a youngster, sometimes his misses [were] really big, and they really weren’t competitive pitches. Now, every pitch is pretty competitive.”
Stankiewicz credited Trojans pitching coach Sean Allen for helping Edwards, known for his rising heater, improve his curveball and develop his breaking ball.
The four-year head coach also praised Edwards for being an increasingly confident leader.
“Guys like him,” Stankiewicz said. “Guys enjoy being around him. I enjoy his growth. I enjoy being around him. He’s fun. We can tease each other pretty well and have fun with it. [Edwards was] a typical young man his freshman year, doesn’t say much. And then by the junior, senior year, they just grow up.”
The ace said he appreciates Stankiewicz, noting the coach’s emphasis on making sure players leave the program as “good men.”
Edwards also shouted out Trojans director of player development Josh Goossen-Brown, for being in his corner for years.
“He’s been through it all,” Edwards said of Goossen-Brown. “Been working with him since high school — very early high school — and he works here now. So, very small world, that he was able to get a job here.”
It’s hard not to see how the stars have aligned for Edwards.
While he didn’t consider USC his dream school growing up, Edwards is achieving Trojans royalty status, with loved ones nearby to support his journey in the same threads as great Trojans he idolized such as Randy Johnson and Seth Etherton.
Already named his conference’s best pitcher, Edwards is a semifinalist for both National Pitcher of the Year and for the Golden Spikes Award — given to the best amateur baseball player in America — after becoming the first USC pitcher to surpass 140 strikeouts in a single season since Ian Kennedy in 2005.
Edwards said he has always believed in himself, especially after a particularly rocky freshman campaign when his future appeared far from clear.
“When you’re your own person, you kind of see more than something other people might see,” Edwards said. “But yeah, freshman year, I flashed stuff that I really held onto. It was definitely a roller coaster … but you just hold on to the good things. Really holding on to those positives and trying to take them into the following years has been a big part of why you see that development process.”
And back with Lane Kiffin, the new LSU head coach who now has made Orgeron a member of his staff at three schools following their stint together as USC assistant coaches under Pete Carroll.
LSU announced Wednesday that the 64-year-old Louisiana native is returning to the Tigers as a special assistant for recruiting and defense.
“I’m excited to bring Coach Orgeron back to LSU,” Kiffin said in a statement. “He brings us tremendous value with his ability to recruit elite players nationally, but especially the impact he can have for us recruiting the great state of Louisiana.”
Orgeron played defensive line for four years at Northwestern State, then started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at his alma mater in 1984. After spending the next decade-plus as an assistant on a variety of coaching staffs, including at Miami and Syracuse, Orgeron joined USC coach Paul Hackett’s staff as the defensive line coach.
When Carroll replaced Hackett before the 2001 season, he retained Orgeron on his staff and eventually also made him recruiting coordinator. Also in 2001, Carroll hired Kiffin, who started as tight ends coach and eventually worked his way up to offensive coordinator.
After winning two national championships under Carroll, Orgeron was hired as head coach at Mississippi before the 2005 season. He offered Kiffin a job on his staff as offensive coordinator, but the then-Trojans passing game coordinator turned it down (Kiffin would much later serve as the Rebels head coach from 2020 to 2025).
Orgeron went 10-25 at Mississippi and was fired after the 2007 season. After a year as the New Orleans Saints defensive line coach, Orgeron joined Kiffin’s staff at Tennessee as defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator.
When Kiffin returned to USC as head coach in 2010, Orgeron joined him as defensive coordinator and recruiting coordinator. On Sept. 29, 2013, Kiffin was fired by USC. Orgeron was named interim head coach but left the team at the end of the season after Steve Sarkisian became the permanent head coach.
Orgeron joined LSU as the defensive line coach in 2015. He became interim head coach the following September after Les Miles was fired and got the full-time job at the end of the season.
The undefeated 2019 season, with Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Joe Burrow, was the peak of Orgeron’s stint with the Tigers. The team’s fortunes dipped after that, with Orgeron and LSU parting ways following the 2021 season. In six seasons with the Tigers, Orgeron went 51-20.
Less than five years later, Orgeron is reunited with the Tigers and his old friend Kiffin.
“Coach O understands my expectations and commitment to being a championship program,” Kiffin said. “I look forward to seeing him with recruits and his intensity working with our defensive players.”
Mulivai Levu helped UCLA remain the comeback kings of college baseball, hitting a walk-off, three-run home run to seal a 7-5 win over rival USC on Saturday and a spot in the Big Ten tournament championship game.
It was No. 1 seed UCLA’s 27th comeback win of the season and the second consecutive game Levu’s hit sealed a victory during the Big Ten tournament played in Omaha, Neb.
