Hunter Echols to USC: Trojans Land 4-Star DE Prospect

Touted defensive end prospect Hunter Echols is bouncing from one Los Angeles university to another.

The 4-star recruit announced his intention to join the USC Trojans' 2017 recruiting class in a Twitter post Friday night:

Echols, the No. 98 overall prospect in 247Sports' composite rankings, was a longtime UCLA Bruins commit before pulling back from his verbal pledge July 22.

One of the fastest-rising prospects in the class, Echols had received an offer from LSU earlier in the month and landed scholarship offers from Clemson and Ole Miss after decommitting.

"When I first committed, I felt like I rushed in to it a little because UCLA was my dream school and it is where I always wanted to go," Echols said, per Greg Biggins of Scout.com. "I still wanted to take my official visits, and UCLA was always good with that, but I think it's best for me to take a step back here and make sure I'm doing the right thing."

Listed at 6'3 ½" and 231 pounds, the Cathedral High School star is the seventh-best weak-side defensive end and 14th-best prospect from California, per 247Sports.

He told Biggins about his relationship with the USC coaching staff:

"

With USC, it's not just the DL coach, Kenechi Udeze, I talk with Coach [Johnny] Nansen and Coach [Clay] Helton a lot too. Coach Helton is one of the few head coaches who has reached out and we don't even talk about football all the time, he asks me about my grades and how I'm doing in school as well as asking about my family and that means a lot. 

"

Adding Echols moves USC's 2017 recruiting class up to No. 14 in the nation, per 247Sports. He is the Trojans' fourth recruit with a 4-star rating or better, joining center Brett Neilon, offensive tackle Alijah Vera-Tucker and running back Stephen Carr. 

Meanwhile, 2017 is looking like it could become a disaster for head coach Jim Mora and UCLA. The Bruins have only six players committed and are ranked 73rd in the nation. While three of those players have given verbals in August, it's been a slow start for a program that's consistently churned out good recruiting classes under Mora.

Echols, one of the expected 2017 staples, bolting for the Bruins' crosstown rivals only makes matters worse. Even if Echols is a bit slight, his composite ranking has been rapidly rising for months, and one big senior year could get him the coveted fifth star.