LOS ANGELES — USC made a concerted effort to “Take back the West” during the last recruiting cycle, and that push resulted in a great recruiting class headlined by the No. 1 prospect in the country (Korey Foreman), two blue-chip quarterbacks (Jaxson Dart and Miller Moss) and some of Southern California’s best players (Raesjon Davis and Ceyair Wright).
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It was a recruiting class that reversed two years of troubling recruiting trends for the Trojans. But for all the positives, USC still finished second in the Pac-12 recruiting rankings to Oregon, which has established itself as the conference’s top recruiting program the past three years.
So if the Trojans are going to truly “take back the West,” they have to make up ground in the 2022 recruiting cycle.
Here is a look at where USC’s 2022 class (22nd nationally and second in the Pac-12 with nine commitments) currently stands. All rankings are from the 247Sports Composite.
Keith Olson, OL
High school:Napavine (Wa.) High School
Ranking:No. 1052 overall, No. 106 OT
Date of commitment:July 6, 2021
Notable: USC entered July without an offensive line commitment — a concern, considering that’s the spot where talent needs to upgrade most. But USC landed a commitment from Olson on Tuesday evening. Olson visited USC in mid-June and also took trips to Oregon State (the crystal ball favorite) and Utah. At 6-foot-6 and 285 pounds, Olson projects to play tackle at the collegiate level. He’s also the first offensive line commitment since Clay McGuire took over as offensive line coach. Though USC needs offensive linemen in this class, this commitment is unlikely to satisfy a fan base that has been frustrated by the program’s inability to land elite ones in recent years. USC has signed just two blue-chip offensive linemen in the past three recruiting cycles, and will likely need to demonstrate progress with the run game and balance offensively this fall to have a more impactful pitch for elite recruits at the position.
De’Anthony Gatson, RB
High school: Newton (Texas) High School
Ranking: No. 473 overall, No. 37 RB
Date of commitment: June 22, 2021
Notable:USC had already dipped into its Texas roots to add Darwin Barlow, a TCU transfer, which bolstered the depth of its running back room for the 2021 season. It returned to the Lone Star State to beef up the position group for the future a week later, as three-star running back De’Anthony Gatson committed to the Trojans. The 5-foot-10, 198-pound Gatson isn’t the fastest running back in his class, but he runs physically and is shifty enough when the situation calls for it. His commitment gives USC its first running back commitment in the 2022 recruiting cycle.
There was a good amount of optimism at USC about Gatson, who chose the Trojans over Texas and Colorado, over the week leading up to his announcement. Gatson is close with Barlow, and the two attended the same high school. Gatson’s commitment continues USC’s recent run of adding out-of-state prospects: Last week the Trojans got verbal pledges from five-star defensive lineman Mykel Williams, a Georgia native, and Jaeden Gould, a New Jersey native. The commitment also makes clear how much USC running backs coach Mike Jinks values backs from the state of Texas. The past four running backs the Trojans have added — either through the transfer portal or out of high school — have come from Texas.
Jaeden Gould, CB
High school: Bergen Catholic (Oradell, New Jersey)
Ranking: No. 153 overall, No. 18 CB
Date of commitment: June 20, 2021
Notable: USC opened the week with a commitment from an out-of-state blue-chip prospect and closed the week doing the same. The latest commitment came from Jaeden Gould, a four-star corner prospect who trimmed his list of programs to USC and Penn State after visiting Los Angeles earlier in June.
Gould is a taller corner at 6-foot-2 and 190 pounds but he’s a fluid athlete for his size, which helps explain his high-profile ranking. Gould’s commitment is significant for USC on a few levels. First, it’s another blue-chip prospect from outside the Southern California footprint, which illustrates that out-of-state recruits are buying into what the Trojans are selling at the moment.
It’s another recruiting victory for corners coach Donte Williams, who continues to prove why he’s one of the best recruiters in the industry. There’s no better example of that than this recruiting class. On top of Gould, USC holds commitments from five-star corner Domani Jackson and four-star corner Fabian Ross.
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The Trojans are also in the mix for four-star athlete Gentry Willians, who is being recruited at corner and just visited USC this weekend.
Mykel Williams, DL
High school: Hardaway (Columbus, Ga.)
Ranking: No. 26 overall, No. 6 DL
Date of commitment: June 15, 2021
Notable: There was some optimism at USC after the June 12-13 round of official visits. The Trojans thought they had positioned themselves well with some of the blue-chip prospects they hosted, particularly defensive linemen Mykel Williams and Christen Miller. That confidence was justified when Williams, a five-star prospect, announced his commitment to USC the following Tuesday morning. The 6-foot-5, 265-pound Williams is an athletic edge rusher who registered 17 sacks and 19 tackles for loss as a junior.
USC defensive line coach Vic So’oto spent a massive amount of time developing a relationship and holding video calls with Williams over the past few months. Gavin Morris, USC’s director of player development, assisted in the recruitment as well.
It’s Over #FIGHTON ✌️@USC_FB @USC_DaneStevens pic.twitter.com/n29eznn6F0
— Mykel Williams (@MykelW_50) June 15, 2021
The work done before the visit set USC up well for Williams’ trip to Los Angeles this past weekend. A source said it was a high-energy visit where the staff emphasized Los Angeles, NIL opportunities and NFL development. Williams’ brother and 2021 USC signee Michael Trigg were also there for the visit.
