When Vincent Ragsdale transferred to USC two years ago, he realized he had a slim chance to achieve a childhood dream.
The undergraduate at the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy grew up a Trojans football fan and has gone to games at L.A. Memorial Coliseum since he was 11. He’d always wanted to play for USC – one of the most successful college football programs in the country – but the dream seemed impossible. Ragsdale, then a 21-year-old who wanted to help build affordable housing, hadn’t played since high school.
Yet Ragsdale, who will graduate May 12 with a Bachelor’s in Real Estate Development, decided to try out for the team, anyway. He lifted weights six days a week to pack on more weight. He waited at athletic facilities to get the coaches’ attention. When they finally gave him an opportunity – a single 30-minute try out – he took it.
And Ragsdale made the team.
“It feels pretty surreal,” he said. “I still can’t believe it myself.”