USC Football’s Tommie Robinson, Kenechi Udeze Among Top 2017 Recruiters

USC football running backs coach Tommie Robinson and defensive line coach Kenechi Udeze were named among the top recruiters in the country for 2017.

Every year, recruiting services who spend the year evaluating players also turn their eye to the coaches who try to land those players.

When the dust had settled on Signing Day, USC’s Tommie Robinson and Kenechi Udeze, and others, were recognized among the top recruiters in the country and the Pac-12 by Rivals and 247Sports.

Rivals named Udeze in their Top 25 recruiters nationally, crediting him for picking up elite defensive line prospects like Jay Tufele and Marlon Tuipulotu.

247Sports also praised Udeze, but gave even higher marks to Robinson, who checked in as their No. 2 recruiter in the country behind only Michigan’s Chris Partridge.

Robinson was acknowledged as the primary recruiter for five-star running back Stephen Carr, as well as four-star talents like tackle Austin Jackson, safeties Bubba Bolden and Isaiah Pola-Mao, and linebacker Levi Jones. They also list him as the secondary recruiter for three-star athlete Randal Grimes and three-star defensive end Terrance Lang.

How good were USC’s recruiters in 2017? Three of the top four recruiters in the Pac-12 this year were Trojans, per 247Sports.

Robinson took the No. 1 spot in the conference while offensive coordinator Tee Martin finished No. 3 and Udeze finished No. 4.

Martin, who ranked 12th nationally, got primary recruiter wins on five-star receiver Joseph Lewis and four-star athlete Greg Johnson out of Hawkins, plus Grimes, four-star tackle Alijah Vera-Tucker and three-star tackle Jalen McKenzie.

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His secondary recruiter marks include four-star quarterback Jack Sears, four-star predator Hunter Echols and three-star defensive end Jacob Lichtenstein.

Diving deeper into Udeze’s recruiting, 247Sports gave him primary recruiter credit for Tufele, Tuipulotu, Echols, Lichtenstein and Lang, as well as secondary points for three-star Defensive tackle Brandon Pili. He ranked 13th in the country.

Other USC coaches who rated highly among Pac-12 recruiters include No. 16 Johnny Nansen, the outsider linerbacker coach who is a major presence for the Trojans in the Polynesian community; No. 18 Neil Callaway, USC’s offensive line coach; No. 22 John Baxter, who landed four-star tight end Josh Falo among others; and No. 24 Ronnie Bradford, USC defensive backs coach.