Ethan Johnson, the 6-foot-4, 265 pound defensive end from Lincoln High School in Portland (Ore.), claims to have offers from Notre Dame, USC, Auburn, Minnesota, Oregon, Oregon State, Colorado and Arizona State, but denies a favorite.
"I just visited USC this past Saturday (April 14)," Johnson said. "They offered me on March 7. I had a great time down there. I got to see the campus and tour the business school, which was tight. It's cool that the campus is in the center on Los Angeles. You are sort of in the center of everything there.
"I have lots of family in Los Angeles," said Scout.com's No. 28 prospect nationwide. "I got to have lunch with them while we were there. It was so much fun. There was like 30 of us all together at El Torito. I couldn't believe so many family members came. I hadn't met a lot of them before so it was like a family reunion. My one cousin lives like seven blocks from the USC campus, which is really cool.
"I really like the coaches a lot at USC," he added. " I had a chance to meet with all of them. Coach (Pete) Carroll made himself really available, which I thought was cool. I've never experienced that before with any other head coach. He really made himself open for questions and really took his time to make sure you understood everything.
"Coach Carroll is a great coach," said Johnson, who ended his junior season with 80 tackles and 10 sacks. "He said that they give every true freshman a chance to start. They don't treat freshman like freshman. If you can play, they'll work you in the rotation until you get comfortable.
"They want me to play either a three-technique defensive tackle, sort of shade of guard or a strong defensive end, like a five-technique. I'm definitely going to take an official there. I want to go to the SC camp in July too."
Johnson says he also is planning on taking an official visit to Notre Dame. "I want to go see Notre Dame for sure too. They offered on January 29. I've talked to Coach (Jappy) Oliver (defensive line) and Coach (Corwin) Brown (defensive coordinator) quite a bit. Coach Brown said that one of their defensive ends is leaving for the NFL and that they want me to come in and take his position.
"I've never been to Notre Dame, but I know a lot about them, just from seeing them on television," he added. "There is so much tradition there. It would be an honor to play for them. They have an unbelievable coaching staff too. Coach (Charlie) Weis has so much experience in both college and the NFL. I know I could learn so much from him.
"I like that I'd have a chance to come in a play early there too," Johnson said. "I just really want to go out there and see the campus and learn more about the school.
"I want to take officials to USC and Notre Dame just because they're USC and Notre Dame," he said. "They're both great teams and great schools. Also, I have family that like both schools."
Johnson, who benches 330 pounds, squats 505 and runs a 4.9 forty, says he has also been getting a lot of attention from Florida, UCLA, Michigan, Purdue, Virginia, and Nebraska. "I haven't even started narrowing in down yet. I can't see myself committing any earlier than the end of the season this year.
"The most important thing for me is that I have to feel comfortable with the coaches, the team and the school," he said. "Depth isn't a big deal to me because I know wherever I go, I'm going to have competition. That's what you get for going to a good school with a good program. If I want to be great, I'm going to have to compete with the best and competition always brings out the best in you."
Johnson said distance isn't a big factor. "It's not a big deal for me to stay in-state. The only place I'd probably not want to go is the northeast…except for Rutgers. I'm interested in Rutgers. I haven't heard from them yet, but I really think they're doing something special with that program right now and I'd be interested in going up there to check it out.
"My strength is my technique," Johnson said. "I think I'm pretty skilled for a junior because of my coach (Shawn Price). He is really good and has taught me a lot. He used to play in the NFL.
"I need to be more athletic," he added. "In college, there are going to be guys just as fast as you and just as good as you, so I think the more athletic I can get, the more advantage I'll have."
Johnson reports a 3.1 core GPA and is scheduled to take first-time SAT in June. He already reports a 20 ACT.