USC freshman phenom Zachariah Branch has been named to the ESPN mid-seaason All-America team.
He has missed time this season, not playing against Colorado or Arizona, but Branch still did enough through USC’s first seven games to land a spot on ESPN’s midseason All-America team on Tuesday. Branch was the top return man on the team for ESPN Chris Low, who wrote the following:
“After missing two games with an injury, Branch returned to the lineup for USC’s 48-20 loss at Notre Dame. In his first four games, the true freshman returned both a kickoff and a punt for touchdowns. He’s averaging more than 24 yards a return on both punts and kickoffs. Branch, who also has two receiving touchdowns this season, didn’t score against Notre Dame but did have a 60-yard punt return.”
In five games this season, Branch has 15 receptions for 195 yards and two scores, five carries for 48 yards, 244 punt return yards, and 217 kick return yards. He’s averaging 18.1 yards a touch.
As a junior, he helped Bishop Gorman get to the Nevada 5A state championship game. He collected 1,094 yards on 48 receptions with 14 TDs. He also returned two punts for TDs. Branch was named the 2021 MaxPreps Nevada Player of the Year.
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