USC adds two big signing-day decommits to its defense-loaded 2024 newcomers
USC officially signs Michigan LB Jadyn Walker and Carlsbad DL Ratumana Bulabalavu, along with Los Alamitos CB Isaiah Rubin, to round out its class
Luca Evans (OC Register) — LOS ANGELES — When Jadyn Walker told his mother Noelle that USC had given him a scholarship offer, she was at work on the first Saturday of December, and her son’s words hit her in shock. They lived in Michigan. Walker was committed to Michigan State. California? she thought. Can you get any further away from me?
But Noelle was shocked, really, because Walker had shown no signs of wavering on his pledge to Michigan State. A wide receiver and outside linebacker at Portage Northern High in Michigan, he had committed to the Spartans on Sept. 9 – all but hours before USA Today broke news of sexual harassment allegations against head coach Mel Tucker. Noelle sat her son down, that same day, and asked him what he wanted to do. Walker told her he wanted to stay committed. Loyalty ran deep.
Two weeks later, though, Tucker was officially and unceremoniously fired by Michigan State, setting off a month-long period in limbo before the Spartans hired Oregon State coach Jonathan Smith. The staff changed. And suddenly, amid uncertainty over those changes and with less than a month left until early signing day, USC swooped in with an all-out push – with Lincoln Riley, newly hired defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn and linebackers coach Matt Entz all flying out to visit Walker.
“He was like, ‘I just feel like there’s a reason USC reached out to me,’” Noelle said, and it was enough to persuade Walker to stay away from putting pen to paper with Michigan State on the early signing day in December.
And it was enough, too, to get Walker to officially flip from Michigan State to USC on signing day on Wednesday, signing his national letter of intent to complete USC’s 2024 class. It wasn’t the only last-minute pivot; Carlsbad defensive lineman Ratumana Bulabalavu, who de-committed from Washington after head coach Kalen DeBoer departed for Alabama in the carousel caused by Nick Saban’s retirement, signed his NLI to USC a day after officially committing.
Los Alamitos High cornerback Isaiah Rubin, who had previously committed to the Trojans, also signed his letter of intent on Wednesday.
On paper, top to bottom, USC’s 2024 class is noticeably light on offensive talent and blue-chip recruits, particularly missing out on some of the top talent in California. But after recruiting just eight defensive players in 2023, Riley placed clear emphasis on drawing defensive talent after the winter hires of Lynn, Matt Entz, Doug Belk and Eric Henderson, leading to a class with depth at nearly every defensive area: 13 of USC’s 2024 commits come on the defensive side of the ball, their most since 2019.
“It’s going to be scary for everybody else,” Walker said Wednesday.
Few defensive linemen in the 2024 class have been as prolific as Bulabalavu in high school, a 6-foot-4, 260-pound pass-rusher who racked up 60½ sacks his past three years at Carlsbad’s Army and Navy Academy. He’s been recruited in large part by returning edge coach Shaun Nua, and he stands as the first defensive line commit brought in during the Henderson era, the former Rams assistant coach hitting the 2025 recruiting trail with ferocity since his hire in mid-January.
Walker’s flip addresses a key need for both USC’s 2024 class and immediate depth: USC had just one freshman, Desman Stephens (Michigan), incoming at inside linebacker. Walker said USC recruited him to fit as a will (weakside) linebacker in Lynn’s defensive scheme; at 6-3 and 210 pounds, he recognized he’d have to put on some weight entering the fall.
“Coach Riley flying out, Coach Lynn flying out, Coach Entz, it just kinda showed love … it just showed they wanted me more, I guess,” Walker said.
The 6-1, 170-pound Rubin, a four-star recruit, is ranked the No. 25 player in California by 247Sports and No. 26 by ESPN. He is touted as the No. 32 cornerback in the country by 247Sports, No. 37 by ESPN and No. 48 by Rivals.com. In addition to playing defensive back, Rubin is considered a talented kick return specialist.
ocregister.com
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1971 Miss America Phyllis George, from Texas and the first prominent female presence on the NFL Today, once asked John McKay during pre-game about why the morale on his team seemed so good. McKay’s reply — “I think they’re smoking.”
I think the Niners are gonna beat the Chiefs today, basically because they haven’t won it since 1995 when they beat the Chargers 49-26, their fifth and last SB victory. They lost to the Chiefs 31-20 in 2020. Unanimous All-Pro and 2023 AP Offensive POY Christian McCaffrey turns out to be the difference-maker, giving Kyle Shanahan his 1st SB win. Shanahan was the OC for the Atlanta Falcons when they somehow lost to Tom Brady’s big comeback Patriots 34-28 in 2017 — the only SB to ever go to OT. McCaffrey ran for 207 yds and a score, threw a TD pass,… Read more »
I will use my formula, USC players + SDSU – UCLA. 3-0, 49ers over the Chefs
Too bad S Talanoa Hufanga is hurt and won’t be on the field.
