Head coach Lincoln Riley has led the USC Trojans for three seasons to mixed results. After a stellar first season in 2022, the Trojans have struggled to stay competitive in their conference. This past season, they went 7-6 in their first season in the Big Ten.
Despite their struggles, USC is still viewed by most as a power in the college football world. However, on Monday, “The Athletic” released its college football program valuations. USC landed as the No. 8-ranked college football program on the list based on program valuations. This put them behind programs in smaller markets like Notre Dame and Oklahoma.
On Tuesday, a clip was posted by the “Awful Announcing” X account of analyst Colin Cowherd speaking about the rankings. He made an interesting political analogy about USC as the team struggles to stay among the top powers in college football.
“There’s an old saying in politics: Democrats fall in love. Conservatives fall in line, they don’t get distracted,” Cowherd said. “They find their candidate and they defend them. I’ve said this with college football; gotta be more like a Republican, fall in line…Don’t worry about the rowing team. Don’t worry about who else is doing well. If you want to be a college football power, it’s all football. You gotta lean in.
“USC is highly political and highly distracted and is very concerned about all of the programs getting theirs. That doesn’t drive revenue. Utah, Iowa and Minnesota drive more football revenue than USC.”
“Democrats fall in love. Conservatives fall in line, they don’t get distracted…I’ve said this with college football, gotta be more like a Republican. Fall in line. Don’t worry about the rowing team…USC is highly political and highly distracted.” – Colin Cowherd pic.twitter.com/1nUis7nG3P
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) July 22, 2025
USC Is the No. 3 Highest Valued Big Ten Program
While Colin Cowherd expressed concern about USC as a college football powerhouse, the team is still one of the most valuable franchises in college football. According to “The Athletic,” it is the third-highest value team in the Big Ten behind Ohio State and Michigan.
However, the issue for the Trojans comes when looking at average football revenue. While USC ranks high in overall value, it is much lower in revenue than all other top teams. Its average football revenue is $71.3 million, whereas other teams in the same range as USC are over $100 million, and often over $130 million. So, the Trojans are falling behind in how much revenue they are driving.
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