USC Athletics Continues This Impressive Streak With Another National Championship
USC Trojans athletics has brought home another national championship, this time in women's water polo. USC defeated the California Golden Bears by a final score of 10-9. This is the eighth national title in program history and also extended an impressive streak for USC athletics.
USC Wins At Least One National Title for Sixth Straight Year
For the sixth straight season, USC has brought home at least one national championship with the women's water polo team securing their respective title. This streak dates back to the 2021 season in which USC's women's beach volleyball team, women's track and field team, and women's volleyball team all won the national championship.
There is still time for USC to add to their 2026 total as not all the Spring sports have concluded yet.
Here are all the national titles that USC has won from 2021-2026.
2021
Women's Track and Field Women's Beach Volleyball Women's Water Polo
2022
Women's Beach Volleyball
2023
Women's Beach Volleyball
2024
Women's Beach Volleyball
2025
Men's Indoor Track and Field
Men's Outdoor Track and Field
2026
Women's Water Polo
Make that 6 consecutive years with at least one national championship… pic.twitter.com/dygiBCK4U6
- USC Trojans (@USC_Athletics) April 28, 2026
Football Title Drought
A glaring miss in this list is football. USC has 11 claimed national championships in their school's history. However, their most recent one was back in 2004. The Trojans are trying to get back to where they were back in their heyday, but it's been a long and difficult process they are still working towards.
USC in the 2000's under coach Pete Carroll was arguably the most premier program in college football. USC won the Pac-10 conference seven straight times from 2002-2008 and never won less than 11 games. Since then, USC has had just two seasons with 11 wins. Neither of them resulted in a national championship or College Football Playoff appearance.
Furthermore, after winning seven straight conference titles under Carroll, USC has won only one conference title since. Coach Lincoln Riley is entering his fifth season as USC coach n 2026 and the time to win in now. Riley himself has even claimed that this roster heading into the season is the best he's ever had at USC.
We're excited. I think this will be the most complete roster we've had here at USC. We returned some really good, productive players that we think are teed up to be the best they've been in their careers," Riley said. "We brought in a great class. Signed the No. 1 recruiting class in the country…That combination from a roster standpoint is exciting."
Women's Basketball Trending Upwards
USC's women's basketball program bas two NCAA national titles in their history in 1983 and 1984. They have been ascending into contention over the past few season. In 2024 and 2025, USC earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. They got to the Elite Eight both times before losing. After an injury riddled 2025-26 season with star guard JuJu Watkins being out, the Trojans were eliminated in the second round.
With Watkins back in 2026-27 and paired with another star guard Jazzy Davidson, could the women's basketball team help extend this run of USC winning national titles next year?
Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook, and X for the latest news.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/usc as USC Athletics Continues This Impressive Streak With Another National Championship.
Copyright ABG-SI LLC. SPORTS ILLUSTRATED is a registered trademark of ABG-SI LLC. All Rights Reserved.
This story was originally published April 28, 2026 at 8:22 PM.