USC Trojans

Tales From the Road spotlights players who stand out to RecruitingNation writers at camps, combines and various events. Here is a look at a few Southeast prospects who recently performed at a high level:

Linebacker Raekwon McMillan
2014/Hinesville (Ga.) Liberty County/6-foot-2, 249 pounds
Considering: More than 40 offers; top two of Clemson and Ohio State; also considering Alabama, Florida, UGA.

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D.J. Calhoun (El Cerrito, Calif./El Cerrito) couldn't hide the disappointment when he came away from USC's junior day last month without an offer. The 6-foot, 200-pound linebacker felt he would pick up an offer at the event, but it never came.

Several weeks later, Calhoun was called out of class by his coach and was surprised to hear the USC coaches on the other end of the line.

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ESPN Watch List cornerback Adoree' Jackson (Gardena, Calif./Serra) has accumulated a number of scholarship offers since the end of his junior season, with a pair of SEC schools even entering the fold. Yet, one local school always was missing from his ever-growing list.

That changed Tuesday when Jackson finally received an offer from USC.

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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- ESPN Watch List wide receiver Thaddeus Snodgrass (Springfield, Ohio/Springfield) was set to make his final decision between Michigan State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State and Wisconsin in November, but that didn't happen.

The 6-foot-1, 175-pound athlete decided to postpone his announcement. He felt it wasn't the right time.

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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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Raphael Gaglianone is taking his recruitment into his own hands.

The kicker from Chattanooga (Tenn.) Baylor told ESPN that he is sending recent highlights from his junior season to several schools, including Stanford, Southern California, UCLA, Florida and Florida State.

Several other schools have already begun recruiting the 6-foot, 200-pound prospect, including Nebraska, Brigham Young, Duke, Ohio State and LSU. Gaglianone visited Ohio State this fall and said it was the best visit he has taken to any prospective college.

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One of the top athletes on the West Coast in the Class of 2014 was among the many top recruits on hand for the Oregon-USC game on Saturday night.

ESPN Watch List CB Adoree' Jackson, Gardena (Calif.) Serra will almost assuredly receive an offer from both of the schools that were on field. With eight offers to date from Colorado, Nebraska, Northwestern, SMU, UCLA, Utah, Washington and Washington State, the 5-foot-10, 170-pound Jackson is looking for more. That's not to say he's in a hurry.

"I'm not really too worried about it right now" Jackson said. "I am worried about getting better and helping my team reach our potential."

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If junior cornerback Adoree' Jackson (Gardena, Calif./Serra) went into last Friday's game looking to make a statement, he should feel pretty safe that he was heard loud and clear.

Jackson has made no secret in his desire to impress and eventually earn a scholarship offer from the LSU Tigers. Friday, he had a chance to play against LSU verbal commitment Hayden Rettig (Los Angeles/Cathedral), and Jackson figured the film would eventually find its way to Les Miles and staff.

Jackson made an impact in all three phases during the game. He set the tone with a tackle on the opening kickoff, intercepted a pass on defense, caught a handful of passes on offense and had two long returns on special teams. The 5-foot-10, 170-pound junior said that, despite his eight scholarship offers, he'd put recruiting in the background lately to focus on his team. After the game, he said he hoped his performance could reignite the spark, especially when it comes to some of his favorite schools, including LSU and USC.

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ESPN 150 defensive lineman Maquedius Bain (Davie, Fla./University School) will be taking a trip to Norman, Okla., this weekend to visit the Sooners pending some ACT paperwork.

"I just needed to get a couple of things in hand and I'll be visiting Oklahoma this weekend," Bain said. "They reached out to me back in July and I'm looking forward to the visit."

The 6-foot-3, 285-pound Bain, who committed to Florida State as a junior and re-opened his recruitment earlier in the year, appears to be leaning towards a future playing outside of the Sunshine State.

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FULLERTON, Calif. -- A bevy of attributes make Tyler Luatua of La Mirada (Calif.) an elite prospect, but it’s one you can’t see that stands out above the rest: His dissatisfaction.

He’s physically imposing, yes. He’s strong, quick and versatile, too. Scouts rave on and on and on about the class of 2014 athlete’s advanced skill set. He’s smooth enough to play tight end, yet gritty enough to play linebacker.

The 6-foot-4, 230-pound athlete received his first scholarship offer from UCLA in February and, in a matter of weeks, had gone national. At least locally, no underclassman had a bigger spring. Luatua piled up offer after offer, and is considered one of California’s top recruits in next year’s class.

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Chalk up another recruiting win for the hottest college football program around.

USC landed a commitment from class of 2014 offensive tackle Casey Tucker (Chandler, Ariz./Hamilton) on Wednesday, adding to offensive line pledges Toa Lobendahn (Lakewood, Calif./Lakewood) and Jordan Poland (La Jolla, Calif./Country Day) in next year's recruiting class.

The coaching staff has been successful in building a star-filled 2013 class that includes 11 recruits ranked in the ESPN 150, but Tucker's quick commitment is an indication that USC is far from content.

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