USC Trojans

OAKLAND, Calif. -- As expected, the 2014 class was terrific at the Oakland Nike Football Training Camp, as nine players bagged invitations to The Opening. But the event also provided a glimpse into the future, with several underclassmen standing out. The 2015 class was heavily represented, but a Class of 2017 prospect is already making noise as well.

Jacob Daniel
Fresno (Calif.) Clovis North | DT | 6-4, 300 | 2015

Defensive line coaches raved about Daniel after the big man was impressive in every drill on Sunday. Daniel already holds offers from several BCS programs, including Cal, Iowa, Oregon State and Wisconsin, but that’s likely only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to schools that will eventually step into the picture.

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LOS ANGELES - - While high school talent evaluators were busy this past weekend examining, analyzing, and projecting the future of prospects during the Nike Football Training Camp in Oakland, ESPN’s NFL draft guru Mel Kiper released last week his early offensive college projections and observations for the 2014 draft.

Kiper’s analysis of his top 10 offensive tackles for next spring’s draft revealed a Trojan, but it wasn’t returning senior right tackle Kevin Graf, a player most Trojans fans would expect to see in such early prognostications.

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A number of athletes with either offers or interest from USC took part in the Oakland NFTC this weekend. Here are some of the top storylines to emerge:

1. Mixon isn’t afraid to embarrass his friends
There is a group of recruits from Northern California that are good friends in running back Joe Mixon (Oakley, Ca./Freedom) and linebackers D.J. Calhoun (El Cerrito, Ca./El Cerrito) and Michael Lazarus (Berkeley, Ca./Berkeley).

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SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Keller Chryst (Palo Alto, Calif./Palo Alto) has plenty of history to follow.

His grandfather, George Chryst, was a longtime high school football coach and the head coach at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. His father, Geep Chryst, is the quarterback coach of the San Francisco 49ers. His uncle, Paul Chryst, is the head coach at Pittsburgh. Another uncle, Rick Chryst, was the commissioner of the Mid-American Conference for 10 years. And if that wasn’t enough, Chryst was named after a football icon: Michael Keller Ditka, Jr.

Yet, with all the potential fanfare surrounding his family and upbringing, Keller, the No. 2 quarterback in the country, has found a way to stay off the grid, far removed from the usual media and recruiting attention that comes with being one of the nation’s top quarterback recruits.

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