On Saturday night, Levu hit a walk-off sacrifice fly to seal UCLA’s comeback 4-3 win over Purdue in the conference tournament quarterfinals.
UCLA improved to 50-6, a record that Levu said gives the team confidence it will find a way to win.
“It’s the power of friendship right there. We’re all well connected,” Levu said during an interview Saturday on the Big Ten Network. “… We just don’t give up. We’re never out of it, we’re never doubting ourselves. We know what kind of lineup we’ve got, we’ve just got to use it.”
USC’s Augie Lopez hit a double and the rest of the Trojans were active early, building a 3-0 lead in the third inning. Levu hit an RBI single in the bottom of the third to cut the deficit. Dominic Cadiz had an RBI single in the fourth before pitchers held both teams scoreless in the fifth and sixth innings.
Dean West hit a two-run home run in the seventh to give UCLA its first lead at 4-3, and both teams were scoreless in the eighth.
In the ninth, Adrian Lopez and Augie Lopez managed to score runs for USC, taking a 5-4 lead. Top Trojans reliever Adam Troy got No. 1 MLB draft prospect Roch Cholowsky to fly out.
Then Levu entered the batter’s box with two outs and hit the home run that sent USC (43-15) back to Los Angeles for a break before the NCAA tournament brackets are revealed Sunday night.
“They’re rivals on the field, but those are our boys off the field,” Levu said of the Trojans. “They’re good guys and they’re good team. We’ll probably see them again later on in the playoff run. Props to them, it was a great game, they made it very interesting. I’m just glad we won.”
Welcome back to the Times of Troy newsletter, where USC and Notre Dame are back at the bargaining table — as you first read in this space last Monday — and also back to bickering about who’s to blame for blowing up their century-old rivalry in the first place. One step closer to order being restored!
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I have less faith in the rest of college football and its leadership, which now appears to be mobilizing around a playoff format that’s almost universally disliked by actual consumers of college football. The 24-team playoff is a great deal for coaches, who want to be able to point to as many playoff berths as possible for job security. It’s probably a good deal for athletic directors, digging through couch cushions for extra NIL dollars. And for the TV networks, it’s especially juicy. Twenty four teams means more than double the number of games, and each of those games is pulling in an average of between 10 million and 20 million viewers. That’s a lot of eyeballs and a lot of advertising dollars. (For everyone but ESPN, which currently has exclusive rights up to 14 teams.)
It’s also a good deal for Notre Dame, whose athletic director Pete Bevacqua came out this week in support of the 24-team playoff in an interview with the Athletic. The Irish would essentially assure themselves of a bid in most years, which, per Bevacqua, would make it easier to clear the way for USC and Notre Dame to play again.
Big Ten commissioner Tony Pettiti has been leading the charge on the 24-team playoff. So while USC athletic director Jennifer Cohen hasn’t said anything about her preference, it would be a surprise to hear her publicly oppose what the rest of the conference has been pushing.
But why do we have to push anywhere? Why do we have to keep fixing the playoff? And if you must keep tinkering with college football, well, there are plenty of ways to fix it that won’t water down the product and devalue the regular season the way playoff expansion does. Plus, who’s to say that after two seasons at 24 teams, the conference commissioners don’t decide they want to expand again? To 28 teams? To 36 teams?
The 12-team playoff already makes a lot of money. But like everything now, it has to make the mostpossible money or be as big as possible. I actually long for the days when college football’s leaders did whatever they could to keep the game from changing.
Now it’s the only thing that feels inevitable these days around college football.
Back to school
Marqise Lee at his graduation ceremony.
(USC)
Marqise Lee stepped to the lectern Friday, in full cap and gown, looked out over a full crowd at Galen Center, and cleared his throat. For so many reasons, the former USC wideout still couldn’t quite believe he was standing there.
Growing up, no part of Lee thought that college would even be available to him. He was brought up in the most difficult of circumstances in Inglewood. Separated at a young age from his sister and his mother, who was deaf. Thrust alone into the foster care system. He ended up living in a motel for three years.
When he did make it to USC, class hadn’t been a priority. Football was his focus from the start, and it would ultimately lead him to the NFL, where he’d never really taken the idea of returning to school that seriously. A counselor would try to convince him on a few occasions and even got him onto campus to set up a schedule.
“But it just never happened,” Lee told me.
Then, his football career ended, and his daughters started getting older. They never got to see him play football. He started thinking about what it would mean to show them what he could accomplish. So Lee decided to go back.
It wasn’t easy at first. He was taking five classes, a full course load. He felt uncomfortable being the oldest student in the class.