I’m hoping Sam Darnold somehow gets in the game and throws the winning TD for the Niners. ✌
He would have been the difference. 😒
How important is the QB to winning in football, especially the NFL? “Mr. Irrelevant” of 2022 is starting in the Super Bowl today. This after Tommy John Surgery in the off season. Give me an underrated guy, hungry to prove himself, makes the most of an improbable opportunity any time. A generational super star is nothing in football without a good team around him.
No. 10 USC blows out Arizona State for third straight win The Women of Troy beat the Sun Devils 81-63 behind JuJu Watkins’ 31 points and Rayah Marshall’s 13-point, 16-rebound double-double. USCFootball.com — Arizona State was no match for JuJu Watkins and USC Friday in the Galen Center as the Trojans led wire-to-wire in an 81-63 win over the Sun Devils. No. 10 USC (17-4, 7-4 Pac-12) got its third consecutive victory behind Watkins’ eighth 30-point performance of the season. She finished with a game-high 31 points, but it was the big night of Rayah Marshall that may have greater implications for the Women of… Read more »
Coaching Carousel Bleeds ALA Again
Adam Schefter @AdamSchefter
Seahawks have filled their OC hole. Seahawks are hiring former Washington offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, who recently accepted the same position at Alabama, per me and @PeteThamel…
UCLA fans lament loss of D’Anton Lynn to USC Letter to LAT — UCLA athletic director Martin Jarmond got played like a yo-yo when Chip Kelly left for Ohio State. He had the opportunity to elevate an up-and-coming young coach with a defensive mind, D’Anton Lynn, to head coach while firing Chip Kelly. Instead, he lost that promising coach to the USC poachers and Kelly leaves while kids are deciding where to plant their football cleats. Jarmond is two steps behind. Good luck finding a quality head coach after most schools have picked the cupboard clean. Looks like more years… Read more »
Is UCLA Really Ready To Avoid the Interim Head Coaching Route? Martin Jarmond announced yesterday afternoon that it was his intention to fill the UCLA job with a permanent coach within 96 hours. – “Could be sooner, could be later. But we’re going to move fast,” said Jarmond. Josephy Crosby (Daily Bruin) — “We’re looking for a leader – permanently – for our program,” explained Jarmond. “Obviously, we’ll adjust if we need to, but I want to find a head coach that’s going to be here. So that’s the ideal goal. Timeline, hopefully, 96 hours. That’s what I told the… Read more »
This dedicated basketball school should hire Ed OBannon as the next football HC and then tell him there’s no NIL money to spend. Misery loves company!
Bill Plaschke takes a flamethrower to Chip Kelly (Plaschke/LAT) — The truth is that the entire UCLA athletic community got played. The reality is that Chip Kelly was a complete phony. After I wrote that he should be fired, and he wasn’t, I faced him following the team’s bowl victory and I wrote that he was classy and gracious. Little did I know he was plotting a late and unthinkable exit. He preached about the importance of surviving tough times, yet he ran from those tough times. He preached about the importance of community, yet he acted in his own… Read more »
Martin Jarmond on Choc Chip’s departure and plans for a quick replacement Ralph Russo (AP) — “Timing is a challenge,” UCLA AD Martin Jarmond said, adding he told the team the plan was to have a new coach in place within four days. Jarmond said he was not caught off guard when Kelly called him earlier Friday to inform him he was leaving. Kelly had interviewed for multiple NFL offensive coordinator jobs over the last two weeks. Kelly was under contract until 2027. Jarmond said UCLA will enforce a $1.5 million buyout. Jarmond said he met with the team to… Read more »
Just for information, if you are going to watch SuperBowl on Dish network, they will show the game in 4K, check your channel. Mine is 146.
Thanks, I have Dish. I will check.
O.J. tries to fend off cancer
SI.com — Heisman/NFL Hall of Fame legend and former USC/Buffalo Bills RB O.J. Simpson has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, per reports Friday from Local News 10 in Miami.
Simpson, 76, is reportedly undergoing chemotherapy in Las Vegas.
si.com
OJ, go to Keck and get the prostate taken out. Then do the follow up radiation afterwards and hope the cancer didn’t reach the Fallopian tubes to spread into the body.
The timing of Kelly leaving seems to have really hurt fucla. I imagine they will try to poach away D Anton Lynn. Hope he doesn’t take their call.
Very thankful that they didn’t fire Chip at seasons end. They then could have picked between Jedd Fisch and Johnathon Smith, who both are great coaches. Hopefully now they are totally screwed.
UCLA just sat back and got trampled on.
Maybe their AD didn’t have the clout to dump Kelly earlier. That’s always a possibility at a place like UCLA, which also always has to fight uphill in football because it’s universally known as a basketball school.
