Exclusive | Heisman trophy winner Matt Leinart has a message for USC fans after ugly Coliseum turnout

If anyone remembers when the Coliseum’s announced attendance didn’t come with a social media debate it’s Matt Leinart. 

During Leinart’s reign as the USC Trojans’ quarterback, the old concrete bowl was the epicenter of football in Los Angeles. Each and every game it was packed with fans watching two Heisman Trophy winners lead the Trojans through one of the greatest stretches in program history. There was never any doubt whether or not the program mattered.

But Last Saturday afternoon, the echoes reverberated louder than the crowd.

USC opened its 2026 season with a 42-26 victory over San Jose State in front of an “announced” crowd of 51,144 fans at the 77,500-seat capacity Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Videos from those in attendance during the game show empty patches of cardinal-colored seats that quickly became a national talking point.

The videos circulated on social media. Jokes, arguments, and excuses followed. They ranged from the triple-digit heat index to USC students not yet back at school to the opponent and other entertainment options available. 

Leinart witnessed it all. 

But the 2004 Heisman Trophy winner isn’t ready to declare USC football dead because of it. 

“I don’t really buy into the narrative or the big picture of it all,” Leinart told the California Post exclusively Wednesday during a DraftKings Gameday event in Los Angeles. “It is the first game.”

Still, Leinart wasn’t going to pretend the optics looked good.

“Look, as a proud alum — obviously, I love football and I love USC — when you’re sitting there, naturally it’s a bummer that it’s not packed and [fans] aren’t rooting these kids on,” Leinart said. “I get that.”

What he doesn’t get is the idea that just because of one disappointing crowd there should be some grand referendum on USC football under head coach Lincoln Riley.

“I understand that people take the narrative and then they start trashing USC and all that,” Leinart said. “At the end of the day, that locker room and that coaching staff, that’s really all that matters. They’ve just got to go out there and win games and everything else takes care of itself.”

Riley fired back, calling it a “false narrative,” and pointed out attendance has gone up every year he’s been there.  

USC averaged 71,571 per game in 2024 and 67,782 in 2025. That’s roughly 93% of capacity, and one of the highest for a stadium of that size. Those average attendance numbers ranked USC 19th in all of the FBS and sixth in the Big 10 behind Michigan, Penn State and Ohio State, three stadiums that all have a capacity of over 100,000. 

However, in those three cities, college football is the only game in town. Not in Los Angeles. The City of Angels has always been a demanding sports town. Give it a winner and the city will move mountains to get inside the building. The back-to-back World Series Champion Dodgers lead all of MLB in attendance each and every year. 

But give fans mediocrity and they’ll move on to any of the approximately 10 million other things to do in the city. Leinart knows what the Coliseum can become when USC gives L.A. a team that can compete for the national championship.

“The Coliseum is a great place to play football, man,” he said. “It’s really special.”

Which brings us to Friday night.

USC hosts Fresno State at 6 p.m., and suddenly attendance has become an unofficial subplot to the actual football game. The afternoon heat won’t be nearly as convenient an explanation this time. Neither will the kickoff time.

A Friday night in L.A. comes with its own obstacle course — namely traffic — and Fresno State isn’t Oregon or Ohio State. But after a week spent debating whether USC fans have become apathetic, the Coliseum’s turnstiles will provide another piece of evidence.

So if you’re thinking about going to the game, Leinart has a simple request:

“I would just encourage fans to come out, show your support,” he said. “It’s a great home schedule. Oregon, Ohio State — you’ve got some big-time teams coming in and that team is going to need all the help they can get from fans and the energy and the passion.”

The reality is there’s only one way for USC to solve its attendance problem. 

Win.

“At the end of the day, USC is 1-0,” Leinart said. “They get Fresno State this weekend. You’ve just got to keep stacking chips. You’ve got to win the games you’re supposed to, and then you’ve got to go out there against teams like Oregon and Ohio State and prove that you belong in that conversation.

“And that’s the opportunity that they have.”

Friday night offers another opportunity, too.

For USC to keep winning.

And for fans to start showing up.

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