USC Football Recruiting 2012: Commitments, Targets and Predictions

The Trojans suffered some heartbreak last month, two fold. First, they lost the commitment of 5-Star DE Arik Armstead, and then suffered triple-overtime heartache versus Stanford last week.

Be that as it may, you have to commend Kiffin and Co. for their recruiting efforts, especially on the trail vs. some tight scholarship sanctions. For this read, I'm just going to give you some previews and updates on how the Trojans are doing in recruiting this year.

Cue "Conquest."

USC 2012 Recruiting Class Capsule

USC may not have a lot of commitments, but I have their class nestled in at about No. 15 overall in my recruiting class rankings right now.  You can see they are aiming for good quality with each recruit they'll sign from here on out. They have to due to the sanctions.

The Trojans have 10 commitments, and three of them are inside the ESPNU 150.  

Standouts include Jordan Simmons, Jabari Ruffin, Max Tuerk, Scott Starr and Jalen Cope-Fitzpatrick among others..

Trojans Working on Getting Armstead Back

Arik Armstead, considered the top overall recruit by Scout.com, committed to USC as a junior. Things seemed almost set in stone, as he was sold on the Trojans with his brother Armond on the team and SC allowing him to play DE as he wished.

However, last month, Armstead announced he was de-committing from USC and looking at Notre Dame, Alabama, Michigan, Cal and a few others.

He is still in good standing with the Trojan coaches and speaks with them regularly. So, USC is going to have to re-recruit Armstead hard and re-sell him on why playing in Troy is best for him.

Key Commitment: Jabari Ruffin, LB

Ruffin has the makings of a strong side or "Sam" LB, as the 6'3", 230-pounder has solid athleticism, play size and instincts. Ruffin shows the potential to be able to take on blocks, pop a blocker, shed and fly to the ball carrier.

What's also cool to see is that Ruffin shows the ability to perhaps play the "WILL" and TE.

He also shows the agility to carry a tight end underneath and intermediately in the passing game as well. He's a prospect I'm going to definitely follow in college.

Rogers Taking Other Visits

Carson (CA) WR Darreus Rogers is another prospect that pledged to USC as a junior and looked solid. Now, he has said he is a soft verbal to USC and is looking around.

Miami, Arizona State, SMU and Hawaii are the other four schools that will get visits from Rogers. Stay tuned Trojan fans because I would not be shocked if Rogers realized playmakers George Farmer, Marquise Lee, Kyle Prater, Victor Blackwell and of course the electric Robert Woods are ahead of him and flees the coupe. 

Silenty Scored Jordan Simmons Months Ago

The Trojans got a commitment awhile ago from 4-star OL Jordan Simmons. Simmons just didn't tell anoyone for a long time, until a few weeks ago.

6'5", 340-pounds, Simmons has the skill set of a prime time OG that can play some OT, and even OC in a pinch. He's a solid athlete in the short area, flashes quick feet and can lean on DLs pretty well.

Big time get for the Trojans as stocking up OL is always a prime goal on the recruiting trail.

Speaking of OL Recruiting...

There are many that follow the program who feel OT Kyle Murphy is the biggest target out there for USC. Many compare him to current LT Matt Kalil, and OL is a priority for the Trojans.

Murphy has a list of prospects that include Stanford, Oregon, Florida and Cal, so the Trojans have some steep competition for him. However, Murphy is a SoCal native and staying close to home, academics and quality of the people at a university are his biggest must-haves.

Sounds good for USC, but we'll see.

Nelson Agholor

Agholor is a bit of a mystery. The 6'2", 180-pounder is considered the most athletic player in the country and can play WR, CB, RB, S and KR/PR for a team.

Agholor has USC on his list, but there's also Florida, Notre Dame, Texas, Florida State and many more. The Trojans have been said to have a bit of a quiet confidence with Agholor but only time will tell.

Scoring a player of his athletic caliber, all the way from Florida, would be a huge coup.