USC commit Julien Simon talks about connection with Trojans CB Chris Steele
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Newest USC 4-star linebacker commit Julien Simon chose the Trojans for a multitude of reasons, as he explained Sunday following his announcement.
He felt USC offered him the best all-around package of education, football and opportunity in a big city, and he especially emphasized the strong relationships and trust he had built with the coaching staff.
It didn't hurt, either, that Simon is also already close to a couple of current Trojans, who helped him through this process.
Speaking on the Trojan Talk podcast earlier this week, Simon highlighted his connection with sophomore cornerback Chris Steele and redshirt sophomore linebacker Eli'jah Winston.
"They're like two older brothers," Simon said.
RELATED: Listen to the full Trojan Talk podcast interview with 4-star commit Julien Simon
"I have a really, really good relationship with Chris Steele. he's like a mentor to me, bigger brother, someone that's going to be a part of this," Simon said. "He's going to be a part of my journey at USC, and he shows me a lot of love. He texted me right after and was like 'Welcome home family,' because it truly feels like I'll be at home just because of the relationship I built."
Their connection actually formed as opponents on the 7-on-7 circuit a couple years ago when Steele was a 5-star prospect and one of the most high-profile cornerbacks nationally in the 2019 class. Simon was just a freshman still entering that spring 7-on-7 season, as his team headed to Los Angeles for the Adidas regional tournament.
"We played against each other, actually, which is funny, and he saw my work ethic, he saw that I was going to be a special player. We just came together like, 'Yeah, I like your game.' It was kind of just respect at first," Simon explained. "And then I would later find myself in these shoes picking up offers and offers and we kind of just stayed close as a unit, as brothers. As my recruitment picked up from USC a couple months ago, he was always in my ear about it. He's just always a person that, even if it's not about football in general, we would just talk. I would play video games with him. He's really close with me. He's just another like brother figure that I can have in my life."
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