Micah Banuelos grew up an Oregon Ducks fan, spent a lot of time over the years thinking about the potential of playing for that program one day, and yet on Monday the three-star offensive lineman announced his commitment to USC, choosing the Trojans over the Ducks and Texas A&M.
So how did USC win that recruiting battle at a priority position of need?
Well, a few factors ...
"It was hard because growing up I was always an Oregon fan, and just to think of the bigger picture of 'SC going to the Big Ten and, shoot ... I talked to a lot of players that didn't go to 'SC and some of the players that did, and it was basically just all praise for the program," Banuelos told TrojanSports.com about his decision. "Coach Henson played a big part in that too, just joining my recruitment process so early and following me throughout that process. I knew that he would stick with me throughout college."
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Those were two of the major reasons why Banuelos, from Burien, Wash., picked the Trojans.
He becomes the first commit for USC to specifically highlight the Trojans' move to the Big Ten as a key factor in his decision.
"The Big Ten was just like a cherry on top. It's just going to be a lot more competition, more people watching, more exposure," he said. "And just to experience it how 'SC is going to expand in the next couple of years because of this Big Ten deal is going to be real big."
It will also be interesting to see if that becomes more of a recruiting edge over Oregon -- which has battled with USC for many of the top West Coast prospects -- as long as the Ducks' future conference affiliation remains uncertain.
But perhaps even more important for Banuelos was the other reason he mentioned -- his relationship with USC offensive coordinator/OL coach Josh Henson, who gave him his first big-time offer when he was at Texas A&M and then quickly re-offered the offensive guard upon taking the job with the Trojans.
"Man, just for him to leave A&M and to just offer me right when he got to the job it shows a lot. I know he really wants me," Banuelos said. "He's a good coach, him and [offensive graduate assistant] Zach Crabtree, I feel like they're both like friends to me, but at the same time they know how to coach and they know when to get serious."
And then there is, of course, the Lincoln Riley factor.
It really resonated with Banuelos to hear the USC assistant coaches talk about leaving programs they were comfortable at to join Riley in Los Angeles because they believed in his vision.
"Lincoln Riley's won a lot of titles, won a lot of championships. For him to handpick each and every one of these coaches, and I met a lot of coaches who were at a good place and they chose to leave because they talked to Lincoln Riley and they know what he's bringing to the program," Banuelos said.
Overall, he added that he felt a strong "family energy" within the program when he took his June 17-19 official visit.
Put it all together and that's why Banuelos reached the conclusion that USC was the best choice for his future. He had delayed his initial commitment date earlier this month and put a lot of thought into it with his family to make sure he was making the right decision.
It's a significant recruiting win for the Trojans, who needed to bring in a large offensive line class. Banuelos gives the program three 2023 OL commits, along with three-star OTs Amos Talalele and Tobias Raymond, with the potential to still add to that group.
USC is up to 13 commits overall now, with two coming in July (four-star LB Tackett Curtis being the other). Banuelos is the second prospect from Washington to commit to the Trojans, following three-star tight end/H-back Kade Eldridge.
