Andy Enfield and his USC basketball program reeled in another blue-chip recruit on Wednesday as five-star guard Isaiah Collier committed to the Trojans over offers from Michigan and Cincinnati, among others. Collier is ranked as the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2023 recruiting class by 247Sports, and he's proven to be one of the biggest late risers in his class after ranking in the 20s and 30s throughout most of his high school career.
With the commitment, USC moves from No. 33 in the team rankings to No. 10 at 247Sports, edging out Kansas for the final spot in the top 10 and ranking second among all Pac-12 programs behind Oregon, which sits at No. 8. Should things hold, it would give USC its second top-10 class in as many years and third class in the top 10 since 2019.
Collier's commitment also tracks as part of a continued pattern of recruiting wins under Enfield for top-shelf talents. Since Enfield took over in 2013, USC has now secured five commitments from five-star recruits in the 247Sports rankings including one in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and now 2022. The last two -- Evan Mobley and Collier -- ranked as the No. 1 prospects at their respective positions.
Collier is the second top-10 player in the 2023 class to commit this week joining No. 2 overall prospect DJ Wagner, who on Monday committed to Kentucky over Louisville. There are no other prospects in the 2023 class rated inside the top 10 who have not declared commitments, but we are still awaiting decisions from three -- including Bronny James -- who currently rank inside the top 50. With the early signing period ending Wednesday, it's possible those decisions will be delayed until the regular signing period in the spring.
Here are a few takeaways from Collier's commitment and what it means for the Trojans.
USC building a loaded class
USC's class moved from the 30s to No. 10 in the 247Sports rankings with Collier joining the fold. His commitment gives USC its first commitment from a No. 1 recruit in the modern recruiting era should things hold, and moves the Trojans into elite territory with a class comprised of two four-stars (Arrinten Page and Silar Demary Jr.) to go with Collier.
USC's recruiting power under Enfield
Since Enfield left Florida Gulf Coast for USC nearly a decade ago, USC has steadily built itself into one of the more formidable recruiting powerhouses in the market. Collier becomes the fifth five-star in the 247Sports rankings to pick USC in the last six years, and the highest-rated (by ranking, not by rating) of that bunch. 7-footer Evan Mobley holds his crown still as the highest-rated signee in program history with a perfect 100 rating at 247Sports.
Here's the other blue-chippers (five-stars) who have signed with Enfield and USC the last decade. The list doesn't even include other massive gets like Onyeka Okongwu, Vince Iwuchukwu or Chimezie Metu, all of whom were highly-ranked four-star prospects:
- Isaiah Collier -- No. 1 recruit in 2023
- Evan Mobley -- No. 3 recruit in 2021
- Isaiah Mobley -- No. 24 recruit in 2020
- Kevin Porter Jr. -- No. 27 recruit in 2018
- Charles O'Bannon -- No. 29 recruit in 2017
Recruiting buddies
In the recruiting world, the idea of landing a packaged deal -- i.e. landing one stud recruit who has a similarly highly touted friend -- is often an ideal that doesn't work out. But USC pulled off the coup of securing Collier in large part because it sold him successfully on playing next to his best friend, Arrinten Page, who doubles as a teammate with him at Wheeler in Marietta, Georgia. Page, a 6-foot-9 center, committed to the Trojans in early October, at which point it seemed like fate that the two would team up together in Southern California. Mission accomplished.
