USC lands elite 2027 prospect in comeback fashion after being projected to come in second place for the four-star recruit behind Ohio State

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USC lands elite 2027 prospect in comeback fashion after being projected to come in second place for the four-star recruit behind Ohio State
USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley lands elite 2027 recruit edge rusher mekai brown
Nov 29, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley celebrates with fans after the game against the UCLA Bruins at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The USC Trojans landed one of the best recruits in the entire 2027 class, only pushing them higher up the rankings.

The USC Trojans are not yet out of the fight for finishing the 2027 recruiting cycle with the best class in the country. Right now, it's a five-horse race between USC, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, and Ohio State. They should be moving up now after some recent news.

USC Trojans land commitment from 2027 EDGE Mekai Brown

Mekai Brown, a 2027 edge rusher from Connecticut, recently put the Trojans in his top five, not long after USC just landed a big-time commitment from Javon Vital, a three-star RB who most think will be a four-star by the time he gets on campus. Now, they have landed Brown, after what seemed like they would come in second or even third place.

He's a top-30 player in the country. Brown is currently a four-star, but is projected to be a five-star at some point. Brown had interest from just about every elite school in the country. It seemed like the Trojans would be at a bigger disadvantage than those other schools, considering they are quite literally across the country. But that didn't stop him from visiting other schools.

"I've been getting out and seeing a lot of schools, Brown told Rivals. "That's helped me figure out what I like and what fits me. Those visits have given me a clearer picture of what each program is about. I'm paying attention to how the coaches are, how they develop players, and the culture around the program. That's what stands out when you're there."

Brown has taken a ton of visits so far, with Rutgers leading with 4. However, they are a school that is close to his home state. Then Penn State and Boston College follow, showing that the closer schools to his area had a slight advantage. The Trojans were in his top five, along with Texas A&M, Notre Dame, Ole Miss, and Ohio State. Of those schools, Rivals had OSU as the favorite, with USC having the second-best odds to land the 6'6, 240-pound edge. The Trojans, in a way, made a comeback for the commitment.

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