USC Trojans Commit Brandon Lockhart Recruiting Georgia Commit Vance Spafford To Flip

Loyola (CA) four-star cornerback Brandon Lockhart has been committed to the USC Trojans since October 2023. He was one of many blue-chip recruits at Junior Day on Saturday and he is actively recruiting other highly touted prospects for the 2026 class.

Nov 29, 2021; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Lincoln Riley poses with Fight on sign during a press conference to introduce Riley as Southern California Trojans head coach. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Loyola (CA) four-star cornerback Brandon Lockhart committed to the USC Trojans as sophomore back in October of 2023. The Los Angeles native plays his high school football two miles away from USC’s campus and has reiterated his commitment to the Trojans on numerous occasions, while schools like Oregon and Arizona State try to flip him. 

USC hosted one of their biggest recruiting events over the weekend with their annual Junior Day. USC saw a number of blue-chip prospects from the 2026 and 2027 cycles make their way to campus. Several out of state prospects made the trip to Los Angeles, including Lincoln-Way East (IL) four-star quarterback Jonas Williams and Bastrop (TX) four-star defensive lineman Tiki Hola, but the event was headlined by the highly touted recruits in the Trojans backyard. 

“Today’s Junior day was loaded with Cali talent. It’s happening,” Lockhart wrote on Twitter. 

Sep 21, 2024; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley on the sideline in the second half against the Michigan Wolverines at Michigan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Lockhart is actively recruiting for the Trojans No. 2 ranked recruiting class in the On3 Industry Rankings. A few prospects Lockhart is set on is Oaks Christian (CA) four-star cornerback Davon Benjamin, Orange Lutheran (CA) four-star linebacker Talanoa Ili, Mission Viejo (CA) four-star receiver and Georgia commit Vance Spafford and Mater Dei (CA) four-star defensive lineman and Oregon commit Tomuhini Topui. 

“Today showed a real vision in real time as to what’s currently building and what could be,” Lockhart told On3. “(If) a few more guys from today’s group decided that’s SC is the right place for them something extremely special could happen. We’re talking a resurgence of what once was, football dominance. Either way, we’re on that path and today made it even more exciting.”

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Lockhart wasn’t the only USC commit from the 2026 class in-attendance. Gainesville (GA) four-star linebacker Xavier Griffin, Rancho Cucamonga (CA) four-star cornerback RJ Sermons, St. John Bosco (CA) three-star athlete Joshua Holland, Sierra Canyon (CA) three-star athlete Madden Riordan and three-star receiver Ja’Myron Baker were also on campus. 

“A lot of excitement and high energy in LA right now!” Griffin told On3. “I believe Coach Riley has put together a stellar coaching staff and we will have a strong recruiting class for 2026. Being able to play for three top NFL coaches excites me the most. Just ready to get in there and learn as much as possible!”

Nov 16, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley watches game action against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second half at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

USC has made a ton of moves in the coaching staff and front office personnel in recent weeks. Chad Bowden comes over from Notre Dame’s as the Trojans new general manager, Illinois Dre Brown was hired last week as the executive director of personnel and scouting, UCF’s cornerbacks coach Trovon Reed was hired for the same role with USC and longtime NFL coach Rob Ryan takes over for Matt Entz as the linebackers coach. Saturday provided the first weekend for recruits to see the brand-new vision.

The NCAA dead period begins Monday, Feb. 3 and will last until March 2. No on-campus or off-campus contact will be allowed. 

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