USC football recruiting: 3 sleepers from their recruiting class

When you sign the second ranked recruiting class in the nation, it can be argued that USC didn't sign any true sleepers on signing day. But when a program signs the number of top 100 players that USC did, you could also argue that every other player in their class could be classified as a sleeper.

USC didn't sign anyone who had lower level offers so I'm sticking to the prospects who are less hyped than players like Osa Masina, Iman Marshall, and Rasheem Green. Here are three players who didn't quite get the attention of some others in their class, but have the potential to develop into very good players in the Pac-12.

3 star defensive tackle Kevin Scott

Scott was one of the hottest names in recruiting the last couple of weeks in January and had offers from schools like Miami and Ole Miss, yet he's still the lowest rated recruit the Trojans signed. Don't be fooled by the low ranking though, Scott is the kind of player who would have shot up the rankings and had way more offers if there had been more time left in the process.

He has an awesome first step and moves incredibly well for someone who already weighs close to 300 pounds. He needs to improve his pad level and hand violence, but if he does, look out. His ceiling is incredibly high and he could turn into a disruptive interior pass rusher at the college level.

4 star defensive lineman Noah Jefferson

I know, how can a composite 4 star player possibly be a sleeper? Well, in this class, that's what Jefferson is. When he originally committed to USC back in May of 2014, not many other major programs were recruiting him. He grabbed some national attention and got bumped up to a 4 star with a great performance at the Semper-Fi All American game, but him signing still didn't grab headlines with all of the big names ranked above him in the class.

Even back when he first committed, I could see that his athleticism was rare for his size. A lot of people have talked about the 5 star Green as someone similar to Leonard Williams, but Jefferson also shares that same kind of potential to be a player who is agile enough to play end, but also can be big and strong enough to play inside at defensive tackle.

The thing that separates Green and Jefferson right now is technique. Green is more advanced in just about every area and will likely get on the field sooner because of that. Give Jefferson a couple of years working with defensive line coach Chris Wilson though and they both could be starting on an intimidating defensive line for the Trojans.

3 star wide receiver Deontay Burnett

Burnett is a "blueshirt" for USC, so no one is counting on him playing any time soon, but the Trojans may have landed a steal from Junipero Serra, the same school that produced Green and John Houston as well as Adoree Jackson and several other players who went on to play for USC. Burnett had previously been a long time Washington State commit and chose the blueshirt offer over Wazzu and Michigan.

His production at the high school level wasn't something to brag about, but he played on a team loaded with future FBS players so it's understandable that he wouldn't see the ball too often. He did flash very good speed and I thought he would have been a great fit in Mike Leach's Air Raid had he stuck with the Cougars. I don't see him earning playing time any time in the immediate future, but I do think he is someone to keep an eye on a couple of years down the road.