USC Football Notebook

-I spoke with someone very close to the program yesterday and was told that USC's summer program has been outstanding. USC's players have done more this summer than any school my source has ever been around. Hopefully there will be a pay-off for the hard work.

-Cheraw High School DE Cliff Matthews will visit USC unofficially next Tuesday. At that time, the depth chart will be broken down for him. He will meet with Steve Spurrier, David Reaves, Brad Lawing and Tyrone Nix.

-Another note on Matthews. It appears that Matthews Basketball Coach at Cheraw has been pushing him to UGA. So much so, that Matthews has gone from USC as being his clear leader, to now being third behind both Georgia and Clemson. I was told yesterday that Coach Harrelson told Clemson assistant coach Dabo Sweeney "I want Cliff to go to Georgia, but if he doesn't choose Georgia, I'll make sure he doesn't choose South Carolina." Things have come to a boiling point with this situation. USC has contacted both the Athletic Director and Principal at Cheraw High School to address this situation.

This situation has become reminiscent of the Derek Watson saga. Derek Watson had committed to USC in December of 1998 after an in-home visit by new Head Coach Lou Holtz. Watson later changed his commitment to Tennessee. It was later discovered that his high school coaches and the principal at Palmetto High School had been steering him to Tennessee. USC intervened in the situation and Watson eventually signed with USC and the rest is history.

Hopefully USC can get the Matthews situation resolved and he will commit to USC, the school he has favored for much of the recruiting process.

-A certain USC assistant coach is looking into Clifton Geathers eligibility. If he is qualified, USC is going to make a run at him. Geathers committed to UGA late last spring, but has not signed a National Letter of Intent, and cannot sign one, because April 15th is the deadline to sign for football.

-Travian Robertson has scheduled a visit to Clemson for July 21st. Whether he takes that visit remains to be seen. I think Robertson knows where he is going, and it is USC. Clemson has done a superb job recruiting him, however, on his first trip to Pickens County, Head Coach Tommy Bowden was out of town. assitant Coach Billy Napier wants Robertson to returnand meet face to face with Bowden before finalizing his decision. Make no mistake about it, Clemson will roll out the red carpet for the Rivals 100 defensive end. However, in the end, I still anticipate Robertson choosing the Gamecocks.

-It appears now that USC QB target Stephen Garcia will not make his unofficial visit to USC until after the Elite 11 QB Camp. USC leads for the Rivals 100 dual threat quarterback and should secure his verbal commitment sometime in August.

-It is possible that all of USC's incoming defensive linemen could see action in 2006. DE Casper Brinkley will likely be a starter, and DE's Eric Norwood and Terrance Campbell will be given every opportunity to play their way into the rotation. USC defensive line coach Brad Lawing would like to get at least 10 snaps per game from mammoth DT Kenrick Ellis.

-USC is also in strong position with WR Jason Barnes, and barring a change of heart on his trip to Chapel Hill this weekend, I expect the 6'4 197 pound WR to commit to the Gamecocks as early as next week. Barnes has flown under the radar this summer and has played behind Mohammad Massaquoi(UGA) and Hakim Nix(UNC) during his career at Independence High School. Barnes will be elevated to 4 star status as soon as the rankings are adjusted during the season. USC WR coach Steve Spurrier, Jr. thinks Barnes is a must have prospect.

-USC is in strong position to land commitments from a pair of Florida WR prospects in Ocala Trinity Catholic's Dion Lecorn, Naples Baron Collier product Matt Clements.