The USC Trojans have held the nation’s No. 1 2026 recruiting class for quite some time. That title took a bit of a hit today, but not necessarily in a negative way. In fact, it will have enormous implications for the current roster and also open up more opportunities for the 2026 class.
Earlier today, the No. 1 cornerback in the 2026 class, and USC Trojans commit, RJ Sermons, announced that he would be reclassifying and will be enrolling at USC in July.
“What excites me about beginning college now is that I will be developing and learning on another level,” Sermons told On3. “It’s time to take the next step on my journey and continue to chase greatness. Me and my family talked about it and believe this is the best thing for me to do.”
RJ Sermons’ father, who played at USC, making this even more special, told 247 Sports:
“There is definitely room at that position for someone to step up and be the guy. Sometimes it takes playing in the Coliseum for that guy to take over and say, ‘I’m not coming off the field. USC also plays seven to 12 defensive backs sometimes. They rotate a lot of players in their secondary, but every team is looking for solid corners that can take at least 80 percent of the snaps.”
What RJ Sermons’ Reclassifying Means For USC Trojans Recruiting
This is massive news for a number of reasons.
For starters, this was never a real concern, but with signing day still months away, other top programs would have continued lurking in an attempt to flip Sermons last minute. This can no longer happen as Sermons will be enrolled and on the current roster in just a few months.
He will immediately compete for playing time and will begin his development with some of the best coaches in all of college football.
The USC Trojans’ cornerback room is stacked with talent, but as Sermons Sr. alluded to, it is pretty wide open in terms of competition. Here is how the room projects at the moment.
- DJ Harvey
- DeCarlos Nicholson
- Prophet Brown
- Marcelles Williams
- Braylon Conley
- Isaiah Rubin
- Trestin Castro (FR)
- RJ Sermons (FR)
- Alex Graham (FR)
- James Johnson (FR)
- Kevin Longstreet
This move also has huge implications for the 2026 class.
There is no arguing that USC had the strongest cornerback group in the entire 2026 cycle. Headlined by RJ Sermons, the No. 1 CB in the class, they also have the commitments of Elbert Hill, the 3rd-ranked CB, Brandon Lockhart, the 10th-ranked CB, and Joshua Holland, the 28th-ranked CB.
With Sermons still in the class, theoretically, they probably could have added one more corner, but likely would have been done with those four.
Also Read: Another USC Trojans Elite Commitment Shuts Down Recruitment
With Sermons now reclassified, it opens up another spot to go after one of the elite CBs still available. Players such as Brandon Arrington (On3’s No. 1 CB) and Davon Benjamin (4th-ranked) are both still uncommitted and have local ties to USC (Arrington has an official visit scheduled in June and plans to announce his decision on July 5th).
There is also the potential to flip 6th-ranked CB Havon Finney from LSU. He is another local player from Sierra Canyon and had been trending well with the USC Trojans before committing to LSU recently.
The fact that the USC Trojans were able to get RJ Sermons on campus earlier than expected, and have new flexibility to add even more talent in 2026, is a massive win for Lincoln Riley and the program.
Things are just heating up as June is going to be a very busy month in the recruiting department.