With the election season finally behind us, I’m sure that everyone would rather not hear the term “Battleground States” ever again, but the USC Trojans have attempted to plant their flag in SEC country and have definitely taken their share of licks.
Multiple blue-chip prospects from the states of Georgia, Florida, and others in the South have committed to the Trojans early in the process only to ultimately flip to SEC or Southern programs.
One big flip that the Trojans were able to accomplish was that of LB Jadon Perlotte.
The Buford, Georgia prospect had been committed to the Georgia Bulldogs since 2022 until the USC Trojans were able to flip his commitment this past July.
USC still feels strongly about his commitment ahead of the early signing period, but a new program has emerged with a lot of momentum.
USC Trojans At Risk Of Losing Jadon Perlotte To Tennessee
According to On3’s Chad Simmons, there is growing buzz that the Tennessee Volunteers have a real shot of flipping Perlotte.
“They’ve been having communication for weeks during the second half of the season,” Simmons said Tuesday afternoon. “He has always had Tennessee up there. We once thought he would flip from Georgia to Tennessee back in the summer. So this is nothing new, but there is some strong communication going on there late in the process.
… USC is aware he is talking to them, and both schools are battling late. But the optimism is picking up in Knoxville that they have a chance to pull it off.”
After losing LB Ty Jackson to Florida just last month, it would certainly sting to lose another top linebacker to an SEC school.
Also Read: USC Trojans 2025 Recruiting Class
The 6’3, 200-pound Perlotte is the 44th-ranked LB in the country, per On3. The Trojans will do what they can to hang on to the talented LB, but if it keeps trending that he may flip, they will need to set their sights on other LB prospects before signing day tomorrow.
Another local prospect that would garner a ton of buzz is Noah Mikhail out of La Verne. USC was in his final three before he ultimately chose to commit to Texas A&M back in June. SC and A&M have traded prospects over the last month, could Mikhail be the next one? Mikhail is the 9th-ranked LB.
Another longshot is Ohio State commit Riley Pettijohn. USC was in Pettijohn’s final two, and there was a strong indication that he was going to choose USC after his family came out with big-time support of Coach Entz. He still seems locked in with the Buckeyes, but you never know if one final push could change things. Pettijohn is the 2nd-ranked LB in the 2025 class.
For now, Jadon Perlotte is still committed to the USC Trojans. Let’s hope it stays that way.