USC Trojans

ESPN Watch List offensive guard D.J. Foster (Lincoln, Neb./Southeast) has been laying low in recent weeks, focusing on improving as a player and taking a closer look at the options he currently has.

A player knocking on double-digit offers, Foster said he doesn’t have plans on making an immediate decision regarding his college future. Foster has offers from Florida, Georgia, Missouri, Iowa, Iowa State and Nebraska, among others, and he said other top programs are showing heavy interest.

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ATHENS, Ga. -- Outside linebacker Jacob Pugh (Tallahassee, Fla./Godby) isn’t exactly sure of how many offers he has. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound junior has not counted them. Once he had received over 30 offers to the top programs in the nation, there really seemed no point in doing so. Pugh is more concerned about the five that he has on top.

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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- For a lot of recruits, it’s all about the process. They like to take all of their visits, add new scholarship offers and take their time when it comes to making a decision. It’s almost turned into a countdown to national signing day to see where they’re going to go.

That’s not the case with Shaun Dion Hamilton.

The ESPN Watch List linebacker has a good idea of where he wants to go, and he’s ready to make that decision so he can focus on winning a state championship at Montgomery (Ala.) Carver High School.

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ATHENS, Ga. -- Considering that running back Jacques Patrick (Orlando, Fla./Timber Creek) is only in his second year of high school but already has 25 scholarship offers, the case can be made that Patrick is one of the most coveted prospects in the Class of 2015.

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ATHENS, Ga. -- ESPN Watch List wide receiver Demarre Kitt (Tyrone, Ga./Sandy Creek) recently cut his mammoth offer list down to a top-15 group of schools that he will consider.

“It got crazy at one point with almost everybody that offered me trying to talk to me,” Kitt said. “So I had to cut my list down to 15 schools. After spring practice I will cut it down to eight or 10. At the end of summer I will do five and then go from there.”

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USC has not been shy about its pursuit of some of the top 2014 prospects in the state of Alabama. The Trojans have already offered ESPN Watch List juniors Ronnie Clark, Justin Thornton and Tre Williams, and you can add another one to the list.

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Recruiting is never static, especially at this time of the year. Coaches are on the road and visits are being taken. That holds true not just for the Class of 2013 but for this year’s junior class, which is being wooed by college coaches trying to get a jump on the ever-quickening recruiting cycle.

Each day we find college coaches checking in on the top prospects for the Class of 2014. Such is the case with ESPN Watch List wide receiver Demarre Kitt (Tyrone, Ga./Sandy Creek).

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Carl Lawson (Alpharetta, Ga./Milton), the No. 2 prospect in the country, has taken one trip in the last two months, an unofficial visit to Clemson back in November on the weekend that Auburn head coach Gene Chizik was fired. The 6-foot-2, 251-pound defensive end is set to take his first official visit this weekend.

"I set an official to Clemson," Lawson said. "I am interested and excited about visiting such a wonderful program such as Clemson."

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SAN ANTONIO -- Wednesday was a day off for the U.S. Army All-American Bowl teams. Instead of working out and participating in drills, the players took in visits around the city -- including a stop at the Alamodome for photo opportunities and to see their game apparel -- and used the day to recover from two days of practice.

The teams will return to the fields on Thursday in arguably the most important practice of the week. Here are five things to keep an eye on for Thursday’s practice:

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SAN ANTONIO -- ESPN 150 cornerback Jalen Ramsey (Brentwood, Tenn./Brentwood Academy) has been committed to USC since July 16, but a lot has changed with the Trojans since then.

Chief among them, at least as it pertains to Ramsey, is the now vacant defensive coordinator position once held by Monte Kiffin. That has caused Ramsey to consider other options.

“One big holdback is that I don’t know who the defensive coordinator is,” he said. “I really need to know that because that is who I will be playing for. I know they will have them by my official visit and I will be able to talk to him multiple times. That’s huge, I’m not going to lie.”

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SAN ANTONIO – ESPN 150 wide receiver James Quick (Louisville, Ky./Trinity) has drawn plenty of attention for his play through two practices for the East team in preparation for the U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

He’ll garner even more eyes his way on Saturday when he announces his commitment during the game.

The 6-foot-1, 180-pounder said he is down to Louisville, Ohio State and Oregon. Though his decision will come Saturday, it could be finalized by Wednesday morning, as he sits down to discuss his options with his parents, who are in town for the event.

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SAN ANTONIO -- ESPN 150 outside linebacker Mike Mitchell (Plano, Texas/Prestonwood Christian) isn’t big on speaking publicly. He’d rather let his game do the talking -- and it speaks volumes.

On Monday, the 6-foot-5, 222-pound linebacker officially confirmed that he will announce his college plans during Saturday’s U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Oregon, Texas A&M and Ohio State are his three finalists.

Mitchell said all three schools -- and even a fourth, Oklahoma -- had their positive qualities throughout his recruiting process. It was a feeling of comfort, however, that seemed to win him over.

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LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -– Five-star defensive end Carl Lawson (Alpharetta, Ga./Milton) has been committed to Auburn since March. After Gene Chizik was let go and replaced by former Tigers offensive coordinator Guz Malzahn earlier this month, schools lined up to try and get Lawson on campus. If he had his way he would oblige as many of his suitors as possible.

“I would like to visit Clemson, Tennessee, FSU, UCLA, USC, UNC and Ole Miss, but realistically the five I visit might be Clemson, Tennessee, Ole Miss, UNC and USC,” Lawson said.

The coaching changes have yet to affect where he stands with his recruitment.

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