PORTLAND, Ore. — Last Wednesday, confused as rumors began to swirl, USC freshman Brandon Gardner’s mother Tameka sent Andy Enfield a multi-paragraph plea for him to stay put.
“Coach Hello,” it began, “I am reaching out because I am not sure what is going on.”
Across the span of nearly 300 words, Tameka recapped her son’s experience at USC – from the “royal treatment” the former four-star forward received in recruitment, to the medical staff’s work with him after multiple injuries prompted him to redshirt, to assistant coaches’ work with Gardner. The previous Saturday, ESPN first broke the news that SMU was targeting Enfield for its open job; unsure of the circumstance, Gordon asked Enfield if he needed her to reach out to USC athletic director Jen Cohen in support.
“In conclusion, I DO NOT WANT YOU TO LEAVE USC,” Tameka texted Enfield.
Despite a warm text thanking Gardner’s mother in response – “He is one of my favorite people in my coaching career,” Enfield said of Gardner in part – the 11-year USC coach officially was announced as SMU’s newest coach on Monday. It’s a move, reasonably, that makes sense for all parties involved: Enfield joins a rising program set to enter the ACC that touted “investment” of its donors in their hiring announcement, while USC enters a new era after a disappointing year entering the Big Ten.
But in the short-term, the immediate infrastructure Enfield left was already on shaky ground, 2024-25 set up as a transitional season as much of the program’s core has either graduated (Boogie Ellis, Joshua Morgan, DJ Rodman), already hit the transfer portal (Kobe Johnson, Oziyah Sellers, Kijani Wright) or could enter the NBA draft (Isaiah Collier, Bronny James). On Wednesday, as the USC women’s team practiced before a trip to Portland, a few lone stragglers on the men’s team gathered in the Galen Center weight room for a workout – Gardner, junior Harrison Hornery and freshman Arrinten Page among them.
None of them were kept in the dark, ultimately. Last Tuesday, Enfield gathered his players – well, what was left of them – for a team meeting, a source familiar with the situation said, informing them on the SMU rumors but noting he hadn’t yet made a decision and would do so over the weekend.
In every single season of Enfield’s 11-year tenure, the Trojans kept at the very least three returners on their roster. But his exit, and general change, could lead to perhaps the most drastic year-to-year personnel shift in program history. It’s already brought ripples in his recruiting class – Harvard-Westlake guard Trent Perry, USC’s crown jewel for 2024-25, announced on Instagram on Tuesday morning he’d be requesting a release from his NLI and reopening his recruitment.
And when the dust settles, Hornery might well be the lone man standing.
After a couple of days of discussion, Hornery’s mother Dianne Parslow told the Southern California News Group, he’s decided to remain at USC regardless of Enfield’s departure and whichever coach is brought in. The rising senior came to USC after a prep career at Mater Dei, where he originally enrolled after moving from Australia; his family still remains there.
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“We have clearly sacrificed a lot of over the last eight years,” Parslow said, “and for Harry, it’s about finishing what we started, which is a degree at USC. Playing basketball is very important to him, and to transfer now would – it would be absolutely pointless.”
Sophomore Vincent Iwuchukwu could well remain, too, as sister Vivian is headed to USC in 2024 to play for Lindsay Gottlieb and the women’s basketball team. Gardner may be back, too, currently mulling his options, formerly New York’s Mr. Basketball in 2023. And Perry maintained in his Instagram statement he’d still keep USC as an option.
In any case, Cohen has a monumental first hire on her hands – both tasked with filling USC’s cupboard and holding onto the few pieces the program has left.
