REDONDO BEACH, Calif. -- The defensive end that can dunk effortlessly appears to be stepping off the hardwood for foreseeable future, which could be a scary thought for the area’s offensive linemen.
ESPN 300 prospect Keisean Lucier-South (Orange, Calif./Lutheran), who punched his ticket to The Opening on Sunday at the Los Angeles NFTC, has been a two-sport standout throughout his prep career. Yet with his potential on the gridiron seemingly untapped, the four-star athlete intends to focus entirely on honing those skills in the coming months. In past years, Lucier-South has juggled football and basketball in the offseason.
“I already told my coaches I’m only going to be focusing on football and recruiting this summer,” said Lucier-South, the defensive line MVP at the first NFTC of the year. “I’m going to be too busy. I want to focus on my football team, too, since I’m going to be one of the leaders now on a young team.”
The full concentration on football could have college coaches everywhere grinning from ear to ear, including those at USC. Lucier-South was not among the large group of locals that visited campus for the school’s Elite Junior Day in early February because he had a basketball game that day. He intends to check out the Trojans under new coach Steve Sarkisian sometime in the next two or three weeks.
“I really want to meet the new coaching staff,” Lucier-South said. “Coach Chris Wilson has sent me letters lately. I like him and, knowing he’s coming from Georgia, I want to have a good relationship with him.
“Since Coach Sark was at Washington I’ve had a great relationship with him. I could feel that. With the staff now at USC, I want to get the same feeling there.”
The 6-foot-4, 200-pound Lucier-South intends to take three official visits in the fall, followed by two more in the weeks leading up to national signing day. He does not plan to make a decision before then, if only for the fear that it would be a temporary choice.
But there was one decision he was comfortable making. With the admission that he might still be a bit raw as a pass rusher, Lucier-South believes that momentarily giving up basketball could pay off down the road.
“Some schools want me to play defensive end, and some schools want me at outside linebacker,” Lucier-South said. “USC wants me to play both. That’s what they really want me to do. This upcoming season I’m going to play outside linebacker, so this summer I’m going to focus on my backpedaling and all of that. Getting away from basketball should help.”
Athlete picks up USC offer, gains clarity
The running back position could be described as thin on the West Coast in the 2015 class, perhaps even thinner than the 2014 group that was headlined by Oregon signee Royce Freeman and Oklahoma signee Joe Mixon.
As a result, the Trojans would appear to be targeting three-star athlete Malik Lovette (Redlands, Calif./Redlands East Valley), who some have projected as a slot receiver at the next level. Lovette landed a USC offer last week while unofficially visiting campus.
“They are offering me as a running back,” the 5-11, 185-pound Lovette said. “They did make it clear that I would be going back and forth between running back and slot receiver. They plan to use me mainly at running back, though. They mentioned that the offense we run at my high school is very similar, so it’s a perfect fit.”
Lovette, who has bagged offers from the likes of California, Notre Dame, Texas A&M, UCLA and Washington, said the Trojans are definitely in his top five moving forward.
“It was my first ever visit to any campus, so just to be able to see the facilities, going to the locker room and getting a broad view of the entire campus was the greatest experience,” Lovette said. “It was great to have my No. 1 fan, my mom, there with me. She was able to give me some pointers on meeting the coaches, getting a feel for how academics are in college and how everything works. I learned a lot.”
Lovette had eight total touchdowns as a junior last fall but got only 49 carries with a senior running back shouldering the load. He had a team-leading 47 receptions.
A decision does not appear imminent as the options keep piling up for the versatile recruit.
“It’s great knowing that I have the opportunity to pick from out-of-state colleges and basically choose where I want to go,” Lovette said. “I have always told my mom I would love to experience something new and play football out-of-state just to see how it is, but when it comes down to it, we’ll see how it goes.”
Trojans impress out-of-state lineman
ESPN 300 offensive tackle Keenan Walker (Scottsdale, Ariz./Chaparral) unofficially visited USC and UCLA on Saturday before showing well at the NFTC on Sunday. But whether those stops were enough to convince him to leave his home state for college remains to be seen.
“I like California football, but I’m an Arizona dude,” Walker said. “I’m going to do what’s best for me. I don’t really know what that is yet.”
The 6-5, 258-pound Walker intends to verbally commit at the end of his senior season, and the Trojans are undoubtedly in the running for the No. 2 recruit in Arizona and No. 144 prospect overall.
“The USC visit went very well,” Walker said. “I got a chance to check out the facilities, the weight room and walk around campus. Everything was nice. I got a chance to talk a little football with the coaches.
“Nothing has changed for me since I got the USC offer in October. I love USC for the tradition they have there. I love it there.”
The future at offensive line was unclear when the Trojans initially offered Walker. USC closed strong in the 2014 class by signing a loaded group that included No. 4-rated guard Damien Mama, No. 5 Viane Talamaivao and No. 8 Toa Lobendahn. Sarkisian also brought on line coach Tim Drevno from the San Francisco 49ers.
“Coach Drevno is a very, very good coach,” Walker said. “I love the way he coaches and love everything about him. He’s an amazing coach. We got a chance to sit down and talk football. He likes his linemen to work and that’s what I’m ready to do. I’m ready to work.”