Tide Turns Suddenly in This Trojan Town

One week from today, on the first day college football programs can sign high school seniors to letters of intent, Pete Carroll of USC and Karl Dorrell of UCLA will be able to end their NCAA-mandated vows of silence and discuss their 2003 recruiting classes.

Consider this a preview of what the atmosphere will be on each campus:

At USC, they will be popping corks to celebrate the best recruiting class since the Trojans won three national championships in the 1970s.

At UCLA, they will be searching for kind words to describe the weakest recruiting class in more than a decade.

Each year, these schools fight it out for the best high school prospects in Southern California, but few can remember a time when the gap in talent was so vast. The final exclamation point to the Trojans’ domination came Tuesday, when All-American receiver Steve Smith of Woodland Hills Taft announced he would sign with USC.

That means USC has commitments from the No. 1 offensive lineman in Southern California, Drew Radovich of Mission Viejo; the No. 1 running back, Reggie Bush of La Mesa Helix; the No. 1 tight end, Chris Barrett of Tustin; the No. 1 linebacker, Drean Rucker of Moreno Valley Canyon Springs; the No. 1 defensive tackle, Sedrick Ellis of Chino; the No. 1 defensive end, Lawrence Jackson of Inglewood, and perhaps the No. 1 receiver, Smith.

“It’s pretty scary,” said Greg Biggins, a national recruiting expert based on the West Coast. “No one has been this dominant in the Pac-10 since I started doing this thing eight years ago. They’re not recruiting, they’re selecting. Getting Steve Smith pretty much wrapped up the best recruiting class in the nation.”

Biggins isn’t the only expert who feels that way. Two recruiting services currently rate USC’s recruiting class No. 1 in the nation and a third service ranks it No. 2.

Carroll should feel as if he has won the Super Bowl after putting together a recruiting class that fills just about every Trojan need, except at quarterback.

Almost everything went right for Carroll last season. From pummeling UCLA on the field for the second consecutive year to winning the Orange Bowl behind Heisman Trophy winner Carson Palmer, the Trojans couldn’t have created a more positive recruiting environment.

Now, through recruiting, the Trojans are putting together the kind of talent and depth on their defensive line that should remind people of Miami during the Jimmy Johnson era.

Getting Smith was important. Smith set the state career receiving record with 271 receptions and is mature enough to contribute as a freshman.

“USC is a good opportunity for me,” Smith said.

As for UCLA, the uncertainty over Bob Toledo’s coaching future resulted in recruiting turmoil. From early September, the signs of trouble were obvious. The Bruins have always received many early commitments, but not during last season. Knowing Toledo’s days were numbered, high school players looked elsewhere.

The big surprise is that Dorrell’s hiring in late December had little impact. Few players from Southern California -- committed or uncommitted -- took a second look at UCLA. It means prospects were turned off months ago and couldn’t be won back.

But don’t count out Dorrell just yet. He received a commitment from Parade All-American running back Maurice Drew of Concord De La Salle on Monday, and the Bruins are still in the running for two top defensive linemen from Long Beach Poly, Kevin Brown and Junior Lemau’u. Safety Dennis Keyes, the City player of the year from Lake Balboa Birmingham, will reveal Thursday whether he will keep his commitment to UCLA or choose California.

Those pickups would be crucial to helping UCLA repair some of the damage done in the last few months.

“Vince Lombardi couldn’t get these guys,” Biggins said. “[Dorrell] has done a good job getting people interested again. The old staff completely dropped the ball.”

But Dorrell has a lot of work to do before UCLA regains its competitiveness in Southern California.

Bruce Rollinson, the coach at Santa Ana Mater Dei, said USC seized the opportunity to take control in Southern California recruiting.

“Pete Carroll had the magic,” he said. “It’s a combination of personality and technique. It’s like a flu bug. Everybody catches it.”

Does the USC-UCLA recruiting competition matter? Absolutely. Just think how many more victories UCLA would have had if the Bruins had won the bidding for Winston Justice, Shaun Cody and Matt Grootegoed, all of whom picked USC in recent years after intense recruiting tussles.

It’s too early to conclude what kind of recruiter Dorrell is going to be. Sometimes all it takes is one successful season to change perceptions.

With recruiting for 2003 nearly over, it’s not too early to break out the recruiting scorecards for 2004. Mark down the name Randy Estes from Los Alamitos. He’s a defensive back who’s on everyone’s must-have list.

Of course, Carroll and Dorrell, although able to soon talk to Estes, can’t discuss him publicly until next February, after his college choice is known.

For now, though, crown Carroll as the recruiting champion of Southern California ... and beyond.

*

Eric Sondheimer can be reached at eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.

*

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

FOOTBALL COMMITMENTS

*--* Pos Player Hometown HT WT USC CB Desmond Reed Temple City 5-9 175 OL Sam Baker Tustin 6-5 285 DT Sedrick Ellis Chino 6-3 265 S Terrell Thomas Rancho Cucamonga 6-2 175 RB Lendale White Littleton, Colo 6-1 225 RB Reggie Bush La Mesa 6-0 183 CB Eric Wright San Francisco 5-11 165 LB Jonathan Turner Corona 6-3 242 TE Chris Barrett Tustin 6-5 225 DE Alex Morrow Rohnert Park 6-6 260 LB Salo Faraimo Vista 5-11 203 OL Drew Radovich Mission Viejo 6-5 275 LB Thomas Williams Vacaville 6-2 227 DE Lawrence Jackson Inglewood 6-3 241 WR Steve Smith Woodland Hills 6-1 190 DT Matt Spanos Corona 6-5 270 LB Drean Rucker Moreno Valley 6-0 229 RB Jody Adewale Los Angeles 5-10 206 OL Travis Draper Paso Robles 6-4 252 OL Ryan Kalil Anaheim 6-4 265 CB Brandon Ting Union City 5-10 170 CB Ryan Ting Union City 5-10 165 RB Chauncey Washington Torrance 6-0 205 DT Fili Moala Anaheim 6-5 280 UCLA RB Maurice Drew Concord 5-8 190 RB Derrick Williams Bellflower 5-10 195 WR Joe Cowan Bellflower 6-4 186 DE Bruce Davis League City, Texas 6-3 235 S Chris Horton Concord 6-2 190 LB Aaron Whittington St. Louis, Mo 6-4 210 WR Alex Ghebreselassie Chula Vista 6-3 185 DE Noah Sutherland Virginia Beach, Va 6-5 250 RB Michael Pitre Orange 5-11 250 RB Joe Tomasello Fresno 6-0 220 DT Chadd Evans Tulsa, Okla 6-3 250 OL Nikola Dragovic Vista 6-3 270 CB Trey Brown Overland Park, Kan 5-10 185 OL P.J. Irvin Agoura 6-4 284

*--*