Just vote.

There, now that all of my close friend and Opinion editor Julia Ho’s lingo has made it into this column at one point or another, I can — potentially — frolic into the sunset and worry about other things, like my looming finals… 

Mostly joking, of course! Then again, if any of y’all are loyal enough wannabe sports readers to pick up this “wrapped” edition, you probably know I can’t be serious for more than a sentence or two — let alone know what I’ll be doing next semester.

So, if the “just vote” line wasn’t just a throwaway, what is this you ask? Am I done terrorizing your favorite USC sports teams with my laughably vague “voice- and reference-heavy style,” per my columnist bio? 

No, sorry.

This column’s focus was left intentionally vague so that it could be what the section has needed it to be — a way to add newsworthiness to a topic we don’t have the resources to pursue fully, add depth to our coverage of sports while they head on long road stretches or, most importantly to Managing Editor Aubrie Cole, fit into our beloved themed issues. 

I wonder which category this would fall into? 

Did you like the pun? Wrapped… LOL. 

Well, now that I’ve unintentionally referenced a line that seems to make it into every edition of my amazing co-editor Bennett Christofferson’s column, let’s just get into it. 

Essentially, I’ll reexamine some of my hottest takes to see how right or wrong — mostly right, of course — I was.

Aug. 20: Football should prioritize playoff hopes over Notre Dame, like Riley said

Verdict: I wish I wasn’t right.

Well, isn’t the timing on this one just perfect.

Now that anyone who said USC needs Notre Dame more than the inverse has been proven wrong by the No. 10 Fighting Irish — who are 1-2 against ranked teams this season, only holding on to a College Football Playoff spot thanks to their October win over the No. 16 Trojans — this take gets a lot more interesting. Especially when you consider a 10-2 USC team that didn’t travel to South Bend, Indiana, would have been a likely CFP candidate right now.

If there wasn’t a near century-long history between the teams, I don’t think anyone would even bat an eye at the Trojans getting rid of Notre Dame from their schedule. Though, of course, there is. 

But, I still don’t think that’s enough; and, though it wasn’t explicit in her November State of Troy update, it seems USC Athletic Director Jennifer Cohen feels the same way. While football’s 2026 nonconference schedule has not yet been released, Cohen seemed to allude to the rivalry game being left off next year’s slate in the State of Troy.

Cohen referenced the Trojans’ Big Ten schedule next season, which includes Ohio State, Indiana and Oregon, all of which are currently ranked in the top five and are locks for the CFP this season, writing that any additional difficult games could impact USC’s postseason chances, even if it takes down some of the conference’s top dawgs.

Sept. 3: Husan Longstreet can be USC’s next star quarterback, soon

Verdict: It’s Maiava decision time!

You know how I said Aubrie asking Sports to write a holiday-themed article was the inspiration for this column? Well, it was actually this.

Longstreet, a true freshman, didn’t even double his nine passing attempts as USC’s backup quarterback the whole rest of the year after this column was written in August, so not much has changed on an evaluation level. What has changed, especially given his ability to redshirt after only appearing in four games, is whether he will want to stay with the Trojans long enough to become a star here, or if his Walk of Fame will be somewhere else.

Obviously, the core of that decision comes down to whether redshirt junior quarterback Jayden Maiava, who led the Big Ten in passing yards with 3,431 and was up there in many other major categories, will return or declare for the NFL Draft.

While Maiava is very likely to get drafted at some point should he declare, his status as a likely second- or third-tier selection at a position known to fall definitely raises some questions. I’ve talked casually about this prospect all year — and if I had to guess right now, I’d say he’s likely to go for it this year — but I see the merits either way, though he did not give anything away when asked after Saturday’s win over UCLA.

Now, it seems unlikely in the current college football landscape that a former five-star prospect would be willing to wait an additional year to become a starter. However, Riley previously called this season “valuable” for Longstreet and cautioned him against leaving for the transfer portal when it opens in January. 

“We understand that sometimes people have patience, [and] sometimes they don’t,” Riley said in a post-practice news conference Nov. 25. “I don’t know if this would be the right time to leave this place. This thing’s getting pretty good.”

Oct. 8: Soccer may turn its season around

Verdict: Stinker, sort of.

Before I talk about how stupidly lukewarm this take was almost to the degree that it becomes wrong, I’ll give myself a singular flower: I did literally predict not only that the Daily Trojan would write a brief about an early Big Ten Tournament loss for soccer but also who would write it. You’re welcome for the manifestation, Ana Arriaga.

Onto the bad, or more like “mixed but I’m salty I didn’t go 7-for-7 this semester.” In all fairness to my clearly-ready-for-Fall-Break self, this column moreso posed the possibility that the Trojans may turn it around after a rocky start and explained how that may happen. 

Unfortunately for my record, they didn’t, finishing with a losing record in Big Ten play, a loss in the first round of the conference tournament and being one of the first few teams left out of the NCAA Tournament after making a deep run the year before. 

I didn’t take a stance and still lost. Beautiful.

But I think it’s clear that this was a rebuilding year for Head Coach Jane Alukonis and company, especially with the No. 1-ranked incoming class in the country already secured. I expect to be writing a very different kind of column about this team should I still be a wannabe this time next year.

Nov. 14: The Big Ten’s proposed deal with UC Investments is bad for USC

Verdict: Literally one day later.

While I’d like to believe my eloquently written column that referenced “Survivor” multiple times influenced USC’s decision, I’m not even delulu enough to say the University put out its first official word on the deal the same day my column published because of me. Unless…

Kidding, of course. Either way, this take has matured even more perfectly in the time since. Particularly, my claim that University of California Investments would likely not be interested in the deal without two big markets in USC and Michigan, which were the schools opposed to the $2.4 billion deal, is seemingly exactly the reason the deal is currently on pause. 

The Big Ten’s threats didn’t work, and people in the newsroom thought I was the crazy one during the editing process of this column!

To quote redshirt senior linebacker Eric Gentry’s final news conference words as a Trojan: “Mic drop.”

Sean Campbell is a sophomore writing about all facets of USC sports in a voice- and reference-heavy style in his column, “A Wannabe Sports Writer,” which runs every other Friday. He is also a Sports editor at the Daily Trojan.