“When I first sat in there,” he said, ”I was like, I really don’t need to come back.”
His statistics class, especially, was daunting. He looked for any reason to leave. Then, he thought of his daughters.
“To go back to school and tell my daughters, yeah, I went back, but I wasn’t successful — and expect them to succeed?” Lee said. “Yeah, I can’t.”
But before long, Lee found that he actually liked his classes now. He enjoyed the group projects where he used to only do the bare minimum.
After sloughing off his final semester the first time around at USC, Lee needed at least three B’s and two A’s. No easy feat at USC.
Lee ended up getting A’s across the board. At the end of the semester, the school asked him to be the speaker at its student athlete commencement. Which is what led Lee to that stage, where he delivered a hell of a speech Friday.
“It was just like, this is something that you never ever dreamed about,” Lee said. “You never dreamed about graduating from college. So like to get that done was amazing. And then, I have an opportunity to sit up here and say to these kids and get them prepared for their future, by at least letting them understand where I come from and how hard it is. So they know that we actually can fight through anything that comes our way.”
Next up for Lee?
“I’m about to try and go get my master’s degree after this,” he said.
Cofie’s plans changing?
Jacob Cofie reacts after a layup and a foul during a win over Washington State last season.
(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)
A month ago, USC basketball announced that Jacob Cofie, one of its starters from last season, planned to return next season. It was a huge coup for Eric Musselman, who had a grand total of two returning players in two seasons as USC’s coach.
Cofie decided to still take part in the G League scouting combine. But in the process, he became one of five players who earned invites to the NBA scouting combine last weekend.
While in Chicago, Cofie was asked if he’d considered keeping his name in the draft. And he didn’t say no. “I’m leaving that up to my agent right now,” he said.
But even with the combine invite, I don’t expect that Cofie could climb any higher than the second round of this NBA draft. And depending on where he would be drafted, if he’s drafted at all, he might actually stand to make more at USC in revenue sharing dollars and NIL.
Cofie has nine days, technically, to make a decision. But I expect we’ll hear sooner than that on his future, and I’d be shocked to hear he’ll be spending next season anywhere but USC.
—USC baseball locked up the fourth seed in the Big Ten tournament. But what about hosting a regional? The Trojans managed to take one of three against Oregon to at least lock up a bye until Friday in the Big Ten tournament. But right now, USC is likely on the outside looking in at hosting its first NCAA regional since 2002. All that could change with a run in the Big Ten tournament. Doing so, though, probably means pulling off an upset of No. 1 UCLA. If USC wins its first tournament matchup against whomever emerges out of Illinois, Iowa, Michigan State and Purdue, then the Bruins will almost certainly be on tap. Win that game, and their hosting fate could change fast.
—Pete Carroll is coming back to teach “The Game of Life” at USC. The former USC coach delivered the commencement address for the Marshall School of Business last Friday, and in the process, announced that he’ll be making his triumphant return as Professor Pete next school year. A spot in Carroll’s class was one of the most coveted on campus in his first go-round — good luck getting off that waitlist the second time!
—Honor Fa’alave Johnson, USC’s top commit in 2027, reaffirmed his plans to sign with USC. That was after a group of USC coaches flew down to the safety’s hometown of San Diego via helicopter. Not a bad way to show you mean business — especially as Texas was doing its best to flip Fa’alave Johnson.
—Some Big Ten championship results from the weekend: The USC men finished fourth in the Big Ten track and field championships, while the USC women finished third. Meanwhile, women’s rowing placed sixth at their Big Ten championships.
What I’m Reading This Week
Patrick Radden Keefe writes for the New Yorker.
(Manuel Balce Ceneta / Associated Press)
It’s a quiet time for new TV, so I took the radical step of picking up a new book this week. (Crazy, I know.) That said, I’m always game for reading something new from New Yorker staff writer Patrick Radden Keefe, who, for my money, is one of our greatest living nonfiction writers. His latest book, “London Falling” follows an American family investigating the death of their 19-year-old son, who they find was living a secret life within London’s criminal underworld mysteriously before he jumped mysteriously from a building into the Thames River in 2019.
Keefe is a tremendous reporter and writer, capable of turning a nonfiction narrative into a roller coaster, page-turning story that reads like a crime novel. This book, like “Say Nothing” and “Empire of Pain” before it, is one I won’t forget any time soon.
Scheduling note
I said I’d be off this week, however the Lee graduation was so nice that waiting to report on it seemed wrong. But the newsletter will be on hiatus the next two weeks.
That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at ryan.kartje@latimes.com, and follow me on X at @Ryan_Kartje. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
