Reign of Troy
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Tate Martell makes 2017 recruiting interesting and more USC football news

By Alicia de Artola

Sep 26, 2014; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Bishop Gorman Gaels quarterback Tate Martell (18) celebrates with teammates after scoring a rushing touchdown against St John Bosco during the first quarter of a game at Fertitta Field. Bishop Gorman won the game 34-31. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 26, 2014; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Bishop Gorman Gaels quarterback Tate Martell (18) celebrates with teammates after scoring a rushing touchdown against St John Bosco during the first quarter of a game at Fertitta Field. Bishop Gorman won the game 34-31. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports /
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Tate Martell’s decision to decommit from Texas A&M Wednesday night makes USC’s 2017 quarterback recruiting focus much more interesting.

Can’t get enough USC football and basketball news? We’ve got your morning dose of all the best content from around the web concerning the men of Troy.

1st & 10:

First Take… Just a couple days ago, I made a point of saying that USC’s quarterback situation was in good hands, regardless of whether or not the Trojans snagged an elite quarterback in 2017. That was straight off the back of the news that Tua Tagovailoa had become the latest highly-rated quarterback to spurn USC after the Trojans had seemingly led for his signature.

That assessment remains true, with Max Browne then Sam Darnold then one of Matt Fink or 2018 commit Matt Corrall set to keep the throne warm over the next few years.

However, Tate Martell’s decision to reopen his recruitment makes things a hell of a lot more interesting.

There’s no question that USC is determined to take a quarterback in this class. The Trojans offered four-star quarterback Jack Sears, from Darnold’s alma mater San Clemente, on Wednesday after Tagovailoa’s decision. Stanford commit Davis Mills also picked up an offer from USC last week.

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Either of those two would represent a strong pick up for the Trojans, but Martell is now the top prize once more.

For a long time before the tide turned Texas A&M’s way, Martell had been considered a USC lock. His teammate Bubba Bolden, a four-star safety, is currently committed to the Trojans and his former wide receiver target Tyjon Lindsey is also considering USC.

Complicating matters is the fact that Martell appeared to turn his eye towards USC thanks to Steve Sarkisian, whom he committed to at Washington. With Sarkisian gone and USC pursuing other (predominantly pro-style) targets, it may be too late to reel Martell back in.

Either way, as with Tagovailoa, USC can survive without Martell, but with him they would be thriving at quarterback for the foreseeable future.

And Ten USC Football and Basketball News Links…

  1. Reign of Troy: Hue Jackson and the Cleveland management insist Cody Kessler will have the chance to compete for the starting job with the Browns, but does the Trojan quarterback really have a chance? We broke down the depth chart and asked the guys over at DawgPoundDaily.com for input.
  2. Bleacher Report: Sean Tomlinson also asked the question, more specifically, “can Cody Kessler become a legitimate NFL starter?”
  3. Bleacher Report: USC is tied for fifth place in the countdown of college football programs with the most NFL players. The Trojans have 46 pros. Alabama leads all schools with 54.
  4. Athlon Sports: Kyle Kensing ranged the Top 25 Draft Prospects from the Pac-12 for 2017 and unspurprisingly JuJu Smith-Schuster topped the list with Zach Banner at No. 3, Adoree’ Jackson at No. 5, Darreus Rogers at No. 20, Justin Davis at No. 22 and Max Browne at No. 25.
  5. Bleacher Report: USC’s defensive front is one of the units with falling stock following the spring game, according to Justin Ferguson.
  6. USCFootball.com: Dan Weber wants Lynn Swann to take a look at USC’s long-term prospects from a revenue standpoint, thinking outside the box on how the Trojans could use their muscle to help shape the Pac-12 landscape.
  7. Scout: Matt Corral knew that he was going to commit as soon as he got an offer from USC, the 2018 quarterback told Brandon Huffman. He’s already working on recruiting for the Trojans.
  8. RipsIt Blog: Toa Lobendahn, Damien Mama and Viane Talamaivao answered questions about eachother in the latest iteration of the “otter pops quiz.” Spoiler: They’re not very good at it.
  9. CBS Sports: Clay Helton was ranked 51 in the first half of CBS’ coach rankings. Here’s the Top 25, featuring Rich Rodriguez at No. 24, Kyle Whittingham at No. 23, Mark Helfrich at No. 16, Chris Petersen at No. 14, Brian Kelly at No. 12 and David Shaw at No. 9.
  10. 247Sports: Helton is the No. 2 “immediate impact” head coach for 2016 as determined by Kevin Flaherty. He trails only Kirby Smart at Georgia.

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