USC commits get their chance to shine on national TV
The ESPN High School Football Kickoff series returns for its 13th year this season. It runs from Thursday, Aug. 25 through Sunday, Aug. 28. The seven-game collection includes 28 players ranked in the ESPN 300 and ESPN Junior 300 and will receive coverage from the ESPN family of networks.
Of the ESPN 300 athletes participating, nine have already committed to top Division I college football programs, including Alabama and Georgia — last year’s championship game participants — and the USC Trojans.
Let’s look at the big matchup with USC commits involved. The game time listed is in Los Angeles for West Coast viewers.
Los Alamitos (Calif.) vs. American Heritage (Fla.)
Saturday, Aug. 27 at 1 p.m. on ESPN2 from Brian Piccolo Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
Los Alamitos versus American Heritage is the headliner on Saturday. The game will follow St. Joseph’s Prep (Penn.) vs. St. Thomas Aquinas (Fla.), which will kick off at noon.
Los Alamitos has No. 2 recruit Malachi Nelson (QB) and No. 19 Makai Lemon (WR), who are both headed to USC next fall.
Los Alamitos is ranked No. 25 in the nation and fourth in the state of California. American Heritage is ranked 19th in the nation and fifth in the state of Florida.
Nelson and Lemon will have a lot of pressure on them this Saturday. American Heritage is already 1-0 with a 38-20 road win over Lowndes in Valdosta. Lowndes is a top-10 team in the state of Georgia.
Los Alamitos won in a 41-0 blowout over Garces (Bakersfield, Calif.) last week. Nelson, USC’s future five-star quarterback, put up 14 of 15 completions for 345 yards and 5 touchdowns in the first half.
Heritage’s secondary will be tested by Nelson and Lemon, but the team is loaded with top prospects in its own right: Damari Brown, Dameon Fagan, Shamar McNeil, and Corey Goldsby Jr.
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USC football all-time roster: Defensive starters and backups
