Which College Football Team Is the Real Wide Receiver U? ‬

It’s no secret that the battles on the recruiting trail can get chippy at times, with coaches using pitches that may step on the toes of a competitor.

For example, Clemson co-offensive coordinator Jeff Scott recently posted a tweet in which he proclaimed the Tigers as the new “Wide Receiver U”—which was a dig at a school that uses a slightly different shade of orange, Tennessee.

Vols wide receivers coach Zach Azzanni took the dig in stride, making a statement of his own with his feelings on the subject. 

According to Ryan Bartow of 247Sports, the sparring began over 2016 4-star receiver Diondre Overton—who has both schools among his list of current favorites. 

While both the Tigers and the Vols have each produced a long line of talented pass-catchers, neither may be the most deserving program to claim that title.

In fact, two schools who may have a stronger argument are USC and LSU.

As ESPN.com’s David Ching notes, since 2000, the Trojans and the Tigers have a stronger resume in producing award winners, All-American or All-Conference selections and NFL draft choices at the receiver position.

Additionally, both USC and LSU have recruited at a similarly high level comparable to the groups brought in by both Clemson and Tennessee.

Since 2009, according to 247Sports Composite Rankings, USC has signed six receivers rated among the Top 10 at their position in their respective classes. LSU has signed four and have two such players currently committed in the 2016 class.

By comparison, Tennessee has signed six and Clemson five over the same period.

Scott’s biggest argument for that title could be that he’s developed a trio of studs in Sammy Watkins, DeAndre Hopkins and Martavis Bryant who have gone on to make early impacts in the NFL.

However, the other three schools have also developed their share of studs in recent years.

The Vols have produced two young and promising talents in Justin Hunter and Cordarrelle Patterson—who were both selected within the first 35 picks of the 2013 NFL draft.

USC has produced a second-round pick in each of the last two drafts with Robert Woods and Marqise Lee.

LSU sent Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry to the 2014 NFL draft, with Beckham earning the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year award in 2014, per NFL.com’s Chris Wesseling.

Given the fact that USC and LSU’s tradition is a little lengthier, and that both schools are still bringing in stud receiver recruits on a regular basis, both of those powers are more deserving of the “Wide Receiver U” crown.

While choosing between those two is a tough task, it's the Trojans that get the slight nod as "Wide Receiver U" due to their consistency in recruiting and developing elite receiver prospects over the last 15 years. 

Sanjay Kirpalani is a National Recruiting Analyst for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained firsthand and all recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports.