USC Trojans To Hire New Strength Coach: Targeting Indiana's Derek Owings?

After parting ways with the program's director of football sports performance Bennie Wylie, USC Trojans coach Lincoln Riley reportedly has his eyes set on a replacement.

According to reports from 247Sports' Matt Zenitz, Indiana Hoosiers director of athletic performance Derek Owings is a top target for the head strength and conditioning coach role at USC.

Owings has limited experience coaching in the Big Ten as he is in his second season at Indiana, but he has worked alongside current Hoosiers coach Curt Cignetti since 2020.

Cignetti's success at James Madison, as the program transitioned seamlessly from the FCS to the FBS level, turned heads across the country and ultimately led to Indiana hiring Cignetti.

When hired by the Hoosiers, Cignetti brought Owings with him, and the two helped lead Indiana to a 11-2 record and a College Football Playoff appearance in 2024.

USC's potential hiring of Owings away from Indiana would fits the profile of other offseason acquisitions made by the Trojans.

Firstly, Riley hired general manager Chad Bowden away from Notre Dame, and Bowden filled out key front office staff positions with former Wisconsin director of player personnel Max Stienecker as well as former Illinois director of player personnel.

Clearly, Riley and company are not afraid to hire from within the Big Ten or Notre Dame.

Additionally, the Trojans have shown that they are a destination in college football.

Instead of handing out promotions to young stars in the college football world, a number of USC's most recent hires have been making lateral moves in order to join the Trojans program.

MORE: USC Trojans Add Elite Louisiana Receiver Recruit Roderick Tezeno To Surging Recruiting Class MORE: Why USC Trojans' Lincoln Riley Parted Ways With Strength Coach Bennie Wylie MORE: Texas A&M Aggies In Danger Of Losing 4-Star Recruit Samu Moala To USC Trojans Flip? Will Owings be the next as USC looks to replace Wylie? Upon news of the Trojans moving on from Wylie, Riley and USC released a statement thanking Wylie but also expressing the program's national championship goals.

"We are grateful for the many contributions Coach Wylie has made to our program throughout the last three seasons.

He has been an outstanding role model to our young men.

This is a difficult decision, but we are committed to positioning our football program to compete for national championships as we continue to move forward into the 2025 season and beyond," said Riley.

Owings has had success at both JMU and Indiana, positioning himself as a clear candidate for the USC strength and conditioning opening.

Prior to working with Cignetti, Owings also spent time with Texas Tech and UCF.

According to Owing's biography on Indiana's website, he "creates and utilizes position specific workouts, beginning with the demands of on-field performance.

He also coordinated all GPS data both for the Red Raiders and Golden Knights." Should Owings be hired by USC, he will be arriving to a Trojans program that is expected to move into the Bloom Football Performance Facility, a state-of-the-art building for the football team, in summer 2026..

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