USC QB Target Tate Martell De-Commits from Washington

Perhaps the next quarterback wunderkind, four-star 2017 recruit Tate Martell is back on the market.

The high school sophomore out of Bishop Gorman in Las Vegas de-committed from the Washington Huskies on Monday night according to Rivals’ Adam Gorney. He now becomes a major target for Steve Sarkisian at USC.

Martell originally committed to Washington as an eighth-grader back in 2012 while Sarkisian was the head coach, in a move that at the time was compared to Lane Kiffin’s courting of David Sills.

But despite being yet another Steve Clarkson protégé, he’s not struggled to improve at the high school level like Sills.

Martell earned Gatorade Player of the Year honors in 2014, while leading Bishop Gorman to a perfect 15-0 record that made them the No. 2 team in the nation by MaxPreps. He threw for 2,537 yards with a downright absurd 40 to 2 touchdowns to interceptions ratio.

Even with a wealth amount of talent around him like five-star UCLA tight end commit Alize Jones and Snoop Dogg’s son, four-star receiver Cordell Broadus, Martell’s performance as a sophomore was well beyond his years.

More from Reign of Troy

• USC football adds Xavion Alford as transfer from Texas
• USC Podcast: RoT Radio Ep. 396 on the Football Season’s Fallout
• Talanoa Hufanga named Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year, USC football with five first-teamers
• Talanoa Hufanga is officially and rightly an All-American for USC football
• Five things USC football can do to increase optimism for 2021

Standing at just 5-foot-11, he still has some room to grow, but boasts a powerful arm and quick, improvisational mobility that draw comparisons to Johnny Manziel.

That’s not a mold that has traditionally come to USC. But a true dual-threat quarterback is the future of the Trojans’ program under Sarkisian, as has been seen in recruiting.

In the 2014 class, the Trojans signed three-star dual-threat quarterback Jalen Greene out of Serra, followed by the current commitment of four-star Sam Darnold for the 2015 class.

Moving forward, 2016 has a pair of athletic quarterbacks that USC has offered scholarships to: Shea Patterson out of Shreveport, La. and Santa Margarita’s K.J. Costello.

Considering that Sarkisian’s not been shy to overstock at quarterback dating back to his time at Washington, the Trojans figure to continue to recruit Martell and company concurrently.

As of now, USC does not have any quarterback commitments other the 2015 class’s Ricky Town and the aforementioned Darnold.

Watch Martell’s sophomore highlights: