USC football recruiting: Could the Trojans flip a Stanford commit?

USC football may be closing in on Stanford commit Josh Moore with an eye on flipping more than just his commitment.

Is USC football’s recruiting class going to get even bigger at the expense of a rival?

If you believe Steve Wiltfong of 247Sports, the Trojans are on track to flip Josh Moore, a three-star safety committed to Stanford.

However, USC may actually be looking at Moore for another reason having to do with his skills as a wide receiver

USC football is working on flipping safety Josh Moore

Moore is a fringe three-star prospect in the 247Sports composite, which is to say he’s on the edge of being a four-star. In fact, 247Sports themselves lists him in the four-star category. Rivals rates him as a three-star. So does ESPN.

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The 6-foot-2, 195-pounder out of Marist School in Georgia committed to Stanford back in May, but that was before USC turned their attentions his way. The Trojans offered him on Sept. 9 and now appear to be a good position to steal him away from the Cardinal.

When Moore picked up his offer from USC, Gerard Martinez of USCFootball.com raised the possibility of the Trojans looking at him as a receiver. That’s reinforced by who he tagged on Twitter when he announced his offer.

It wasn’t safeties coach Craig Naivar or cornerbacks coach Donte Williams. It was offensive coordinator Graham Harrell and receivers coach Keary Colbert.

https://twitter.com/josh_moore138/status/1303867412568305664?s=20

It makes more sense to recruit Moore as a receiver than a safety just given USC’s numbers.

The Trojans have six defensive backs already committed to the class of 2021 and four of those might end up being safeties. Meanwhile, the wide receiving corps needs more bodies. Quaydarius Davis and Michael Jackson III are committed, but USC is slated to field no more than 10 receivers next year. That’s before accounting for Amon-Ra St.  Brown’s likely NFL departure.

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The good thing is Moore has playmaking ability on offense. Barton Simmons of 247Sports called him a “quality wide receiver that shows good hands and catch-and-run athleticism.”