Of course, Williams’ commitment will be a tough one to keep between now and the early signing period in December. He opened June with unofficial visits to Florida, Auburn, Alabama and Florida State and he had scheduled visits to Georgia Tech and Kentucky. Georgia, one of the sport’s true recruiting juggernauts, lingers as well.
But USC has done all it can as of now, and Williams’ commitment gives them a second five-star commitment along the defensive line in as many recruiting cycles. Five-star defensive lineman Korey Foreman signed with USC in the 2021 cycle. It also gives USC a second five-star commit in this class.
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Domani Jackson, CB
High school: Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.)
Ranking: No. 4 overall, No. 2 CB
Date of commitment: Jan. 23, 2021
Notable: Jackson, a five-star prospect, is the crown jewel of USC’s recruiting class, but his commitment meant a lot symbolically as well. The Trojans whiffed on the state of California’s top-rated prospect in the 2019 and 2020 cycles. Last year, they stopped that skid and signed Foreman. It’s imperative they keep players like that home, which made Jackson’s January commitment is so crucial.
The 6-foot-1, 185-pound Jackson already possesses the physical build of a college player and has great straight-line speed. He plans to take a visit to Alabama, and Michigan has made a good impression on Jackson and his family. USC has cornerbacks coach Donte Williams, one of the best recruiters in the nation, on its side in this fight, so its chances are good here, but it’ll be a competitive battle. A successful, drama-free season this fall would help, too.
Fabian Ross, CB
High school: Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas)
Ranking: No. 182 overall, No. 23 CB
Date of commitment: Jan. 4, 2021
Notable: USC signed six defensive backs in the 2021 recruiting cycle, but it’s higher on the talent available at defensive back in the 2022 cycle. Ross might not have the speed of Jackson, but his physicality stands out. He’s not afraid to deliver a big hit to a wideout or come up and tackle in the run game. He holds down a solid corner group in this class when paired with Jackson.
The Trojans hope they can sign Ross’ Bishop Gorman teammate, safety Zion Branch, in this class as well. Branch is a top-50 player nationally.
Devin Brown, QB
High school: Queen Creek (Queen Creek, Ariz.)
Ranking: No. 284 overall, No. 21 QB
Date of commitment: Sept. 19, 2020
Notable: Brown’s commitment came as a surprise last fall. The Trojans were high on blue-chip signal caller A.J. Duffy but ultimately opted to take a commitment from Brown, who was only a three-star at the time.
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USC’s coaches believe they found a diamond in the rough. Brown has a quick release and a live arm. He’s mobile enough in the pocket, too. Brown has had a good camp circuit this spring and is squarely a four-star prospect now, earning a bid to the Elite 11 Finals later this summer.
It’s tough to land a blue-chip quarterback a year after signing two of them, but Brown has turned into a solid addition for this class. There’s also been recent speculation that he will enroll at Corner Canyon High School (Draper, Utah) this fall, which is where Dart spent his last year of high school setting state records and climbing the national rankings.
Kevin Green Jr., WR
High school: Bishop Alemany (Mission Hills, Calif.)
Ranking: No. 449 overall, No. 60 WR
Date of commitment: May 31, 2021
Notable: Donte Williams is the lead recruiter for Green, whom USC is recruiting as an athlete. He lined up at receiver and safety for Bishop Alemany, which sent two players (Miller Moss and Jaylin Smith) to USC in the 2021 recruiting cycle.
Green doesn’t shy away from contact with the ball in his hands. He’s a tough wideout who isn’t afraid to work in the middle of the field and is aggressive in contested catch situations. He runs hard to the ball on defense, as well. He was USC’s most recent commit entering June’s return to in-person recruiting, but it’ll probably be a bit before we learn what role the staff envisions for him.
Ty Kana, LB
High school: Katy (Texas)
Ranking: No. 505 overall, No. 50 LB
Date of commitment: Feb. 20, 2021
Notable: USC defensive coordinator Todd Orlando has taken a very hands-on approach with the linebacker position. He coaches it and recruits it, and he dipped into his old well of Texas recruits to land Kana.
USC has made athleticism a priority with its linebacker recruits in response to the way offenses are headed. On film, Kana reads and reacts well against the run. Of course, college passing games are much more difficult to defend, but the Trojans’ coaching staff obviously saw enough in the three-star linebacker that they took his commitment.
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Decommitments
Tight end Keyan Burnett (No. 212 overall, No. 7 tight end)decommitted from USC over the July 4 weekend. He originally committed in March. There were some concerns over fit in the Air Raid offense, which doesn’t necessarily feature traditional in-line tight ends. Arizona seems to be the logical landing spot for Burnett, whose father, Chester, played for the Wildcats in the 1990s and its coach, Jedd Fisch, has an NFL background. Arizona also holds a commitment from Burnett’s high school quarterback, three-star prospect Noah Fifita, which has also put them in contention for their Servite, Calif. teammate, blue-chip wideout Tetairoa McMillan.
(Photo of De’Anthony Gatson courtesy of 247Sports)
