Meet the USC Trojans Coach Quietly Developing a Strong Recruiting Reputation

The USC Trojans have a handful of strong recruiters on their coaching staff. From coach Lincoln Riley to cornerbacks coach Trovon Reed, the Trojans’ staff is loaded with guys who know how to seal the deal on the recruiting trail.

Leading the charge for four-star offensive tackle Drew Fielder, USC’s latest comment in their 2027 recruiting class, was offensive line coach Zach Hanson. Now entering his second season as the Trojans’ offensive line coach, Hanson has been quietly developing a reputation as a strong recruiter.

Locking down USC’s recruiting backyard

USC Trojans Recruiting Zach Hanson Lucas Rhoa Drew Fielder Transfer Portal NIL Big Ten Lincoln Riley Chase Deniz John Fifita — Oct 1, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley applauds after a touchdown in the first half against the Arizona State Sun Devils at United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Despite playing at Servite (Calif.), which is located not too far away from USC’s campus, Fielder didn’t receive much interest from the Trojans prior to his commitment to Oregon in early February.

Once he popped up on Hanson and USC’s radar, Fielder instantly became one of their top targets along the offensive line. They were able to get him on an unofficial visit on March 6. That visit really helped Hanson establish his recruiting pitch with the four-star offense tackle.

22 days later, Fielder officially announced that he had flipped his commitment from Oregon to USC.

The success that Hanson has had when it comes to in-state recruiting extends out to the 2026 recruiting cycle as well.

Despite not landing the top-ranked offensive tackle in the state in Kodi Greene, who signed with Washington, Hanson and the Trojans made a splash when they signed the No. 2 tackle in California in four-star Vlad Dyakonov.

Hanson’s skills as a developer will be put to the test with three-star offensive tackle Chase Deniz and three-star offensive guard John Fifita. Both players have really good size for their position but are extremely raw. If Hanson is able to get them on the right track with their development, they could become contributors to the Trojans’ offensive line down the line.

Soaring up the recruiter rankings

The Trojans’ offensive line coach played a big part in USC signing the No. 1 recruiting class in the 2026 cycle according to 247Sports’ rankings.

A lead recruiter for five commitments in the 2026 class, Hanson was listed as the No. 8 recruiter for the recruiting cycle.

For the 2027 recruiting cycle, Hanson played a role in flipping Fielder away from Oregon. With one commitment already in tow, it’ll be interesting to see how Hanson decides to shape the rest of USC’s offensive line class.

Another top in-state offensive line target for USC

Another in-state prospect that USC has been showing interest in is three-star offensive tackle Lucas Rhoa.

The No. 48 offensive tackle and No. 40 player in California according to 247Sports’ rankings, Rhoa was offered by USC prior to his junior season last year. Interestingly enough, Rhoa plays at Orange Lutheran (Calif.), which is in the same high school football league as Fielder.

If the Trojans end up landing Rhoa, he would make for a nice in-state offensive line pairing with Fielder for USC's 2027 recruiting class.