TORRANCE, Calif. -- USC benefitted from its proximity to the big adidas West Coast Invitational 7-on-7 tournament at El Camino College this weekend, drawing in a host of big-time prospects to watch its Saturday spring practice and get some valuable face time with the coaches.
And the Trojans used that opportunity to reinforce to 4-star wide receiver Jalen McMillan (San Joaquin Memorial High School/Fresno, Calif.) that he is a priority for the program in this 2020 class.
"They think I'm special, they want me really bad and they think I could be a playmaker and make a difference," McMillan told TrojanSports.com of the message he received from the staff.
RELATED: 4-star prospects Gary Bryant and Xavion Alford discuss USC visits | Trojans back in play for 4-star CB Darion Green-Warren
So does he in turn have real mutual interest in the Trojans?
"Yeah, it's USC," he said as if the question need not be asked. "You can't go wrong with USC."
McMillan joined the Ford Sports Performance (FSP) team out of Bellevue, Wash., on Sunday at the adidas tournament and helped the squad to a first-place finish in the loaded bracket.
His speed comes across so natural it looks like he's gliding with ease as he slips behind the defense for big plays -- and he made plenty of them Sunday.
Listed at 6-foot-2, 175 pounds, he is ranked the No. 15 WR in the 2020 class and the No. 73 overall prospect.
USC came short on its WR needs in the 2019 class after 5-star early enrollee Bru McCoy transferred to Texas in January and 4-star WR commit Puka Nacua then flipped to Washington in February, and the Trojans have been aggressive in pursuing wideouts in this current cycle.
McMillan would make a lot of sense for the program. He put out his top-10 list last month with USC included along with Alabama, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon and Washington.
Washington is recruiting him the hardest out of that group, he said.
"They're a great group of guys. Great city, great people, great fan base," he said of the Huskies.
McMillan is set to visit Oklahoma next week and plans to attend Notre Dame's spring game. Aside from that, he said his visit to USC on Saturday is the only other place he's been this spring.
He spent time with new offensive coordinator Graham Harrell, head coach Clay Helton and wide receivers coach Keary Colbert while meeting the rest of the news assistants as well.
In regard to Harrell, he said: "He's energetic. He knows how to throw the ball a lot, he knows how to get receivers the ball a lot and they're just energetic coaches -- I really like that."
McMillan doesn't plan to announce a commitment anywhere until his birthday, Dec. 7, but he does hope to narrow down his list to 5-6 schools on May 1, he said.
"Very tough. You've got prestigious programs everywhere, and you want to go here, you want to go there, but you've got to be honest with yourself," he said. "You've just got to trust yourself."
Another Texas offer ...
USC made the most of the Fast Houston 7-on-7 team's visit to campus Saturday.
After offering 4-star safety Xavion Alford (Shadow Creek HS/Pearland, Texas) in the middle of last week, followed by a pair of his Fast Houston teammates from St. Louis -- 4-star WR Jordan Johnson (De Smet Jesuit HS) and 4-star athlete/slot WR Mookie Cooper (Trinity Catholic HS) -- the Trojans offered yet another Texas prospect.
Joshua Eaton, a 3-star athlete who stars at cornerback for MacArthur HS in Houston, tweeted out his offer Monday.
Meanwhile, Dwight McGlothern waits ...
Amidst that flurry of fresh offers to the Fast Houston 7-on-7 standouts, one member of that team who perhaps wanted a USC offer the most is still waiting and hoping.
Dwight McGlothern, a 4-star cornerback from Klein Oak HS in Houston, said he had a great visit to USC on Saturday and still wants to have a Trojans offer to consider at some point.
"They didn't offer me, but they've been recruiting me like from sophomore year. I'm still waiting on that, but we're going to see," he told TrojanSports.com on Sunday.
McGlothern, listed at 6-foot-2 and 190 pounds, is ranked the No. 13 corner in the 2020 class and the No. 136 prospect overall.
He put our a top 13 list over the summer including USC, hoping that would get the coaches' attention and prompt an offer. But he's still waiting while holding offers from other premier programs such as Alabama, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Penn State, Texas and more.
"I'm just looking forward to USC getting [involved]. It just fits me and I know I can help. Their tradition, I like it, man, I just like it," McGlothern said. "... I'm just still waiting on them to pull the trigger."
USC, which stocked up on DBs in the 2019 class, has offered only six cornerbacks -- if that is indeed what they view Eaton as -- and two hybrid safety/corner types so far in 2020 while being much more aggressive in its pursuit of safeties. See our breakdown here.
"I'm real patient. I like to play with my feet more than my hands. I can cover anybody," McGlothern said of his style.
He said he hears from new USC cornerbacks coach Greg Burns occasionally and more often from outside linebackers coach Joe DeForest.
As for his visit and what appeals to him so much about the Trojans ...
"It was very nice. I like how the campus is set up. It's very pretty and close to downtown. I love big-time stuff, I love big cities so it fits me," he said.
As McGlothern waits to see if USC decides to offer him, he added, "I think they know that I have interest now."
Preferred walk-on WR commits to USC
Chase Locke, a wide receiver from O'Connor High School in Helotes, Texas, received a preferred walk-on offer form USC recently, and on Monday he announced his intentions to join the Trojans.
Locke was listed at a senior on his school's MaxPreps roster last fall, meaning he's part of the 2019 class. He's listed at 6-foot-4, 185 pounds, and caught 36 passes for 672 yards and 8 touchdowns according to the MaxPreps stats.
USC is thin at wide receiver after an offseason exodus of transfers and is competing this spring with four scholarship wideouts with three more set to join in August.
Kenan Christon is fast
The first thing anyone mentions when talking about USC 3-star running back signee Kenan Christon (Madison HS/San Diego) is his speed.
Well, here's a sneak peak for Trojans fans.
