Tag: USC recruiting

USC football 2022-2023 early signing period tracker: the latest Trojan commitments

We will add names to this list as the early signing period moves toward national signing day in February of 2023. Stay tuned. Refresh. Update. #USC

It’s that time of year: The early signing period is here.

When we went to bed on the night of Tuesday, Dec. 20, USC football had 20 commitments for the Class of 2023. The Trojans are trying to maximize the value of their first full recruiting cycle in the Lincoln Riley era. Riley had to hit the ground running 12 months ago and scramble to assemble a recruiting class. This is the first year in which Riley and his operations team had a chance to map out a complete plan and zero in on prime targets.

As the names keep coming in, we’ll update them. Stay tuned for more additions to this list as the signing period continues through national signing day in February of 2023:

Top USC basketball recruits play in ESPNU tournament, show their skills to national TV audience

Isaiah Collier and Arrinten Page will be Trojans next season. They took the big stage in a nationally-televised tournament on Tuesday. Collier stuffed the stat sheet. #USC

The high school basketball showcase known as the City of Palms Classic was televised on ESPN for first time in 12 years. The GEICO Nationals returned to Fort Myers, Fla., for the third consecutive year.

If you watched USC Trojan commits Isaiah Collier and Arrinten Page in action Wednesday night, you were in for a treat.

Despite the loss, 2023 Five star USC commit Isaiah Collier had a great game for Wheeler High School (GA). He finished with 20 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 6 steals in a 61-52 loss.

Collier is ranked the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2023 recruiting class, the highest-ranked USC recruit since head coach Andy Enfield took over in 2013.

USC has now secured five commitments from five-star recruits in the 247Sports rankings in Enfield’s tenure, including current Cleveland Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley.

Arrinten Page is a 6-foot-9 PF/C who doubles as a teammate and best friend of Collier at Wheeler in Marietta, Georgia. Look out for both prospects over the remainder of the season as they try to capture a state and national title.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CmYADn-twoW/

https://www.instagram.com/p/CmY3sozuRrH/

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No. 1 QB in Class of 2024, who once had USC on his short list, decommits from Ohio State

Is #USC now the favorite to land Arizona high school star Dylan Raiola? @Ducks_Wire is interested in the answer, but @CornhuskersWire has reason to feel optimistic.

Recruiting might be the most interesting thing in college football this week, given that the two Pac-12 bowl games this past Saturday were complete snoozefest blowouts.

Ducks Wire is following the twists and turns of Oregon recruiting, and the soap-operatic developments in Eugene.

Ducks Wire notes that Dylan Raiola, the No. 1-rated quarterback in the Class of 2024, has decommitted from Ohio State.

“While endless drama currently surrounds the Oregon Ducks and the quarterback position, specifically, when it comes to 5-star QB Dante Moore and his potential flip to UCLA, a new answer might have just become available,” Ducks Wire wrote.

“Dylan Raiola, the No. 1 ranked QB and No. 1 overall player in the 2024 class, announced on Saturday that he would decommit from the Ohio State Buckeyes, reopening his recruitment. Raiola, a Chandler, Arizona native, has been committed to Ohio State since May of 2022.

“This is an interesting thing to note for Oregon, with Raiola considering the Ducks before committing to Ohio State. According to Raiola’s father, ‘everything is back on the table,’ per 247Sports’ Steve Wilftong. 

“That means that while Oregon may be in serious danger of losing their 2023 QB, there is still a chance that they could be in the picture to land the No. 1 QB in next year’s cycle. Wiltfong reported on a 247Sports message board after the decommitment that the Ducks were recently on an in-school visit for Raiola, and should be considered a contender going forward.”

Is Dylan Raiola now likely to choose USC? The Trojans were, along with Oregon, one of the schools Raiola had considered before he committed to Ohio State.

The answer: no.

