USC lands WR transfer, former top-50 prospect Jake Smith from Texas

Wide receiver and former top-50 national prospect Jake Smith announced Tuesday that he is transferring from Texas to USC.

Smith, who is originally from Scottsdale, Ariz., took a visit to USC on the final weekend of June, cementing his decision.

Ranked the No. 4 athlete and No. 48 overall national prospect in the 2019 class, Smith played two seasons for the Longhorns but still has four seasons of eligibility remaining with the NCAA giving all athletes a free year in 2020 due to the pandemic.

So effectively, Smith offsets one of the Trojans' wide receiver needs in this 2022 class. USC was hoping to sign four WRs and will now only need three.

Smith played immediately at Texas as a freshman in 2019, serving as a slot receiver and starting punt returner. He caught 25 passes for 274 yards and 6 touchdowns.

As a sophomore last fall, the 6-foot, 200-pound playmaker caught 23 passes for 294 yards and 3 TDs while being limited to seven games due to injury.

Smith is now the fourth former Longhorn to transfer to USC this year, following running back Keaontay Ingram, safety Xavion Alford and tight end Malcolm Epps. Overall, he's the ninth transfer the Trojans have added with all but one originally from the state of Texas, where USC's coaching staff has deep recruiting ties.

In all, the Trojans have added DT Ishmael Sopsher (from Alabama), Ingram, Alford, WR K.D. Nixon (Colorado, but originally from the state of Texas), WR Tahj Washington (Memphis, but also from the state of Texas), Epps, S Chris Thompson Jr. (Auburn, but from Texas originally), RB Darwin Barlow (TCU) and now Smith.

Again, while wide receiver isn't a pressing need for the 2021 roster, the addition of Smith essentially fills one of the needs for the 2022 recruiting class because of the amount of eligibility he has remaining. The Trojans have one WR committed so far in 2022 -- 3-star Kevin Green Jr. -- so they'll now look to add two more in the class.