USC Football Recruiting: Trojans' Top Commits, Targets to Watch at the Opening

Southern California's 2017 recruiting is off to a relatively slow start, with only 10 players committed as we near the end of June. But the Trojans are in hot pursuit of some of the nation's top prospects, many of whom will be on display at Nike's The Opening competition next week in Oregon.

A pair of committed players are among those USC will be keeping close tabs on in Beaverton, along with a handful of unattached recruits it hopes to bring to Los Angeles for the 2017 season.

Here's our look at who the Trojans are most interested in from The Opening.

Bubba Bolden

Credit: 247Sports

Position: Safety

Height, weight: 6'3", 190 lbs

Ranking: 173rd

Recruitment status: Committed to USC

Bubba Bolden has been pledged to the Trojans since December, but he continues to draw interest from other schools interested in picking up a long and rangy defensive back capable of handling both pass coverage and stopping the run. Since February, he's picked up offers from Boise State, Tennessee and Texas A&M, and he told 247Sports' Barton Simmons he'll make an official visit to rival UCLA at some point.

"It's a great program with great coaches that could possibly be a good fit for me," Bolden told 247Sports.

A Las Vegas product, Bolden plays exclusively on defense at Bishop Gorman High School but has shown off his receiving skills during seven-on-seven competitions. That could bode well for USC if it wanted to make him the next Adoree' Jackson, another multithreat whose primary responsibility is in the secondary.

Baron Browning

Credit: 247Sports

Position: Linebacker

Height, weight: 6'3", 230 lbs

Ranking: 8th

Recruitment status: Uncommitted

Baron Browning was previously committed to Baylor, but he backed out of that pledge in February and since then has released a top 10 that doubles as a who's who of college football prominence. USC made the cut, one of two Pac-12 schools along with UCLA, but the Trojans might be fighting an uphill battle for this Texas product.

Texas is the leader based on 247Sports' Crystal Ball predictions, but there's a long way to go before Browning will make a decision. He made visits to Ohio State, Notre Dame and Michigan in the past month and is scheduled to check out OSU again after The Opening.

If football doesn't work out for this chiseled star, he has a backup sport to turn to: bowling. According to Campus Insiders, at one point Browning thought that would be how he'd get to college.

Stephen Carr

Credit: 247Sports

Position: Running back

Height, weight: 6'0", 202 lbs

Ranking: 21st

Recruitment status: Committed to USC

The first 2017 commitment USC landed more than 15 months ago, Stephen Carr hasn't let up in his development since making that pledge. If anything, he's continued to rise, now sitting as the No. 3 running back prospect and sixth-best California player in his class.

Not surprisingly, that's led to numerous additional offers and near-constant wooing from big-time programs, with recent visits to Miami (Florida) and Michigan part of his spring. Though he remains firm to his commitment, it's not set in stone, he told 247Sports' Nate Adelson.

"If I said how to do it, then it's too easy for schools to persuade me," Carr said. "I would rather let things play out and see if somebody snags my interest instead of me just giving out the answer. If a school can figure that out on their own, that means they understand me pretty well."

Najee Harris

Credit: 247Sports

Position: Running back

Height, weight: 6'3", 226 lbs

Ranking: 1st

Recruitment status: Committed to Alabama

Stealing a player away from Alabama is a tall task, but Najee Harris looks like he's worth the effort. It helps that he's from California, and thus USC has a shot to check in on him on a regular basis as well as get him out to camps whenever possible.

Harris, from Antioch, California, was recently in attendance at USC's Rising Stars camp June 22. He was joined by 5-star offensive tackle Alex Leatherwood, another Alabama commit the Trojans wouldn't mind flipping.

Everyone wants Harris, and he appears willing to let them all make a pitch. Since April, he's visited Washington, Ohio State and Auburn.

Joseph Lewis

Credit: 247Sports

Position: Wide receiver

Height, weight: 6'1 ½", 207 lbs

Ranking: 11th

Recruitment status: Uncommitted

USC tends to get right of first refusal on big-time wide receivers from the Los Angeles area, with most of its current pass-catching targets (De'Quan Hampton, Steven Mitchell Jr., JuJu Smith-Schuster, etc.) hailing from the region. That doesn't mean the Trojans are a lock to get Joseph Lewis, the nation's No. 2 overall receiver and fourth-best California prospect, but it helps their cause.

Lewis has offers from 33 schools, with Nebraska possibly the biggest challenge. The Cornhuskers have commitments from a pair of L.A.-area prospects and recently held a satellite camp at Lewis' Hawkins High School.

With Mitchell, Smith-Schuster and two-way star Adoree' Jackson all heading into their junior years, USC is putting a premium on recruiting wideouts for 2017. In that respect, Lewis is its top target.

Tyjon Lindsey

Credit: 247Sports

Position: Wide receiver

Height, weight: 5'8 ½", 180 lbs

Ranking: 28th

Recruitment status: Uncommitted

USC is in the top nine for this small-but-explosive skill player, but the Trojans may be lacking the key thing they need to land Tyjon Lindsey: his best friend.

Lindsey and Tate Martell, the nation's top-rated dual-threat quarterback and a recent Ohio State commit, have been close for years. They played together in both California and Las Vegas, with Martell's parents becoming Lindsey's legal guardians (per USA Today), though Lindsey has transferred back to the Los Angeles area to play his senior year at Corona's Centennial High School.

They'll be teammates again at The Opening, both part of the Alpha Pro squad and thus remain linked. With Martell heading for OSU, that might knock USC out of the running for Lindsey.

Greg Rogers

Credit: 247Sports

Position: Defensive tackle

Height, weight: 6'3", 305 lbs

Ranking: 86th

Recruitment status: Uncommitted

USC only signed one defensive tackle in the 2016 class and has yet to earn a commitment from a defensive lineman in 2017, making the push to land Greg Rogers critical for its future plans. The Trojans would be getting a productive one in Rogers, who as a junior at Arbor View High School in Las Vegas was credited with six sacks and 17 tackles for loss.

Part of his top six, along with Arizona State, Colorado, Michigan, Oklahoma and UCLA, Rogers told Rivals.com that USC was his "dream school" but that he remains wide open. He's developed a strong relationship with USC defensive line coach Kenechi Udeze, which could be the deciding factor.

Chase Young

Credit: 247Sports

Position: Defensive end

Height, weight: 6'5", 225 lbs

Ranking: 32nd

Recruitment status: Uncommitted

Though USC has the ability to recruit nationally, when it comes to players from the eastern half of the country, the Trojans are usually most interested in those from the South. That's changed with Chase Young, a Maryland resident who is the third-rated weak-side defensive end in 2017.

Though he'll be out that way shortly for The Opening, Young told Scout.com's Brian Dohn he isn't likely to get to USC until he starts making official visits in the fall and winter. That will make any contact he has with the Trojans in Oregon critical to their chances of bringing him in.

"The culture of football is way different there," Young said. "It's more passing and more finesse, and me as a finesse pass-rusher, it would be good for me. I like to get after the quarterback."

All recruiting information courtesy of 247Sports unless otherwise noted. All statistics provided by CFBStats unless otherwise noted.

Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.