By admin 
The USC Trojans’ offense has run through their freshmen this season. One key freshman who has been missing is tight end Mark Bowman. In recent weeks, the Trojans missed him dearly. While there was a lot of bad in Week 8 against Wisconsin, one good revelation was the Trojans’ other promising young tight end. My breakout star for Saturday’s game is Taniela Tupou.
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He was the biggest bright spot of the game for USC. Tupou led the Trojans in receiving with 6 catches for 46 yards and a touchdown. His talent has always been there, but in this game he put it all together. He was the sole spark the Trojans’ offense had.
Mark Bowman has taken a lot of the attention for how good he is as a blocker and how impactful he is in the passing game. He is a jack of all trades. Tupou is the perfect complement to Bowman, as he has the potential to be an elite receiving threat. In a game where the Trojans could not find much of any success, Tupou was winning in his matchups. In his 3rd reception of his career, he found the end zone with not a single Badger defender near him.
The Trojans’ offense now has 2 promising, versatile young tight ends to be excited about. It will be exciting to see what the future looks like for these 2; moving forward, even with Bowman’s return, Tupou still needs to be involved. Tupou can be more than a serviceable weapon for starting quarterback Jayden Maiava. He can also ensure the Trojans’ passing attack remains as lethal as possible. Against the Trojans’ next 3 opponents, the offense will need all hands on deck.
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This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: A new breakout freshman emerged for the Trojans in Week 8
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Reporting by Micah Huff, Trojans Wire / Trojans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect
This story was originally published October 27, 2026 at 6:11 AM.