USC has been aggressive on the transfer market since the end of the 2020 season, and that continued Tuesday as Memphis wide receiver Tahj Washington announced on Twitter that he is transferring to the Trojans.
Washington was second on Memphis this fall with 743 receiving yards, averaging a team-best 17.3 yards on his 43 receptions over 11 games as a redshirt freshman. He scored 6 touchdowns through the air and another rushing.
The 5-foot-11, 175-pound playmaker is originally from Marshall, Texas. He was an underrated 2-star prospect in the 2019 class who played in four games as freshman, protecting his redshirt, before breaking out in his second year.
Washington had three 100-yard games this fall. He broke out in his third game of the season with 7 passes for 131 yards in Memphis' big 50-49 win over against UCF. He then had 2 catches for 104 yards, including a 92-yard touchdown in a loss to a top-10 Cincinnati team (see video below). And he finished strong with 8 catches for 105 yards in a 25-10 win over FAU in the Montgomery Bowl. He was named to the Football Writers Association of America's Freshman All-American team.
Washington is the fifth transfer addition in the last few months for the Trojans, following DT Ishmael Sopsher (from Alabama), S Xavion Alford (from Texas), RB Keaontay Ingram (from Texas) and WR K.D. Nixon (from Colorado).
The NCAA is expected to move forward soon with a one-time transfer waiver beginning in the 2021-22 athletic year, meaning athletes wouldn't have to sit out a year following a transfer (or petition for a special wavier to play immediately).
If Washington is eligible for the Trojans next season, he'd be joining a receiving corps that lost stars Amon-Ra St. Brown and Tyler Vaughns but one that retains plenty of depth still with star Drake London, expected breakout redshirt sophomore Bru McCoy, highly-regarded sophomore Gary Bryant Jr., the aforementioned Nixon, three intriguing freshmen in top-100 national recruit Kyron Ware-Hudson, 4-star Michael Jackson III and 3-star Joseph Manjack, and fellow returning players like John Jackson III and Kyle Ford who are still looking to earn a larger role.
