Danny Lang's Comments on Chad Bowden Epitomize USC’s Recruiting Turnaround

The USC Trojans recruiting success has vastly changed under general manager Chad Bowden.

USC Trojans general manager Chad Bowden hired from Notre Dame Fighting Irish | USC Trojans Video Youtube

USC saw a wave of recruits in the 2025 class decommit in the weeks leading up to the early signing period in December 2024 and they fell out of the top 10. 

It was part of a larger problem for the Trojans when it came to recruiting. They struggled with in-state recruiting, holding onto commitments and their NIL collectives were nowhere close to what they needed to be in order to compete in this era of recruiting. Southern Cal knew it had to take a big swing to change their fortunes. 

USC Trojans general manager Chad Bowden hired from Notre Dame Fighting Irish | USC Trojans Video Youtube

After Alabama general manager Courtney Morgan turned down an offer from USC before the start of the 2024 season, coach Lincoln Riley and athletic director Jen Cohen went back to work the following offseason and pulled Chad Bowden away from Notre Dame in January 2025. 

Bowden immediately transformed the Trojans recruiting efforts by fixing the programs NIL situation, rebuilding local pipelines, building genuine relationships and overall deploying a relentless approach that USC’s recruiting/personnel and coaching staff embodies as well. 

“Chad’s a funny guy,” said USC 2027 four-star cornerback commit Danny Lang. “He's crazy, man. When it comes to recruiting, he'll do whatever to get you.”

Stacking Elite Recruiting Classes

Sep 3, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley reacts in the second half against the Rice Owls at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports | USA TODAY Sports

The vibe around changed with the arrival of Bowden and the vision of which direction the program was headed in became clear to recruits and the commits to started to pour in last spring. In the 2026 cycle, USC became the first non-SEC school since 2008 to sign the No. 1 class. 

Southern Cal re-established themselves as the premier recruiting force in its own state and loaded the class with elite out-of-state talent. Most importantly, the Trojans signed a number of players that stepped onto campus in January college ready and primed to contribute to winning football this season. 

Bowden implemented a new rule that once a player commits, they were no longer allowed to visit other schools. A commitment meant exactly that and it's a rule that the last two classes have embraced.

And while the 2027 class doesn’t prompt the same headlines the 2026 class in terms of recruiting rankings because it’s a much smaller number of commitments compared to the rest of the country, the Trojans have once again made noise on the trail. 

Four commits in Lang, five-star athlete Honor Fa’alave-Johnson, five-star edge Mekai Brown and four-star receiver Quentin Hale sit inside the top 50 overall prospects. USC also has a total of eight commits in the top 100 overall prospects. All according to 247Sports. 

San Diego (Calif.) Cathedral Catholic athlete and USC Trojans commit Honor Fa'alave-Johnson | Kendell Hollowell @Khollowell_

The Trojans have once again staked their claim that California recruiting goes through them with commitments from five of the 10 recruits in the state. No other school has more than one. The best way to change results on the field is to accumulate and maintain talent and that’s what has changed in Los Angeles over the past year and a half under Bowden.

“It's gonna be something special for sure,” Lang said. “Something to be on the lookout for.“

Bowden, Lang, other 2027 commits and several USC freshmen have begun their aggressive pursuit of top prospects in the 2028 class in an effort to keep the train moving on the recruiting front. 

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