USC lands NC State safety on transfer portal

Bishop Fitzgerald pledged to USC Trojans off the transfer portalthe former NC State football player announced.

The safety spent two seasons in Raleigh and was an All-ACC honorable mention in 2024. He finished the season with 55 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, 8 PBUs, 1 forced fumble and 3 interceptions.

Fitzgerald began his college career at Coffeyville Community College in Kansas and has one year remaining. He had been on the portal for just 12 days after announcing his intention to switch on January 2. He kept quiet about his recruiting at the time, but chose the Trojans over Penn State and possibly other big football brands.

“Amazing staff, people who have NFL experience and a pedigree of sending guys to the next level and an amazing support staff and people who buy into you as a person,” Fitzgerald told trojansports.com his impressions after visiting USC.

Now a senior and entering his third year of FBS football, Fitzgerald will join USC’s defensive backfield in need of reinforcements. At safety, he will compete with running back Christian Pierce to replace Achilles Arnold, who was fourth on the team with 36 solo tackles as a six-year starter in 2024. The team also lost Zion Branch backups and Bryson Shaw.

USC football made the most of the opportunity to transfer the portal

Fitzgerald is the 12th player USC has added this offseason via the transfer portal — and the team will need more coming off an average 7-6 season. Defensive lineman Keeshavn Silver of Kentucky could be the prize to make, though there is still time. 247Sport ranks him as 52. the best transfer at this year’s portal class.

USC also signed cornerback DJ Harvey from San Jose State, defensive tackle Jamal Jarrett from Georgia and linebacker Eli Sanders from New Mexicoamong others. On Monday, they landed wide receiver Prince Strachan from Boise State.

There is another side to that. The Trojans lost their share of players to the transfer portal, including a wide receiver duo Zachariah Branch and Duce Robinson, who are ranked by 247sports as the sixth and seventh best transfers in the class. They also lost their quarterback, Miller Moss, to Louisville.

USC will need to continue adding titles in what ESPN’s Paul Finebaum called a straight or gap years for head coach Lincoln Riley.

“The expectations are high on him, and you can’t get away with a couple of bad years at ‘SC, even if you finish on a high note,” he said.