USC not included as 5-star OLB Justin Flowe names top 4 schools

Justin Flowe, one of the most heralded and coveted prospects in the country, created considerable anticipation by announcing he would trim his lengthy list of suitors to four on Friday, revealing the finalists on which he'd focus over the remainder of his recruitment.

As one of his mentors tweeted out a preemptive message to college coaches that he wouldn't be divulging any hints on that list until its release, many programs from coast to coast -- including USC and its fanbase -- were no doubt on edge a bit awaiting the announcement.

It was perceived that USC had a lot of work to do still to sway him, but the general expectation was the Trojans would at least be in the final group.

Instead, Flowe named Georgia, Clemson, Miami and Oregon as his finalists.

Flowe, the 5-star Upland High School standout ranked the top outside linebacker and No. 2 overall prospect in this class, recently returned from an impressionable visit to reigning national champion Clemson.

As for the Trojans, Flowe had consistently maintained he wants to see USC rebound from its 5-7 finish last fall if the program is going to be a true contender in the end.

"[I want to see them] have a better record because their record wasn't that good last year. They're really having a coaching problem over there at USC so we want to see what's going on with that," Flowe told TrojanSports.com in June. "If the season goes good with them then my opinion might change with them. I still like them, though, a lot."

The USC staff, which as been recruiting Flowe for years, surely won't give up on its pursuit as a result of his top 4 list, but the Trojans' top target now certainly seems like more of a longshot.

His interest in the SEC and ACC powers has been well known, but the word around Flowe's camp is that there is still a decision to be made as to whether it's in his best interest to go to school so far from home. That was one of the factors believed to be working in USC's favor. It remains to be seen how that will play out, as even Oregon -- the only school on his list outside of the Southeast -- is still a haul from Upland.

Flowe has said previously he doesn't expect to announce a commitment decision until after the season and as everyone knows in recruiting, a lot can happen in a matter of months.

But, no, this was not the news USC was hoping for Friday.