Well UCLA was saved Kelly’s buy out, whatever it was. Do the Ruins and USC start to get BIG football TV money this year? I believe it is $65 million per school. That should be enough to right the ship and get someone decent. Even after the Cal Bears Tax.
Hopefully Lynn realizes he is in a better run program and stays put with a pay bump from Jen Cohen.
GT- I think the odds of Lynn taking the UCLA job are not zero, but are close to zero. It would be a very stupid move.
Who Will UCLA Turn To? Ben Bolch (LAT) — UCLA could go with an interim coach for next season or choose from a list of emergency replacement candidates who could include Nebraska defensive coordinator Tony White, a former UCLA linebacker; former Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, who was once the Bruins’ running backs coach and recruiting coordinator; former Stanford coach David Shaw, whose son Carter will be a sophomore wide receiver on the team next season; former USC and Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll; and Cleveland Browns tight ends coach Tommy Rees, whose father, Bill, was an assistant coach… Read more »
No way Pete Carroll takes that job as it is a dumpster fire. I could see David Shaw but it depends on if he wants to get back to coaching. Admission requirements at UCLA are easier than what he faced at Stanford.
Whoever they hire is going to be walking into a tough situation.
Love seeing the Ruins having problems like this.
David Shaw would help sink UCLA even further.
By the time he finally turned in his badge at STAN, Shaw had sunk to levels of coaching ineptitude that had even his most loyal and fervent supporters sick of his presence.
Plus, UCLA needs to bring in a great recruiter who can attract an aggressive staff that can reel in some better talent (especially preps) to save the Bruins. Shaw is more like Kelly — not a strong recruiter at all.
That said, I’d love to see Shaw as the next UCLA HC. Pure mediocrity assured.
Chip screwed UCLA by leaving this late. February recruiting is done and the transfer portal is closed. The new coach won’t be on board till March and will have to scramble to get a staff in place and then have spring practice.
Will be interesting see who they hire.
Plus, the Bruins could also suffer the loss of important players who now have a 30-day window to transfer away to another program.
UCLA’s in a tough spot with more limited HC replacement options now that Choc Chip has left them high and dry right after one of the worst LOI Days in UCLA history, as you suggest.
I’m a little surprised UCLA didn’t take steps to remove Kelly earlier, once they knew he was intent on interviewing for every OC job on the planet. That would seem to be a breach of a coaching contract.
Allen, don’t you think UCLA had no choice but to keep Kelly in place? Chip was very cunning. He waited until all the coaching hires had “settled” and then started interviewing. At that time, where is UCLA going to go? Fire Chip for interviewing for other jobs? The AD had to fire Chip in November and have a new HC In place by mid-December. It is obvious given what happened that the UCLA AD had no Plan B in place for the 2024 team. Do not blame him for that. I have never heard of a HC bailing on his… Read more »
UCLA laid down like a little puppy and let Choc Chip dump all over them. Bad, bad look and now UCLA (and Jarmond) appears even more weak and hopeless. Were I in charge of UCLA, I hope I would have not let our very well-compensated CFB coach dump all over us like that.
I would have tried to find a way to cut Kelly loose as soon as I knew he was planning on interviewing for other OC jobs, all step-down moves. Just embarrassing for UCLA all around.
I think the AD was completely blindsided by what happened. Chip played him like a fiddle. When you get blindsided, it is best not to overreact (remember, Chip has a significant buy out which goes away sometime next year). I think I would have done exactly what the AD did. If Chip left, I would let him go at a reduced payment and then adjusted. If Chip stayed, I would started interviewing in the Fall for his replacement. I think his buy out went to zero sometime next year. As soon as it hit zero I would have fired him.… Read more »
When a coach starts interviewing for other jobs, my position is he has anticipatorily breached his contract — therefore releasing my obligation to keep them and ending my responsibility for any buyout. Contractual language probably defines the rights, but don’t you think Kelly severely jeopardizes his buyout rights when he is in effect “quitting” by overtly seeking other jobs?
They’re going to have to find somebody quickly that isn’t in a job right now and needs one.
Wonder if Martin Jarmond calls Nick Saban to see if he’s interested.
This is actually a good opportunity for UCLA. Curmudgeonly Kelly never got the job done in Westwood. He split 3-3 vs USC, which is about the best thing he did for the Bruins.
UCLA football has huge overall football/NIL support problems.
But if they somehow land on the right young smart coach who can set UCLA straight a bit, they should stand a much better chance going forward than under the limited, recruiting-phobic Kelly, IMO.
I think the approach John outlines below is the most rational way to solve this. It means UCLA football will most likely go into the tank for a couple of years (just like it did when Chip was first hired).
Patterson just took an analyst job at Baylor.
Trojan MP90, Not a chance. Saban just took the job at Game Day on ESPN. And, why would he want to move to LA and go to a program will little or no financial support and not a lot of elite talent?
