USC head coach Lincoln Riley officially announced Friday that senior defensive back Prophet Brown has sustained a non-contact injury and will miss at least to the first half of the 2025 season. Brown, who is expected to see time at nickel, was spotted on crutches during practice.
JUST IN: Lincoln Riley announces that senior DB Prophet Brown has suffered an injury and will miss at least the first half of the season.
Brown, the projected starter at nickel, was seen in crutches at practice #USC
— Chris Treviño (@ChrisNTrevino) August 8, 2025
The report was announced by Chris Treviño of 247Sports on X and fans were quick to express their displeasure and worry at the loss of depth at the secondary of the Trojans.
“Wishing him a speedy recovery. Do we know who is pegged to take the first team reps?” one fan wondered.
“Man this sucks an sucks even more knowin @maddenriordy would be perfect right about now” another claimed.
“Next man up. The Prophet will be back just in time for the meat of the schedule” one fan said.
“This is a big blow” another said.
“NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO,” another fan exclaimed.
“DAMMIT” one fan commented.
Where Does Lincoln Riley’s USC Secondary Go Next?
Prophet Brown has played an important role in USC’s defensive schemes since making the switch to nickel last year. Brown also started several times and played regularly as a pass defender. His loss will be a huge setback as he is one of the few guys that defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn trusts according to On3.
“He can play nickel, he can play corner… I would say that nobody on the backend quite knows the defense like him,” He said.
In the absence of Brown, USC will probably resort to younger cornerbacks or shift personnel in other positions to play in the nickel position. Candidates who may get additional reps in camp include redshirt seniors DJ Harvey and DeCarlos Nicholson, according to On3. Currently, Lincoln Riley has not announced a replacement plan for Brown as of right now.
Trojans start the season in three weeks when they will play Missouri State in Week 1, and they will follow that with Georgia Southern in Week 2. With road trips to Notre Dame and Oregon already making up the 2025 schedule. Not to mention home games against Michigan and Michigan State finishing up what appears to be a challenging schedule.
This will be the Trojans’ second season in the Big 10. After last season’s disappointing run, keeping the rest of the secondary healthy through camp could be an interesting storyline.
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