Cornhuskers Wire provides these details:

“The top player in the 2024 recruiting class with family ties to Nebraska Football has announced that he had decommitted from Ohio State. Quarterback Dylan Riola of Chandler, Arizona, made the announcement on Saturday after announcing his commitment to the Buckeyes back in May,” Cornhuskers Wire wrote.

“Dylan Raiola is the son of former Husker offensive lineman Dominic Raiola. Dominic played in Lincoln from 1998-2000, was a consensus All-American in 2000, and has had his Number 54 jersey retired by the school. Donavan Raiola is the Husker offensive line coach and was one of the few members of the previous staff to be retained by new head coach  Matt Rhule.”

USC is likely to face Dylan Raiola in the Big Ten … but not at Ohio State.

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Five-star pass rusher, USC target Matayo Uiagalelei is down to 3 schools

Matayo Uiagalelei has narrowed his list to three schools. #USC is one of them. Another #Pac12 school is also in the hunt.

The USC Trojans are in the mix for one of the highest-profile recruits in the 2023 class. He’s from Southern California, which should help out the Trojans with his decsion. Five-star defensive end Matayo Uiagalelei announcing the final three schools in his recruitment.

USC target and Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco ATH Matayo Uiagalelei has cut his list to three schools: Oregon, USC and Ohio State. He is set for a signing day decision.

Matayo Uiagalelei is ranked the No. 28 player in the nation in the 247Sports Composite.  He’s a two-way player who would be a top-five player at his position as an edge rusher and a tight end, but is being recruited primarily as an defensive end/pass rusher. 

His brother is another former five-star player, quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, who recently entered the transfer portal and is looking to leave the Clemson Tigers. Some have speculated that D.J. could land at UCLA. It will be interesting to see if that story and the N.I.L space have a huge impact on where Matayo Uiagalelei lands in 2023.

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Recruits loved watching USC defeat Notre Dame in the Coliseum

#USC football could not have made a better, more positive impression on the many recruits who were inside the Coliseum for the Notre Dame game.

You don’t have to be a rocket scientist or a brain surgeon to realize that by beating Notre Dame 38-27, the USC Trojans made a very positive impression on the many recruits who came to the Los Angeles Coliseum for Saturday night’s big game.

The Trojans were playing the Fighting Irish in one of college football’s best rivalries, also the sport’s greatest intersectional rivalry. This was the first meeting between Lincoln Riley and Marcus Freeman, two coaches under 40 years old with bright futures ahead of them. They will be engaged in turf battles for recruiting. Riley won this round on the field.

He is bound to make significant gains in recruiting as a result of this win. Just look at how various prospects and their families reacted to their weekend in the Coliseum:

USC men’s basketball lands Isaiah Collier, nation’s No. 1 recruit

Nov. 15: @USCWBB lands nation’s No. 1 recruit, Juju Watkins.
Nov. 16: @USC_Hoops lands nation’s No. 1 recruit, Isaiah Collier.

What an amazing 30 hours for USC basketball — not men’s basketball, not women’s basketball, but both hoops programs at USC.

On Tuesday, the women’s basketball program and head coach Lindsay Gottlieb secured the commitment of Juju Watkins, the nation’s top-ranked recruit, who grew up just a few miles from the USC campus.

On Wednesday, the men’s basketball program and head coach Andy Enfield secured the commitment of Isaiah Collier, the nation’s top-ranked recruit.

What an amazing double achievement for the Women and Men of Troy. Game-changing basketball players choosing USC on consecutive days rates as a memorable occasion … and if these programs significantly grow as a result of what we have just seen, these two days will become far more memorable in the course of time.

Here is national reaction to the successful Collier recruitment by Andy Enfield and his staff:

Nation’s No. 1-ranked linebacker decommits from Texas A&M; USC is in the hunt

The decommitment of linebacker Anthony Hill from Texas A&M presumably puts #USC and Lincoln Riley in play for the 5-star prospect.

