USC Trojans Football: 5 Biggest Recruiting Commit Busts in Program History

The foundation for any successful college football program lay in its recruiting department and for the USC Trojans, that statement is borne out in its place as one of the premier squads in the nation.

Year after year, the Trojans recruiting brain trust has identified some of the best prep talent in the nation and then have gone out and brought them in to wear the legendary cardinal and gold.

But even the best miss sometimes and those highly regarded players who just didn't pan out will be the focus of this slide show.

While the title of this piece suggests that the following players are the "biggest busts in program history," it really is a reflection of the last 10 years when attention to recruiting has really taken off.

The players listed within were all 5-star recruits according to Scout.com, and, as such, big things were expected from them.

Unfortunately, in the case of these players, expectations far exceeded accomplishment.

So let's get started on this list of underwhelming Trojans shall we?

No. 5: Aaron Corp (Class of 2007)

Coming to USC, Orange Lutheran (Orange, CA) High School's Aaron Corp appeared to have it all.

Big (6'4", 200 lbs) and surprisingly quick (4.65 forty), Corp also had a rocket for an arm and he seemed destined for Trojan glory.

Instead, he was stuck behind Mark Sanchez in 2008 and was beaten out by true freshman Matt Barkley in 2009.

When Corp finally got his chance, he offered an uninspiring performance in a upset loss to Washington which started the ball rolling on a disappointing 9-4 season in Pete Carroll's last campaign as the Trojans head man.

Shortly after the completion of the 2009 season, Corp transferred to Richmond where he had more success against lesser competition.

No. 4: Antwine Perez (Class of 2006)

Let's be clear about this, not only was safety Antwine Perez considered a "can't miss" prospect, there were even allusions to the Camden, New Jersey product being the next Ronnie Lott.

Did I say allusion? Maybe "illusion" would be a more apt description of Perez's USC career.

Perez was a 6'2", 200 lb missile that came to the Trojans with a reputation as a ferocious hitter and good cover guy.

Instead, he was relegated to "after thought" status and after several injuries and an inordinate lack of production, he transferred to Maryland after the 2006 season.

No. 3: Kyle Prater (Class of 2010)

Of all of the players listed on this slide show, the inclusion of Kyle Prater was perhaps most difficult to justify.

After all, was it Prater's fault that he came behind two of the most prolific wide receivers (Robert Woods and Marqise Lee) in USC's history?

Nonetheless, the Proviso High School (Hillside, IL.) product came to the Trojans as the prototypical big (6'5", 215 lbs) receiver that USC loves.

In the final analysis though, Prater couldn't overcome a bevy of injuries and he transferred to Northwestern this year after seeing the writing on the wall regarding a future lack of playing time.

No. 2: Dillon Baxter (Class of 2010)

Sadly, the class of 2010 features two players listed in this slide show but make no mistake about it, Kyle Prater can't hold a candle to Dillon Baxter when to comes to being a prolific bust for the Trojans.

Baxter, who set a ton of records while playing for Mission High School in San Diego, Calif., electrified Trojan fans as a YouTube sensation but never got going as a Trojan after getting trouble for accepting a golf car ride from a wannabe football agent and academic and attitude woes.

After two years of unfulfilled promise, Baxter was granted his release and transferred to San Diego State where he lasted about two months before being dismissed from that program too.

No. 1: Whitney Lewis (Class of 2003)

The top spot on this list is reserved for a player that had it all but in the end, delivered nothing.

Wide receiver Whitney Lewis came to USC as one of the best players in the nation after graduating from St. Bonaventure High School in Ventura, Calif.

For those who remember, Lewis was in possession of some incredible tools.

With very good size (6'1", 209 lbs) and incredible speed (4.34 40), it was thought that it would be just a matter of time before Lewis would set the college football world on fire for the Trojans.

Instead, Lewis managed to accomplish little while at USC and would eventually transfer to Northern Iowa where he would continue his undistinguished career.

With so much talent and so little production, Whitney Lewis takes the top spot for Trojan busts over the last 10 years.

Conclusion

Unfortunately for the Trojans, the five players listed here were not the only ones whose careers at USC fell far short of expectations.

Certainly, a case could also be made for the following players to be included in this slide show:

Mitch Mustain (quarterback, class of 2006, transfer from Arkansas)

Jeff Schweiger (defensive tackle, class of 2004)

D.J. Shoemate (wide receiver/running back, class of 2008)

Josh Tatum (linebacker, class of 2006)

Still, when it comes to USC recruiting, the good recruits far outweigh the misses but it just goes to show, even the best in the business strikes out upon occasion.

Trojan fans are just glad it doesn't happen often.