USC Football Recruiting: What Jordan Payton's De-Commit Means and Other News

For the last year or so, those who follow Trojan football recruiting have scratched their heads whenever yet another touted wide receiver would pledge his services to the cardinal and gold.

Already stocked with a bevy of talented wideouts, those annoyed fans would mutter things like, "Why all of these receivers? We need offensive linemen and linebackers!"

They were right, of course.

USC does need to replenish those units, no doubt about it.

So when Jayden Mickens, Jordan Payton and Darreus Rogers, all wide receivers, gave the Trojans their verbals this year (Payton actually pledged last year), the questions began anew.

Why all the wide receivers?

Now with the Trojans appeal to reinstate some of the scholarships lost to the sanctions related to the Reggie Bush scandal denied, those three schollies are more important than ever.

But be careful for what you wish for, Trojan fans.

Because what may have been "too much" at one time might wind up being "none at all."

The Trojan recruiting department appears to have undergone a seismic shift in philosophy due to the restricted available scholarships and the new focus certainly won't include an abundance of wide receivers.

To that end, rumors have it that Jayden Mickens has been told that he likely won't receive the offer he accepted verbally earlier this year.

And Darreus Rogers, almost from the moment he pledged to the Trojans has been looking at other programs while saying at best, he was a "soft verbal."

Now news from Jordan Payton, Scout.com's No. 5 rated wide receiver, has him de-committing from USC.

According to Payton, he wanted to be fair to USC and with the scholarship reductions, didn't want to be  a hindrance to the program if he was going to sign elsewhere.

While on the surface that sounds noble, there may be other dynamics at play.

For one, it is thought that if the Trojans had to pick between Payton or Rogers to claim one of those precious scholarships, the Trojans would prefer Rogers.

Rogers may be the most dynamic receiver on the West Coast and he has dazzled in every camp he has appeared at.

Payton is now, and will be later, a great wide receiver but he is not nearly as explosive as Rogers and those rumblings from the Trojans recruiting department regarding their preference may have reached his ears so Payton decided to be proactive before he was left holding the bag scholarship-wise.

Payton said that the Trojans are still in it for his services and that he and the staff will sit down in a couple of months to talk.

Sounds like a "scholarship status" pow-wow if you ask me.

Nonetheless, when signing day comes, the Trojans may be bereft at the receiver position and this critical position, with all of the injuries associated with it, may find itself wanting for the Trojans if players get hurt in abundance.

And if the Trojans find themselves in need of wideouts in the future, there may be none for replacement.

So again, be careful what you wish for when it comes to recruits, Trojan fans.

You just might get it.

Or in this case, none at all.

Now lets take a look at some of the recent offers the Trojans have extended:

Aziz Shittu

At 6'3", 275 lbs, and quick like a cat, this defensive tackle from Atwater, CA has all of the tools needed to be a success at the next level and beyond.

Rated a 5-star prospect by Scout.com, Shittu is big enough to handle interior offensive linemen but quick enough to get around them. His versatility will allow his next coach to play him wherever needed and his technique is solid enough to support that versatility.

Shittu has tons of suitors including Florida and Michigan but at this point, Stanford is the team to beat for his services.

T.J. Neal

Though only rated a 3-star prospect by Scout.com, middle linebacker T.J. Neal will be rated much higher by the time he finishes his senior campaign.

Hailing from McKeesport, PA., the 6'1", 225 lb. Neal combines good size and excellent ball hawking skills to form a dynamic force in the middle.

Neal is holding offers from most of the top programs in the country, including Auburn and Florida and lists them all as "medium" in terms of his interest.

Earl Moore

Another 3-star prospect with tremendous upside, defensive tackle Earl Moore is intriguing on many fronts.

At 6'2", 280 lbs, Moore, who calls Tampa, FL home, uses his exceptional speed (4.85 forty-yard dash) to hound the opponents backfield with ferocity.

Moore has a dozen or so offers at this point including all of the major programs in Florida and it appears that the Seminoles are the program to beat for his services.

Bryce Cottrell

The Trojans still need linebackers and in Bryce Cottrell they think they have found a diamond in the rough. Rated a 3-star prospect by Scout.com, Cottrell has an NFL (6'3", 220 lbs) body that is ideal for an outside linebacker.

Cottrell calls Plano, TX home and has over a dozen scholarship offers in hand, including those from Arkansas and Oregon. He lists them all as medium on his dance card.

That will do it for this report.

Trojan fans will notice that among these latest offers, there is nary a wide receiver on the list.

Addressing unit needs, the linebackers and defensive tackles featured here would all look good in cardinal and gold.

Whether or not USC signs any of those profiled here is anyone's guess, but of all of them, probably Cottrell is the most likely.

In the meantime, Trojan fans will just have to patiently wait to see how this recruiting class shakes out.

But while they do, they better hope that Darreus Rogers signs on the dotted line for USC this February.

Or soon they might be complaining about the lack of wide receivers should anyone get hurt.

And wouldn't that be ironic?