USC is back - and not just in the conversation, but at the very top of the college football recruiting mountain.
When Kayden Dixon-Wyatt, a blue-chip wide receiver out of powerhouse Mater Dei in Santa Ana, California, flipped his commitment from Ohio State to USC and threw up the Trojans' iconic two-finger salute on Signing Day, it wasn’t just a big win - it was the exclamation point on a statement class. And while the drama of his last-minute decision brought some fireworks, this class didn’t come together overnight. The groundwork was laid months ago, and the vision was clear.
That vision? Build from the ground up, lean into high school recruiting, and reclaim dominance in California. And under the direction of new general manager Chad Bowden, USC executed that plan with precision.
“Everything we do is intentional,” Bowden said. “We wanted to go heavy on high school talent, especially in California. Bring in the right kids who want to be here, and retain the right guys already in the building.”
Mission accomplished.
For the first time since Miami’s 2008 class, a non-SEC program finished with the No. 1 recruiting class in the country. USC’s 2026 haul is loaded - 20 of their signees are blue-chip prospects, and they didn’t just win battles in-state. They won them nationally.
The headliner? Five-star offensive tackle Keenyi Pepe, the No. 5 overall player in the Top247 rankings.
At 6-foot-6 and 300-plus pounds, Pepe is a future anchor on the offensive line, and he's coming out of IMG Academy - a school that’s become a pipeline for elite trench talent. According to scouting director Andrew Ivins, Pepe is right in line with the best to come out of that program.
“To me, that’s a future Day 1 starter at tackle,” Ivins said. “He’s on par with the elite offensive linemen I’ve scouted over the years.”
And then there’s Dixon-Wyatt, whose flip from Ohio State gave USC 20 in-state signees - tying the program’s 2025 class for the most California high schoolers in a single cycle. That kind of in-state dominance is what built USC into a national power in the early 2000s, and it’s what they’re leaning into again.
“Top to bottom, this is a class full of future difference-makers,” Ivins added. “What really stands out is how USC has shifted away from being so reliant on the transfer portal. They’ve gone back to building from the high school ranks - and they’re owning California again.”
The momentum started back in February when four-star quarterback Jonas Williams decommitted from Oregon and chose USC instead. That move turned heads - and turned into a domino effect. Within six weeks of Williams’ announcement, seven more Top247 recruits followed.
One of the biggest surprises came at tight end, where USC landed elite prospect Mark Bowman. Georgia and Texas had been seen as frontrunners at different points, but the Trojans stayed the course and pulled off a major win.
All told, USC signed 35 players - one of the largest classes in the country. That wasn’t by accident.
“It’s all by design,” Bowden said. “We have an older roster, so we wanted to build depth through high school recruiting instead of waiting on the portal. We love the roster we have, and this was about retention and maintaining our culture.”
And while California was the focus, USC didn’t stop there. They pulled three commits out of Texas - including Top 100 defensive lineman Jaimeon Winfield and wideout Ethan Feaster - and also landed multiple players from Florida, Ohio, and Illinois. Since Lincoln Riley’s arrival from Oklahoma, USC has now signed 15 high school players from Texas, showing just how committed they are to recruiting the country’s most talent-rich states.
It’s been 20 years since USC last sat atop the recruiting rankings - back when names like Mark Sanchez, Rey Maualuga, and Brian Cushing were coming through the door. Back then, USC was a juggernaut, both on the field and on the trail.
They’re not quite back to dominating Saturdays just yet - the Trojans came up short again in their push for a College Football Playoff berth - but off the field, they’re starting to look like the blue-blood program they’ve always claimed to be.
This class? It’s more than just a collection of stars.
It’s a blueprint. A signal that USC isn’t just chasing the elite - they’re building to become it again.