The final blow in a tough recruiting cycle for USC became official Sunday night.

Longtime Trojans 4-star wide receiver commit Puka Nacua (Orem HS/Orem, Utah) is heading to Washington, he revealed live on his local KSL TV nightly sportscast a little before 10:30 p.m. PT.

As his recruitment became more and more conflicted over the last month and a half, Nacua continued to reiterate that he committed to USC for a reason, that the Trojans were in the lead but that several challengers were lurking.

As he took official visits to Washington, UCLA and Oregon in the final two weeks before National Signing Day, it became clear that decision was only getting tougher. So tough that Nacua and his family decided he wasn't ready to announce his decision when the moment came Wednesday.

So the announcement was reset, ultimately for Sunday night, but that too would be delayed 45 minutes as he and his family traveled through a snowstorm to the news station.

With hats for Washington, USC, Oregon, UCLA, Utah and BYU set out in front of him, and his family, high school coach and a couple teammates behind him, Nacua pulled on the Huskies hat and officially dealt the final setback to a tough final month for the Trojans' recruiting efforts.

"I didn't want to sign to a school where I wasn't 100 percent in or me and mom weren't on the exact same page, so that's kind of where we [decided to forgo] signing on Feb. 6," Nacua said, adding that the family got on the same page about the decision Friday or Saturday.

"It's been a blessing. It's a been a crazy experience. Never at the beginning of my high school career did I think recruiting, the day I picked what school I would go to would end up like this, but it's been a blessing to go through this journey. ... It's definitely been a crazy journey here."

USC at one point had one of the best 2019 WR classes in the country with five projected additions. Then 5-star early enrollee Bru McCoy (Mater Dei HS) stunned everyone by transferring to Texas a little more than two weeks after starting classes at USC. And now Nacua, who had been committed to the Trojans since the summer, is heading north.

USC lost several key recruiting battles to Washington this cycle, including 4-star cornerback Trent McDuffie (St. John Bosco HS) and 4-star defensive end Laiatu Latu (Jesuit HS/Carmichael, Calif.).

The Trojans also lost 5-star St. John Bosco HS cornerback Chris Steele (Florida signee) to a de-commitment in October, and then had 3-star Lawndale HS running back Jordan Wilmore (Utah signee) de-commit last month.

And now Nacua, who was named the national offensive player of the year at the All-American Bowl in San Antonio, Texas, last month and had 103 catches for 2,336 yards and 26 touchdowns as a senior for Orem HS, setting a slew of single-season and career state receiving records in Utah.

USC still has a nice group of WRs coming in with 4-star prospects Kyle Ford (Orange Lutheran HS) and Drake London (Moorpark HS) and 3-star standout Munir McClain (Jserra Catholic HS).

But it was a tough finish for the Trojans. They were also the leader for 4-star offensive tackle Enokk Vimahi (Kahuku, Hawaii) in early January before he eventually ended up picking Ohio State on National Signing Day, and they failed to land a much-needed second running back in this class after Wilmore's de-commitment.

In the end, the Trojans' overall signing class -- which was already the lowest USC has ever finished in the Rivals recruiting rankings -- drops one spot to No. 19, with Washington surging ahead. The previous low for USC in the Rivals rankings, which date back to 2002, was No. 13 in 2002 and 2013.

USC signed 26 players in all, but unlike in recent years the program landed no 5-star prospects, 10 4-star signees, 13 3-stars and 3 2-stars.