TrojanWire - Marvin Austin

The 2008 HP All-American Defensive Team

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 09:11:39 -0800

Yesterday, we unveiled the All-American offensive squad, now here are the defenders:

Defensive End

1st Team–Everson Griffen, USC; Greg Middleton, Indiana

Middleton was a 2007 HP All-American and should have another great year. Griffen is a physical phenom who is ready to explode on the college scene.

2nd Team–Greg Hardy, Ole Miss; George Selvie, USF

3rd Team–Nick Reed, Oregon; Ricky Sapp, Clemson

Defensive Tackle

1st Team–Gerald McCoy, Oklahoma; Ricky Jean-Francois, LSU

McCoy will key the interior of the Sooner defense, while Jean-Francois is a unique jumbo athlete who should finally put it all together on the field (just like he did in the BCS Title Game) for a whole season.

2nd Team–Fili Moala, USC; Geno Atkins, Georgia

3rd Team–Brian Price, UCLA; Marvin Austin, North Carolina

Outside Linebacker

1st Team–Brian Toal, Boston College; Marcus Freeman, Ohio State

Seems like Toal has been making tackles forever. Freeman is underrated playing in the shadow of Laurinaitis.

2nd Team–Brian Cushing, USC; Rico McCoy, Tennessee

3rd Team–Clinton Snyder, Stanford; Ryan Reynolds, Oklahoma

Middle Linebacker

1st Team–Brandon Spikes, Florida

Spikes did it all for the Gators last year, accumulating 131 tackles, including 14.5 for losses.

2nd Team–Rey Maualuga, USC

3rd Team–James Laurinaitis, Ohio State

Cornerback

1st Team–Walter Thurmond, Oregon; Vontae Davis, Illinois

Thurmond had 103 tackles, 8 TFL, 18 deflections and 5 interceptions. Vontae Davis is a future first-rounder who was a shut-down corner for the Illini.

2nd Team–Malcolm Jenkins, Ohio State; Victor Harris, Virginia Tech

3rd Team–Syd’Quan Thompson, Cal; Tony Carter, Florida State

Strong Safety

1st Team–Patrick Chung, Oregon

Chung had 117 tackles and 7.5 TFL last year.

2nd Team–Chad Jones, LSU

3rd Team–Kevin Ellison, USC

Free Safety

1st Team–Taylor Mays, USC

Mays is a physical freak who will probably be the first safety taken in the next draft.

2nd Team–William Moore, Missouri

3rd Team–Rashad Johnson, Alabama

Sorry, no punters or kickers or return guys on this team.

Recruiting, Recruiting

Fri, 02 Feb 2007 10:02:33 -0800

How surprising was Long Beach Poly cornerback Donovan Warren's commitment to Michigan? A source said the Trojans listed Warren as committed during recruiting meetings.
Warren's decision only reinforces a growing feeling that this class doesn't quite measure up to the confidence last summer about how many bona-fide stars would come to USC. There's still time for a home run (Joe McKnight? Marvin Austin?) but unless it happens, the lasting image of this class (aside from Everson Griffin) could be how some thought-to-be-locks (Warren, James Wilson) slipped away.

Tyler and Galippo Amongst Finalists for High School's Top Player

Fri, 17 Nov 2006 14:03:21 -0800

From the Los Angeles Times:

Quarterback Jimmy Clausen and running back Marc Tyler of Westlake Village Oaks Christian and linebacker Chris Galippo of Anaheim Servite are among 16 candidates for the U.S. Army Player of the Year Award.

Other nominees for the player-of-the-year award are Will Korn, quarterback from Duncan (S.C.) Byrnes; Chris Strong, linebacker from Batesville (Miss.) South Panola; Major Wright, defensive back from Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Aquinas; Martez Wilson, defensive lineman from Chicago Simeon; Anthony Davis, offensive lineman from Piscataway, N.J.; John Brantley, quarterback from Ocala (Fla.) Trinity Catholic; Joseph Barksdale, defensive lineman from Detroit Cass Technical; Marvin Austin, defensive lineman from Washington (D.C.) Ballou; Joe McKnight, running back from River Ridge (La.) Curtis Christian; Ryan Mallet, quarterback from Texarkana, Texas; John Clay, running back from Racine (Wis.) Park; Arrelious Benn, wide receiver from Washington (D.C.) Dunbar, and Noel Devine, running back from North Fort Myers, Fla.

Clausen, Tyler, Galippo are in final 16 for U.S. Army Player of the Year Award [L.A. Times]

'07 Recruiting Class Already Looking Nasty

Wed, 04 Oct 2006 18:29:41 -0800

According to the latest ESPN and Scout 2007 Recruit Rankings, USC's class is already looking like another #1. Amongst the highlights of our early verbal commitments:

Marc Tyler - RB (ESPN #1, Scout #7)
Chris Galippo - LB (ESPN #2, Scout #14)
Marshall Jones - S (ESPN #9, Scout Top 200)
James Wilson - OL (ESPN #40, Scout #48)
Aaron Corp - QB (ESPN #51, Scout #68)

And those are just some of the current commitments -- there are still the likes of stud RBs Noel Devine and Joe McKnight, top WRs Arrelious Benn and Terrance Toliver, blue-chip DBs Eric Berry and Ronald Johnson, and monster defensive linemen Marvin Austin, Martez Wilson, and Everson Griffen (just to name a few) all listing USC as one of the schools they're considering. (The Fanhouse has a more thorough list of the tantalizing recruits considering joining the Class of 2007.)

To all of you kids out there, we're not sure if we're even allowed to address you directly without breaking NCAA rules -- but if you're reading this -- trust us, you want to come to USC.

USC's 2007 Recruiting Class Off to a Huge Head Start [The Fanhouse]
2007 Commitment List [USCfootball.com] The ESPN 2007 Recruiting 150 [ESPN]
Top Recruits [Scout.com]