The USC Trojans currently have the No. 1 2026 recruiting class in the country, headlined by yesterday’s commitment of 5-star tight end Mark Bowman. There is still a ton of time in the 2026 cycle, and the Trojans will not only look to add a few more players but also work very hard to keep the 27 recruits they have committed until signing day.
The quarterback of the ’26 class is 4-star QB Jonas Williams. He is the prototypical Lincoln Riley QB, and when the process is over, I expect him to rise up the rankings more than he already is.
Even with Williams committed, a lot of the conversation has centered around 5-star QB Ryder Lyons.
Lyons has been recruited by Lincoln Riley since he was just starting High School ball at Folsom (CA), and his brother, Walker, is a tight end at USC. He has always seemed like somewhat of a lock to end up at USC, but his recruitment and willingness to commit have taken longer than expected.
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While Lyons is a member of the 2026 class, he will be taking his LDS mission after high school, so in reality, he will not enroll on campus until 2027, making him a pseudo member of that class.
The USC Trojans have had the plan in place. Husan Longstreet in 2025. Jonas Williams in 2026. Ryder Lyons in 2027.
It is not over with Lyons by any means, but it seems that his delay in committing has caused the Trojans to begin to set their sights on a new 2027 QB.
USC Trojans Targeting QB Peyton Houston For 2027 Class
According to our friend Scott Schrader of On3, USC is “ALL IN” with 4-Star quarterback Peyton Houston out of Louisiana, and they are making him their primary target for the 2027 class.
Schrader also reported that the USC Trojans want to move Lyons’ official visit to the fall, during the season. Currently, his official is set for June 20.
This is mostly speculation, but let’s break down why this shift may be occurring.
There is plenty of chatter that Lyon’s NIL ask is really high. In this new age where top recruits are asking for payments before even getting to campus, just to stay committed, that could mean that the USC Trojans would essentially have to pay for two years of Lyons’ before he even gets to campus (because of his mission). Again, this is just my speculation, but that could end up being a lot of money to pay someone to not be on your team for two years.
I 100% believe the door is still open, but focusing on a different QB for 2027 allows them to retain more of their NIL budget until the ’27 cycle begins.
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As far as moving Lyons’ official visit? He has been to campus six times already. This could be more of putting the ball in his court. Let him take his other official visits, and then let him decide if he wants to be a Trojan.
You also have to take into account that Oregon (the top school competing with Lyons) is getting desperate for a QB. Jonas Williams flipped from Oregon to USC, and Jared Curtis chose Georgia over the Ducks. At this point, they are going to essentially give Lyons a blank check (hopefully, there are no pools around…).
In terms of Peyton Houston, he is currently the 8th-ranked QB in the 2027 class, according to On3 Industry Rankings. ESPN has him ranked 1st overall. His style of play and athleticism are perfect for Riley’s system, and he is only going to get better, as he is just a sophomore right now.
There are still a lot of moving parts, and I am not willing to close the door on Ryder Lyons to the USC Trojans, but their new focus on Houston is certainly shifting the scales a bit.
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