USC continues dominant run of in-state recruiting with latest blue-chip pickup

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Prior to last year, Lincoln Riley and his staff at USC didn’t see recruiting California as a huge priority; it showed in the Trojans’ classes.

A switch flipped prior to the beginning of the 2026 class, and keeping top talent at home became a massive point of emphasis. Twenty of the Trojans’ 35 signees hailed from the state of California, and of the state’s more than 40 blue-chip prospects, 10 signed with USC. The previous cycle, it was only five.

Keeping the top local players inside the state’s borders is an even bigger priority in 2027; USC has pledges from seven of the state’s top 16 prospects before the month of May is out.

Two of those came this month alone, with four-star safety Gavin Williams becoming the latest on Sunday afternoon.

“I wanted to stay home, that was one of the biggest reasons why I chose SC,” Williams told Rivals’ Greg Biggins. “I really feel like USC is building something special with the class they had last year and this year and I’m excited to be a part of that. I had been leaning to USC for the last couple of weeks but I 100% locked it in and knew I wanted be a Trojan after they all came down to my Showcase. When I saw them all show up in the helicopter, that was major love and it just felt.”

May commits add to in-state haul

He joins a loaded in-state defensive back group that also includes five-star athlete Honor Fa’alave-Johnson (Cathedral Catholic) and four-star Danny Lang (Mater Dei), as well as four-star Aaryn Washington, who is originally from the Golden State but currently plays at Florida’s IMG Academy.

With him and four-star defensive lineman Alifeleti Tuihalamaka — the other May addition — the Trojans have a strong hold on the nation’s No. 4 recruiting class. Nine of those 14 commitments are blue-chip prospects with the other five all ranked as mid-to-high three-stars. After taking a massive 35-man class last year, there likely won’t be many more additions this cycle for the Trojans.

Because of that, they likely won’t be in contention for the nation’s No. 1 class, but it will no doubt be among the best pound-for-pound in the country.

USC Trojans commitments by position

Find USC’s full 2027 recruiting class below, broken down by position:

Running back
Three-star Javon Vital, No. 501 NATL. (No. 40 RB)

Wide receiver
Four-star Quentin Hale, No. 62 NATL. (No. 12 WR)
Four-star Eli Woodard, No. 168 NATL. (No. 24 WR)
Three-star Roye Oliver, No. 426 NATL. (No. 60 WR)

Tight end
Three-star Jace Cannon, No. 506 NATL. (No. 29 TE)

Offensive tackle
Four-star Drew Fielder, No. 120 NATL. (No. 11 OT)

Edge
Four-star Mekai Brown, No. 33 NATL. (No. 6 EDGE)

Defensive line
Four-star Alifeleti Tuihalamaka, No. 167 NATL. (No. 19 DL)
Three-star Isaia Vandermade, No. 631 NATL. (No. 60 DL)

Linebacker
Three-star Josiah Poyer, No. 622 NATL. (No. 53 LB)

Cornerback
Four-star Danny Lang, No. 70 NATL. (No. 10 CB)
Four-star Aaryn Washington, No. 94 NATL. (No. 13 CB)

Safety
Four-star Gavin Williams, No. 129 NATL. (No. 9 SAF)

Athlete
Five-star Honor Fa’alave-Johnson, No. 18 NATL. (No. 1 ATH)

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