College Football's No. 1 ATH Recruit Makes Major Decision Amid Growing Flip Rumors

Honor Fa'alave-Johnson has provided a critical update on his recruitment as mutiple powerhouses attempt to flip him from USC.

USC Trojans cheerleaders during the first half against the Colorado Buffaloes at Folsom Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Just because a player is verbally committed to a college football program, does not mean that other schools have to or will stop recruiting them.

In this modern era of NIL, a player committing to another program might only make other schools up the ante in a big way. A prime example of this is the recruitment of the No. 1 overall athlete in the country and five-star Cathedral Catholic (CA) product, Honor Fa'alave-Johnson.

Despite being committed to the USC Trojans since March, there have been plenty of murmurs surrounding his recruitment, with the Oregon Ducks reportedly making a huge push for him.

Honor Fa'alave-Johnson announces the latest on his USC commitment

When speaking with Rivals' recruiting insider Adam Gorney, Fa'alave-Johnson made it clear that the speculation of him flipping is all media-centric, and that he is firmly locked into his commitment with USC.

"That’s just media,” Fa’alave-Johnson told Gorney. “I’m locked in.”

Fa’alave-Johnson's father did tell Gorney that programs are still reaching out to his son about a possible flip, but affirmed that the two-way star "loves" where is at.

USC head coach Lincoln Riley watches a play against Michigan during the first half at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

As it stands right now, Lincoln Riley and the Trojans have the No. 12 class in the country just one cycle after putting together the No. 1 class in the country.

Although USC has bagged mixed results on the field, there has been a clear surge in recruiting success with a lot of the credit needing to go to general manager Chad Bowden. Before signing on to the USC staff, Bowden worked at Notre Dame where he was an ace recruiter, credited with helping land notable players such as CJ Carr, Will Black and Kenny Minchey.

It's hard to imagine that Bowden didn't play a huge role in Fa'alave-Johnson's commitment, and it appears that he is locked in for the long haul.

Now, the biggest challenge that USC will have to face when it comes to Fa'alave-Johnson is figuring out the best way to maximize his skill set. Fa'alave-Johnson is one of the fastest players in the country, and could easily play both safety and running back at the next level.

This past season he had 150 carries for 1,532 yards and 23 touchdowns, while also adding 35 catches for 564 yards and another seven scores. Defensively, he racked up 40 tackles, picked off three passes and forced a fumble.

It's a great problem to have, to say the least, and even with Fa’alave-Johnson saying he is all in on USC, don't expect for schools like Oregon and Texas to stop pushing for him.