The loss of Pete Carroll as head coach of the Trojans has affected this years class but not to the extent that it was feared prior to the announcement of Lane Kiffin as the new head man of USC.

In fact, now that Kiffin has taken over for Carroll, the Trojans find themselves squarely in the sights of several highly rated prospects who were not seriously considering the Trojans just three weeks ago.

Demar Dorsey, who recently backed off of his verbal commitment to Florida and was part of the ten recruits who visited the Trojans this past weekend, now has USC high on his list although Florida State will be hard to overtake for the services of this talented athlete.

Chaz Green, the mammoth offensive lineman from Tampa, Fl. was also a last minute push of the Trojans and was heavily recruited by Kiffin when he was at Tennessee. The Trojans and Florida will vie for this talented prep player. Green goes to the top of the Trojan wish list if Seantrel Henderson opts for someone other than USC.

Nickel Robey, the very talented corner back from Georgia also was part of this last weekends troop of visitors and rated his trip to the land of the Trojans as a “10.” Robey said that the trip was motivated by the hiring of Kiffin, whom he said he could ” definitely see playing for.” … [visit site to read more]

Laying the Foundation: USC Football Recruiting in 2009-10 (what We Know) - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site

Would there be a backlash from the verbal commitments who have already pledged to USC? What about those who were considering the Trojans but have yet to decide? Would they still cross USC off of their list?

Ummm…no and no.

With the announcement of Lane Kiffin as USC’s head coach to replace Carroll, the response of those who had verbally committed to the Trojans, by and large, was immediate.

They are sticking with USC.

Almost all of the in-state recruits were expected to stay with the Trojans, but this was not necessarily the case with those beyond the friendly confines of the state border. … [visit site to read more]

Laying the Foundation: USC Football Recruiting in 2009—Markeith Ambles - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site

Have you read the news coming out the NFL regarding their defensive rookie of the year award?

Brian Cushing, the overall #15 pick of the Houston Texans, has just been awarded this prestigious award celebrating his 134 tackles, two forced fumbles, four interceptions and five sacks.

Cushing, a veritable tackle machine, will also find himself in the Pro bowl as well.

Wait, it gets better.

Clay Matthews, the overall #26 pick of the Green Bay Packers, finished third in that same voting by accumulating 51 tackles, one forced fumble and 10 sacks.

Matthews was one of only 13 NFL players to have 10 or more sacks in the NFL this year.

Hold on, I’m not finished yet. … [visit site to read more]

Dear Potential USC Trojan Linebacker Recruits: Read The NFL Rookie Awards - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site

Uko, a 6’4,” 297 lb. monster of a defensive tackle, is ranked as a “Five-star” recruit by … [visit site to read more]

Laying the Foundation: USC Football Recruiting in 2009 (George Uko) - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site

Titled, “Laying the Foundation,” these articles are my effort to follow the progress of the Trojans as they vie for the best high school players in the nation.

For successful college football programs, the recruiting and signing of a talented athlete is the difference between winning and losing.

It’s that simple.

It doesn’t matter how well you coach a player or how brilliant your game plan is, without the talent to implement that coaching and utilize that game plan, it is all for nought.

So, for me, recruiting is an integral part of any successful college football program.

Of course, part of what goes into the recruiting process is finding out the mental make-up of the student-athlete you are attempting to sign.

We read stories everyday of a kid who makes a bad choice and finds themselves being kicked off a team or, God forbid, being incarcerated for that lapse of judgment.

For coaches, part of the recruiting process is also determining the values that a prospective student-athlete possesses.

It is an undeniable fact that a college football player not only represents himself while playing for a university but also the school itself.

Which brings me to the topic of the article in question. … [visit site to read more]

Reneging On a Verbal Commitment: A Microcosm of Our Eroding Values? - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site

For Jefferson, who was recruited as an athlete by many schools, Oklahoma will be his third verbal commitment, following Stanford who was dropped in favor of UCLA.

As many of you who have followed this “Laying the Foundation” series know, I don’t put a whole lot of stock into a high school student’s ability to follow through on promises made before the actual signing of a letter of intent.

Tony Jefferson is a good example of why. … [visit site to read more]

Laying the Foundation: USC Recruiting…Jefferson, Stills to Oklahoma - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site

Briggs, rated as a three-star … [visit site to read more]

Laying the Foundation: USC Recruiting in 2009 (Briggs and Martin) - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site

For example, the two premier high school recruiting services, Scout.com and Rivals.com often evaluate and rank prep talent very differently.

A good example of this would be Kyle Prater , the 6’5″ wide receiver stud from Illinois who recently confirmed that he was a “100% Trojan” come signing day.

Rivals has Prater listed as their #2 player overall, in the “Rivals 250″ list of top high school players in the nation.

Meanwhile, Scout has Prater listed as their #13 player overall (Prater has recently jumped higher in their list of evaluated players).

While this is not a glaring example of the discrepancies between prep recruiting services, it does serve to show that sometimes there is a gulf between the services and their evaluation of high school football talent.

The point is that often those assigned to rate the quality of high school athletes miss their mark and either rate some players too high or, conversely, too low. … [visit site to read more]

Laying the Foundation: USC Football Recruiting in 2009 (Scout 4 Stars) - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site

As any fan of the Trojans knows, recruiting is the foundation upon which a successful college football program rests, and in the Pete Carroll era, no one has done it better.

This year, however, marks a departure from coach Carroll’s “tried and true” methods of recruiting.

To keep from losing recruits on the Feb. 2 signing day to other programs who bad mouth the Trojans, USC has withheld offers to some recruits until later in the season.

This tactic, while understandable, has cost the Trojans some fine talent, including wide receiver Kenny Stills, a sub 4.4 guy who desperately wanted to play for the Trojans but when no offer was received, looked elsewhere.

However, yesterday, I received an updated list of recruits that USC was still in the hunt for, and I was amazed at the volume of four and five star recruits still in the Trojans line of sight.

Before, I get into that list, in which I will be highlighting the five star recruits, there is an interesting side story going on with a local stud, Tony Jefferson.

Jefferson, an ESPN top 150 recruit, ranked overall at #9, was a verbal commit of the UCLA Bruins.

The operative word in that last sentence is “was.”

… [visit site to read more]

Laying the Foundation: USC Football Recruiting, 2009; Good Times Ahead? - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site

Laying the Foundation: USC Football Recruiting in 2009 (Update: Aug. 19) - The 110 Report - The 110 Report - A Los Angeles Sports Site