Ucla is thinking of making someone on the current staff and Interim Head Coach and putting off the decision until next year when they will have more coaches to choose from.
John, I think that makes a lot of sense. It treats Chip leaving the same as if he were fired like Clay Helton, after game 3. If that happened, one of the staff moves to interim and the search starts in earnest. It is probably the best solution to a bad problem. The goal for the AD should be to keep as much of the elite talent on the team as he can. Hiring an elite coach now is simply not in the cards. So take 18 months to do the search and at the same time fund raise for… Read more »
I will be interested to see who they get. Things at UCLA have to be really disastrous for Chip to bail as he did. He took a pay cut and a position downgrade to leave. all prior to spring practice. Shaw certainly could take the job as his resume is toast and candidly, he really does not need the money. Why would he do it? To go 3-9 again? I think Clay Helton is available. I mean Clay could team up with Clancy again.
This is stranger than fiction. Chip totally hosed UCLA. No way a quality established HC will that position. No way an up and coming talent will take that position. UCLA has zero resources to compete for staff or players. I read that the athletic department is about $100 Million in debt to the general fund. And it has to pay “Calimony” to Berkeley, I think at $10,000,000 a year. In addition, to lacking resources, the UCLA roster and incoming recruits lack any significant amount of elite talent. Hardly a position that is a stepping stone for your career! The UCLA… Read more »
Report: Chip Kelly to Replace Bill O’Brien as Ohio State OC, Informs UCLA of Exit After His Six-Season Record of 35-34 Former UCLA head coach Chip Kelly is expected to be named the offensive coordinator for Ohio State, according to Bruce Feldman of The Athletic. Zach Bachar (B/R) — Kelly spent the past six seasons with the Bruins before succeeding Bill O’Brien as the offensive coordinator on Ryan Day’s Buckeye staff. He previously served as the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles as well as the San Francisco 49ers. Kelly informed the Bruins on Friday that he planned to leave for a… Read more »
Good move for Chipper. Setting himself up to look more attractive for his next move. Leaves the worst program financially for one of the best. OSU also has NIL down and recruits well. I gotta think UCLA will be in the cellar of BIG football for a long time. MBB may not do well either. As Football and MBB go so goes the rest of the Athletic Department.
GT, I am going to disagree. It is a dick move. It shows a total lack of integrity. Chip bailed on his team of six years (and a school that put up with three years of really awful football) at the worst possible time. I do not know what happened, but I do not see how UCLA can save the 2024 season. They have no resources. They have some talent on the team, but not a significant amount of it. I have never heard of a coach bailing on his team in late January/early February.
A good move for him but you are right he screwed UCLA. Chip has a rep for not recruiting well. My guess he and UCLA don’t know what to do with NIL. He probably realized he had to get out however he could.
GT, You are, of course, correct. Chip first tried to get a pro OC job and no one would hire him. So, when tOSU job came open, he took it. Ryan Daye and he are friends at tOSU, Chip will have available to him elite talent, incredible resources (including one of the top pay for play NIL programs in the nation) and will not be required to do much recruiting. If Chip takes tOSU to a NC (reasonable assumption) or two, then he can then probably move on to an NFL OC job. I think Chip is a perfect fit… Read more »
Former USC Wide Receiver Rod Sherman Dies
Rod Sherman catches the famous barely-in-time throw from Craig Fertig across the middle late to destroy the Irish and Ara Parseghian 20-17 in 1964. Sherman led the Trojans in receiving yardage with 24 catches for 446 yds and five TDs.
usctrojans.com
Sad to hear Rod Sherman has passed away. May he R.I.P. My grandparents attended the 1964 USC vs ND game. I met Craig Fertig when he was an assistant coach for USC at a pep rally in Chicago before the 1979 USC vs ND game in South Bend. Very classy guy!
Sorry to hear about Rod Sherman. He made it to his upper 70s. That ‘64 ND game was exciting at the end. Hope to see it again on UTube if it’s there and remember those days.
Kobe Bryant was a truly dedicated Trojan fan
Lakers unveil Kobe Bryant statue outside Crypto.com Arena
LAT — The 19-foot, 4,000-pound bronze likeness depicts Bryant in his No. 8 jersey with his right index finger raised as he walked off the court following his 81-point performance against the Toronto Raptors in January 2006. Two more statues are planned.
latimes.com
I prefer this version of the picture………
Me too!
Kobe is one of my all-time favorites. He worked so hard at his craft and was the first to show up at practice and the last to leave. His work ethic had an influence on me. I started showing up to work before the people I managed and often was the last to leave so I could get my own CFO work done. May Kobe R.I.P.
This young lady reminds me of the impact Cheryl Miller had at USC. To score 51 points in a game, let alone against a highly ranked Stanford team, is phenomenal.