Even with the upheaval in the USC football program following the firing of head coach Clay Helton, there is at least one recruit who is more interested in the program than he was before.
Five-star wide receiver Kevin Coleman announced on Sept. 16 that USC will be his final official visit. He plans to take the trip on Nov. 20.
His relationship with new interim head coach Donte Williams gave him the push to put the Trojans back into consideration.
“As soon as he got the head coaching job, it was a no-brainer,” Coleman said to WeAreSC.com’s Scott Schrader. “I had to put them back in the top-5.”
Williams has been recruiting Coleman since the receiver was a freshman and the coach was part of the Oregon staff. Coleman said that Williams got him an offer at Oregon and got him an offer at USC on Williams’ first day on the Trojans’ staff.
“He always looked out for me, so I had to pay him back,” Coleman said.
He did this interview with Schrader following a game in which he showed an example of why he is the No. 22 player in the 247Sports composite.
On Friday, the senior returned two punts for touchdowns to lead St. Mary’s (Saint Louis, Mo.) to a 54-12 victory.
The first touchdown was a 47-yard return in the second quarter and the second was a 50-yard return in the third quarter, according to STL Today.
“The first one, I had to hit (the hole). It was all or nothing. I had to believe in myself,” Coleman said to STL Today after the game. “My teammates gave me great blocks, so I had to do them a favor and score.”
In February, Coleman said his top eight schools were Alabama, Arizona State, Florida State, Georgia, Oregon, Texas, Penn State and USC. Saying that he added USC “back” into the mix would imply that he has since trimmed the list.
247Sports reports that Coleman is warm on Alabama, Arizona State, Florida State, Oregon, Texas and USC.