Top-ranked WR Amon-Ra St. Brown carves own path with USC commitment

Amon-Ra St. Brown has really known just one quarterback throughout his high school career. That might not change in college.

The five-star wide receiver from Santa Ana Mater Dei High formally announced Saturday at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl what he decided some time ago: He won’t be following in the footsteps of his older brothers but instead taking his talents to USC.

“I felt comfortable,” St. Brown said of his commitment. “I’ve always liked USC growing up, I love Coach (Clay) Helton as a person. I think he’s a great coach but even a better person. He’s real personable and a real honest guy. They have a dynamic offense, I feel, and their business school is pretty good. And the ability to graduate in three years is really attractive to me.”

And there’s JT Daniels. St. Brown, the top-rated player at his position and Rivals’ No. 3 overall prospect, will join his high school quarterback as a fall enrollee in the Trojans’ 2018 class. The pair rewrote record books while leading Mater Dei to section and state titles this past fall. We could see their rapport on full display sooner rather than later in cardinal and gold.

“Having JT there is huge,” St. Brown said. “To be able to play with him the last three years and having that chemistry, he knows how I run my routes, where I’m going to be. He sees certain coverages and knows how I like to run my routes. That’s pretty nice to have.

“I’m going to finish my second semester of high school and I’m excited to get to work.”

St. Brown (6-0, 190), USC’s lone wide receiver commit, is an important addition to a relatively small class that can only expand with the defection of current players. If USC’s history with five-star receivers is any indication, St. Brown figures to make a major impact.

His first order of business will be establishing himself amidst a deep receiving corps as the Trojans break in a new quarterback. That could ultimately be Daniels, who’s also looking to make an immediate splash in a wide open quarterback competition.

But St. Brown reminds that the primary objective for him and his fellow newcomers is to build upon USC's recent surge toward national contention.

“I think the class is pretty strong, but I think that has nothing to do with how your team turns out,” St. Brown opined. “Teams sometimes have the number one class and end up losing a lot of games. I think it’s just how they work together as a whole.

“I think it’s going to be a good team.”

It certainly got better Saturday.