USC standout Emmanuel Pregnon reverses course and enters transfer portal

Not long after his return was lauded as a major coup for Lincoln Riley and USC, the Trojans’ top returning lineman has decided instead to enter the transfer portal.

It was just a few weeks ago that new offensive line coach Zach Hanson proudly announced in his first meeting with reporters that Emmanuel Pregnon, the Trojans’ two-year starting left guard, was coming back to anchor a young USC offensive line. But after playing in the Trojans’ bowl win over Texas A&M, Pregnon decided to continue his college career elsewhere.

The unexpected reversal caps an unusual month for Pregnon, who was widely expected to declare for the NFL draft after the 2024 season. In late November, after earning second-team All-Big Ten honors, Pregnon even accepted an invite to the East-West Shrine Bowl, suggesting even further that he planned to declare.

Read more: UCLA and USC football transfer portal tracker: Who’s in and who’s out?

“I think he was just kind of weighing all his options,” Hanson said on Dec. 18. “Guys that play well and have those opportunities obviously have to figure out what’s best for them.”

The expectation, as Hanson understood it then, was for Pregnon to return and “get that NFL draft grade up and hopefully go get drafted higher in the draft next year.”

But now, in his first season as offensive line coach, Hanson will have to replace three starting offensive linemen, without much experienced depth to mine from. The two returners up front aren’t exactly veterans either, as both left tackle Elijah Paige and right guard Alani Noa each have just one year of starting experience.

Read more: New focus in life has USC’s Emmanuel Pregnon blocking out the pain

Pregnon is the fifth offensive lineman to depart USC since the end of the season and the 21st Trojan overall. None is likely to leave as gaping a hole in USC’s roster as Pregnon.

USC did sign four offensive linemen in its 2025 class, joining the four it signed in 2024. But only a handful of those players will enter next season with any meaningful snaps. The interior is especially thin, with only seven snaps’ worth of experience between two players: Kaylon Miller and Jack Susnjar. Both came to USC as preferred walk-ons.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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