USC gets commitment from three-star defensive end prospect Colin Mobley

After adding four commitments through a quarantined April, USC is well on its way to similar success under lockdown in May.

Colin Mobley, a three-star defensive end from Maryland, committed to USC on Friday, giving the Trojans their third commitment this month and 12th this cycle. His decision comes five days after another top out-of-state target, four-star linebacker Julien Simon, pledged to USC.

With a dozen commitments in its 2021 class, nine of whom are considered four-star prospects, the Trojans own the best recruiting class in the Pac-12 — and fifth-best in the nation, according to the 247Sports composite rankings. That’s 49 spots better than the program’s 2020 class, which consisted of two four-star prospects and 13 signees overall.

Mobley is the first defensive end to commit to the 2021 class, but he’s unlikely to be the last. USC is expected to face serious turnover along its defensive line next offseason, when tackles Jay Tufele, Marlon Tuipulotu and Brandon Pili and ends Connor Murphy and Caleb Tremblay all graduate or declare for the NFL draft.

USC remains in the hunt for two of the best defensive line prospects in the nation. Corona Centennial defensive end and No. 1 overall recruit Korey Foreman decommitted from Clemson and immediately named USC as one of his favorites, while Louisiana five-star defensive tackle Maason Smith is also seriously considering USC.