College Football's Most Important Offers of the Week

Many schools around the country visit the state of Florida in hopes of finding talent to supplement their rosters with. 

One program that has frequented the Sunshine State with a decent amount of success is the USC Trojans.

Head coach Clay Helton and his staff are hoping to find more talent from Florida in the 2017 cycle.

Last week, the Trojans offered a pair of defensive standouts in 4-star linebacker VanDarius Cowan and 4-star safety Daniel Wright. 

Cowan, who is committed to Florida State, is the nation’s No. 5 outside linebacker and the No. 78 player overall in the 2017 class.

The 6’0”, 170-pound Wright—who holds more than 30 offers—rates as the country’s No. 8 safety and No. 102 player overall in the current cycle.

Last month at the Miami Opening Regional, Cowan spoke on the strength of his commitment to the Seminoles.

“I’m 80 percent committed. I just keep the other 20 percent open to other schools,” Cowan said.

Meanwhile, Wright has FSU among his group of early leaders, but he doesn’t plan on making a decision until after his senior season at the earliest.

If the Trojans can find a way to get either Sunshine State defender on campus, they could once again become a factor in the state of Florida in the 2017 cycle.

Georgia Offers Ohio DB

John Bazemore/Associated Press

While it’s commonplace for Big Ten schools to recruit in the SEC’s backyard, it’s more of a rare occurrence for the reverse scenario to unfold.

Last week, SEC power Georgia looked to the state of Ohio to offer 4-star corner Amir Riep.

The 6’0”, 180-pounder—who rates as the nation’s No. 14 corner and the No. 131 player overall in 2017—from Colerain High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, has collected 40 offers.

The offer comes on the heels of Riep visiting Athens. If he schedules a return visit, the Bulldogs could become a major contender in the race for his services.

Clemson After New Jersey ATH

Lynne Sladky/Associated Press

After its race to the national championship game, Clemson is building momentum nationally with top recruits in the 2017 class.

Last week, the Tigers hit the state of New Jersey to offer 3-star athlete Markquese Bell.

According to Cory Fravel of 247Sports, the Tigers offered Bell—who also landed an offer from fellow ACC program Pittsburgh last week—as a safety.

Bell has 16 offers to date, with Michigan—who hosted him on an unofficial visit last week—being one of the main contenders in his recruitment at this stage.

Penn State After Stud 2018 CB

Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press

The 2018 class is loaded with recruits who are the sons of former NFL players. One such talent is corner Houston Griffith—whose father Howard was a fullback who won a pair of Super Bowls during his stint with the Broncos.

The younger Griffith is a 6’0”, 180-pound corner who has landed offers from programs such as Michigan State, Notre Dame, Nebraska and Tennessee before his junior year.

"

Blessed to receive an offer from Penn State #WeAre pic.twitter.com/3bNAxeVBEq

— Houston Griffith (@___HG3) March 30, 2016"

Penn State is the latest powerhouse to jump in the mix for Griffith, who netted an offer from the Nittany Lions last week.

Given his size, athleticism and bloodlines, Griffith figures to become a national recruit sooner than later.

Best of the Rest

• Arkansas, Colorado and Notre Dame offered 4-star defensive end and current UCLA pledge Hunter Echols.

• Minnesota and North Carolina offered 3-star linebacker Solon Page III.

• Maryland and Tennessee offered 4-star athlete Malcolm Askew.

• Tennessee and Virginia Tech offered 3-star defensive end J’Bril Glaze.

• Woody Wommack of Rivals reports that Ohio State and USC offered 4-star corner AJ Terrell.

• Ole Miss and Texas A&M offered defensive tackle Deontre Thomas.

• Notre Dame offered 3-star linebacker Chandler Wooten.

• Florida State offered 4-star safety and current Pittsburgh pledge Paris Ford.

• Miami offered 3-star defensive end Alec Jackson.

• North Carolina offered 4-star offensive lineman Grayson Reed. The Tar Heels also offered fellow 4-star offensive lineman Walker Little.

• Purdue offered 3-star receiver Isaiah Hodgins.

• Rutgers offered 3-star offensive lineman Riley Locklear.

• Baylor offered 4-star receiver Omar Manning.

• Oklahoma offered 4-star running back Cam Akers.

• Texas Tech offered 3-star offensive lineman Xavier Newman.

• Colorado offered 3-star tight end Tre' McKitty.

• Oregon State offered athlete Tony Fields.

• Utah offered 4-star running back Eno Benjamin.

• Alabama offered 4-star safety Grant Delpit. The Crimson Tide also offered 3-star defensive end B.J. Sharpe.

• Arkansas offered offensive lineman Dwayne Fisher.

• Auburn offered 4-star receiver Jhamon Ausbon. The Tigers also offered 4-star receiver and Texas A&M pledge Mannie Netherly.

• Georgia offered receiver Austin Connor.

• LSU offered 3-star receiver Tyrell Shavers.

• Mississippi State offered 3-star offensive lineman and current Florida pledge Kadeem Telfort.

• Baylor and Mississippi State offered corner Verone McKinley III.

• Tennessee and USC offered corner Marcus Johnson.

• Clemson offered safety Anthony Lytton.

• Florida State offered athlete Tre Turner.

• Keith Niebuhr of AuburnUndercover reported that Louisville offered quarterback Jarren Williams.

• North Carolina offered athlete BJ Foster.

• NC State offered offensive lineman Reuben Unije.

• Nebraska offered athlete Kalon Gervin.

• Ohio State offered defensive tackle PJ Mustipher.

• Penn State offered offensive lineman Chris Bleich.

• Rutgers offered athlete Iverson Clement.

• West Virginia offered quarterback Emory Jones.

• USC offered defensive end Adam Plant.

• Washington offered linebacker Palaie Gaoteote.

• Washington State offered receiver Chase Cota.

• Alabama offered offensive lineman Christian Armstrong. Adam Friedman of Rivals reported that the Crimson Tide also offered quarterback Phil Jurkovec.

• Florida offered defensive end Stephon Wynn.

• Georgia offered tight end Mustapha Muhammad.

• Syracuse and Tennessee offered defensive end Jonathan Kingsley.

• Alabama offered athlete Trey Sanders.

• South Carolina offered receiver Jashawn Sheffield.

• Florida State offered quarterback Drew Pyne.

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

Follow @SanjayKirpalani