The USC Trojans immediately have made their presence felt down in Southeastern Conference country for the 2027 class. Including proactively pursuing a rising talent already courted by numerous SEC powers. Edge rusher Zane Rowe tells Sam Spiegelman of On3/Rivals that the Trojans are entering his picture in aggressive fashion.
2027 SEC Target Claims USC is 'Recruiting me Hard' originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The USC Trojans immediately have made their presence felt down in Southeastern Conference country for the 2027 class. Including proactively pursuing a rising talent already courted by numerous SEC powers.
Edge rusher Zane Rowe tells Sam Spiegelman of On3/Rivals that the Trojans are entering his picture in aggressive fashion. Spiegelman revealed USC head coach Lincoln Riley has been in "heavy pursuit" of the four-star from Guyer High in Denton, Texas.
The 6-foot-5, 256-pound Rowe stated that Riley's call surprised him. Arizona State even called the towering defender around the same time USC surfaced. The Sun Devils hold this edge: ASU has eight verbal commits from Rowe's home state for the 2026 class.
But Rowe shared why he got "excited" about his USC opportunity. Plus revealed how assertive USC is with contacting the defender.
"USC has definitely been recruiting me hard these past couple of weeks,” Rowe said to Spiegelman. “When Coach Riley hit my line, I was so excited and just caught by surprise.”
Riley and USC have swooped up Texas talent over the years. The Trojans' top-ranked 2026 class features Lone State State stars.
USC holds three verbal commits from that state. Four-star defensive lineman Jaimeon Winfield is the highest ranked Texas prospect on board for the Trojans. Wide receiver and fellow four-star Ethan "Boobie" Feaster added to the Lone Star talent for USC by verbally committing on the Fourth of July.
USC, though, still has the SEC gauntlet to scale if it wants Rowe to help ignite the 2027 class efforts in the Land of Troy.
Spiegelman shared Texas and Texas A&M have hosted Rowe on "multiple occasions dating back to January." Fellow SEC representatives Georgia and Oklahoma are two more in contention early for Rowe. He was briefly committed to the latter SEC university before reopening his recruiting process. OU is still alive in trying to reclaim Rowe, though.
Rowe delivered nine sacks and tallied 19 tackles behind the line of scrimmage in 2024 for Guyer. He also forced four fumbles as a sophomore on varsity. He's since landed 35 total offers as of July 15.
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 15, 2025, where it first appeared.
Category: General Sports
