USC is preparing for the opening kickoff of the 2026 football season on August 29 against San Jose State, and the excitement is building through a daily countdown that highlights a notable Trojan for each jersey number.
Among the names featured is Clay Matthews III, a linebacker who arrived on campus in 2004 as an unheralded walk‑on, preserved his redshirt year, earned a scholarship in 2006 and became a starter by 2008.
From Walk‑On to Green Bay Great
That 2008 defense, which also included Brian Cushing, Rey Maualuga and Kaluka Maiava, limited opponents to ten points or fewer in ten of thirteen games, finished 12‑1, captured the Pac‑10 title and won the Rose Bowl over Penn State.
Matthews’ performance earned him a sixth‑round selection by the Green Bay Packers in the 2009 NFL Draft, launching an 11‑year professional career in which he became the franchise’s all‑time sacks leader, a six‑time Pro Bowler and a first‑team All‑Pro in 2010.
After a decade in Wisconsin he returned to Southern California in 2019 for a final season with the Los Angeles Rams, bringing his career full circle and cementing his place in the region’s football lore.