Blake Ayles, the 6-foot-4, 235-pound, four-star tight end from Orange Luther High School in Orange, Calif., committed to USC last week as previously reported.
Ayles, ranked No. 14 in the West by Scout.com, made his public announcement on Tuesday, July 24, but made his official commitment to the coaches two days prior - not months earlier as some had perceived.
"My dad and I drove up to USC and we talked with coach Pete Carroll and Brennan Carroll (recruiting coordinator)," Ayles said. "We talked for about one and half hours and finally I told him I was ready to commit. Coach Carroll immediately jumped up and hugged me. They were both super excited."
With over 20 scholarship offers, Ayles had plenty of options. He says the Trojans won this battle over California, Miami, Wisconsin and Ohio State. In fact, he even visited the Badgers and Buckeyes in July. "The Midwest is just so different," he said. "I'm a California guy and I couldn't see myself fitting in there. I knew I wanted to stay close to home and even though they both had great campuses and I loved the stadiums, I knew they weren't for me."
Ayles hasn't scheduled an official visit to USC yet and says that's the only one he plans on taking. "I'm totally solid - 100 percent done. I'll only visit USC."
Now that Ayles has made his decision he says he's shifting his focus not only onto his own senior season, but also helping USC recruit other prospects. "I'm good friends with Khaled Holmes (offensive guard from Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana) and I'm trying to get him to join me at 'SC," Ayles said. "I know he's narrowed it down to California, USC and Stanford and those are all great choices - but hopefully he'll choose USC. I know he's high on them."
Ayles hopes to recruit Holmes the way a couple other Trojans commits recruited him. "I talked with D.J. Shoemate (wide receiver from Servite High in Anaheim, Calif.) and his teammate Matt Kalil (offensive tackle) a lot and they would always be telling me I need to go to USC. They were always talking about them and trying to sell me on them.
"The choice felt right," Ayles said. "I really liked the whole recruiting process, but I just felt I already knew where I wanted to go and there was no point in waiting. I love the coaches at USC and feel they'll be a great team for a long time. Also they are the home team. That's where I've always wanted to go and I can't wait for the opportunity to play for them."
Apparently, coach Carroll told Ayles that he may see playing time sooner than he thought. "They told me to be in the best shape possible because they plan to throw me in when they can during my freshman year," he said. "I know that Anthony McCoy is gonna be a junior when I get there, so I'll get my opportunity once he's gone."
Ayles reports a 3.0 core GPA, but hasn't taken the SAT or ACT yet. He plans to take the test in the fall.