The University of Southern California is marking the approach of its 2025 football season by reflecting on the legacy of former running back Charles White. As part of a countdown series, Trojans Wire highlights significant players in program history, with a recent focus on White’s achievements and impact both at USC and beyond.
White played for USC from 1976 to 1979. During his tenure, he set the university’s all-time rushing record, amassing 6,245 yards—over 1,400 more than Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinee Marcus Allen. White earned unanimous All-American honors in both 1978 and 1979. In the 1978 season, he helped lead the Trojans to a national championship. The following year, he won the Heisman Trophy as USC’s third recipient of the award.
After college, White was chosen with the twenty-seventh overall pick in the 1980 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. He played eight seasons in professional football—four with Cleveland and four with the Los Angeles Rams. His most productive year came in 1987 while playing for Los Angeles; he rushed for 1,374 yards and scored eleven touchdowns that season, earning selections to both the Pro Bowl and as first-team All-Pro.
White later returned to USC as running backs coach from 1993 to 1997. In his final years, he suffered from dementia believed to be linked to chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a condition associated with repeated head injuries sustained during his football career and prolonged substance abuse issues. Charles White died in 2023 at age sixty-four and was honored by USC throughout their season that year.
—