If you regularly read Trojans Wire, first of all: Thank you. Second, if you read our site regularly, you would know that we mentioned the distinct possibility that Lincoln Riley and USC can fatten up on a likely parade of Texas A&M transfers.

Texas A&M lost to Florida this past weekend to fall to 3-6. The Aggies are unlikely to make a bowl game, which means that freshmen on the team (and other classes as well) won’t have to attend bowl practice sessions in December. This certainly makes it easier for them to transfer out of the program sooner rather than later.

Now, however, we have a non-transfer situation in recruiting. A high-profile linebacker just decommitted from Texas A&M.

We’ll fill you in on the details:

4-Star 2024 Long Beach Poly LB Dylan Williams decommits from USC

One has to wonder if USC’s loss to Utah had any role in shaping this decision.

Long Beach Poly (CA) linebacker Dylan Williams decommitted from new head coach Lincoln Riley and the USC Trojans in an announcement on social media on Tuesday.

The 6-foot-2, 200-pound linebacker is rated the nation’s No. 143 overall prospect and No. 11 outside linebacker in the 2024 class.

USC’s 2024 class consists of three pledges: Calabasas four-star cornerback Aaron Butler, Lakeridge (Oregon) four-star tight end Joey Olsen and Long Beach Poly four-star wide receiver Jason Robinson.

Williams still has the Trojans at the top of his list, but other Power Five schools are now back in the mix, including Texas, UCLA, Florida State, Miami (FL), Washington, and Michigan State.

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USC basketball wins major recruitment battle, sets the stage for program-changing moment

#USC and Andy Enfield landed a 4-star big man. That’s obviously huge … but the other part of this story is that it could lead to a far bigger recruiting win.

This is not hyperbole. This is not exaggeration. This is not embellishment. USC basketball has set itself up for a true program-changing moment. The Trojans need to win high-end recruiting battles and give themselves the pieces needed to compete for Final Fours, not just Sweet 16s.

USC has landed one very good recruit, which is a great thing in and of itself, but the real story behind the successful pull of four-star big man Arrinten Page is that it puts the Trojans in position to land the really big fish on the recruiting trail, the guy Andy Enfield has coveted as the centerpiece of his 2023 recruiting class and his push to make USC a national contender next season.

We will break down that story below:

USC 2023 target R.J. Jones is the X-factor for Bosco against Mater Dei

.@DonJamesSports examines some of the key players who will decide the outcome of the 1-vs-2 Bosco-Mater Dei main event.

There are many USC-related storylines in the upcoming high school showdown between St. John Bosco and Mater Dei. R.J. Jones is connected to a few of them.

R.J. Jones is a 6-foot-1, 193-pound free safety from Mission Hills, Calif., who starts in the secondary of the No. 1 high school team in the nation, St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.).

He has offers from USC, Oregon, Louisville, Arkansas, Washington, BYU, and UCLA. He was previously committed to play with Cal, but he changed his decision on August 18 before the season started.

According to On.3Sports, the USC Trojans are at the top of his list.

He stated that Cal is still very much in consideration for his final decision, and mentioned USC, UCLA, Washington, Oregon State, and Louisville as programs that have been the most active in his recruitment.

“The culture there I would say that they’ve built since before I was even born has never changed,” he said of the Trojans. “Donte Williams, he’s been recruiting me since my freshman year when he was back at Oregon. Him being from the LA area — he’s a real close guy, he’s a real cool guy and I love love Donte.”

Jones plays as a free safety for the Bosco Braves. In their defensive scheme this primarily places him as the single-high safety responsible for locking down the deep middle of the field.

Jones is currently ranked as the No. 90 prospect in the country for the class of 2023, according to @247Sports 

Look for the strong safety next to Jones, Ty Lee — who has over 22 offers including UCLA and Louisville — to also be a central key to beating Mater Dei Friday night in the highly anticipated No. 1 vs No. 2 matchup in the Santa Ana Bowl.

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