USC Football's Luke Wafle Named Big Ten Freshman of the Week

USC Trojan freshman defensive end Luke Wafle has been named Big Ten Freshman of the Week for his performance against the Washington Huskies. 

In 2026 head coach Linoln Riley signed the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation. Wafle was the prize recruit out of New Jersey’s Hun School of Princeton. Wafle was the No. 1 high school player in the country according to Rivals.

Against the Huskies Wafle had five tackles including two tackles for loss.The freshman also earned his first career sack when he took down Desmond Williams Jr in the fourth quarter. His sack came at the right time as USC was clinging to a 25-21 with less than four minutes to go in the game.

Wafle overpowered Washington offensive tackle Geirean Hatchett to sack Williams Jr for a two yard loss. Wafle also had a sack taken away in the second quarter when he accidentally grabbed Williams face mask while sacking the quarterback.

Wafle who is 6-foot-6 265 pounds was one of 35 freshmen brought in by head coach Lincoln Riley as part of this top rated class. Other freshmen who have stepped up from this historic class are WR Trent Mosley, WR Kaden Dixon-Wyatt, OT, and TE Mark Bowman.

Mosley, who has been injured for the last two games, has emerged as USC’s top playmaker. In the first three games of the season he had 13 receptions and five touchdowns. One of his touchdowns is a punt return showing his dual threat ability. As a receiver he is averaging 19.6 yards per catch.

Dixon-Wyatt reminds USC fans of Keyshawn Johnson with his ability to move the chains. This season the freshman leads the team with 25 receptions. At 6-foot-2 190 pounds the freshman plays with a physicality that has proven to be a problem for small defensive backs.

For people who have watched Mark Bowman, he is the second coming of Las Vegas Raiders All-Pro TE Brock Bowers. Bowman is a dominant blocker and excels in the receiving game. He has been the USC starter all season. This year he has 21 receptions for 204 yards. Against Louisiana  he scored two touchdowns with six receptions.

Wafle looks like an All American right now. When you see how the other freshmen have stepped up it is easy to see that the No.1 recruiting ranking is justified. 

This week USC will travel to Happy Valley in a game where they are the underdogs. Throw in the fact that this will be a Penn State “White Out” game and Riley is 2-4 on the east coast as the USC coach. Riley will need all of his superstar freshmen to step up on Saturday for USC to have a chance to win.