USC Recruiting Target Pole Moala Making Waves With Classification Decision

The USC Trojans are one of the frontrunners to land class of 2028 recruit, safety Pole Moala. Moala may end up being playing college football sooner rather than later as he is now looking to reclassify to the recruiting class of 2027.

Pole Moala Seeking Reclassification to 2027

USC Trojans Recruiting Lincoln Riley Pole Moala Class of 2027 Recruit Commit Class of 2028 Safety Rankings Big Ten Playoff — Nov 29, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley reacts after the game against the UCLA Bruins at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Pole Moala is a 6-0, 165 pound safety out of Rancho Santa Margarita, California. He is rated as a four-star recruit and ranked as the No. 4 safety in the 2028 class per 247Sports.

As a sophomore in high school in 2025-26, Moala played both offense and defense. As a receiver, he hauled in six receptions for 97 yards and three touchdowns. On defense, he had 45 total tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss, seven passes defended, and three interceptions.

He spoke to recruiting analyst Adam Gorney of Rivals about his potential reclassification to the 2027 class.

“There’s been an update that they’re still trying to get my classes figured out for the summer, but for the most part I’ll be reclassifying to the 2027 class by next week,” Moala said. “Everything is moving faster now so it’s pretty exciting so I just have to work harder because this will now be my senior year.”

Not only will everything be moving faster for Moala, things will be moving faster for the teams recruiting him. USC offered Moala back in January of 2025 along with numerous teams. The recruiting effort to land his commitment will ramp up even more.

USC Thriving in Recruiting

USC football is on a hot streak when it comes to recruiting. The Trojans 2026 class finished ranked No. 1 in the entire country per On3 with their 35 total commits. This 2026 class was headlined by five-star recruits such as edge rusher Luke Wafle, tight end Mark Bowman, offensive tackle Keenyi Pepe, and defensive lineman Jaimeon Winfield.

USC coach Lincoln Riley is entering year five with the Trojans and the time to win is now. USC improved in 2025 from their disappointing 2023 and 2024 seasons by winning nine games and being in the mix for a spot in the College Football Playoff until late November. The Trojans are still seeking their first ever appearance in the playoff. Will 2026 be the season they get over that hump?

USC has a very difficult schedule on paper coming up in 2026. The Trojans have games against the the three best teams in the Big Ten from a season ago: the Oregon Ducks, Indiana Hoosiers, and Ohio State Buckeyes. All three made the playoff in 2025. They will host Oregon and Ohio State then go on the road to play the defending national champion Hoosiers.

Also on the schedule are the Penn State Nittany Lions. Penn State made the semifinal of the 2024 playoff but since then have undergone major changes. They fired coach James Franklin midseason in 2025. This past offseason, they hired former Iowa State Cyclones coach Matt Campbell.

This game will be on the road for USC, making it an even more difficult test.

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