4-star RB Mychale Salahuddin goes cross-country with official commitment

They strike again!

When a recruit makes the decision to leave home and head to the next level as a college football player, it is always a transition. With that said, a lot of recruits remain (relatively) close to home to pursue the next step and some believed four-star running back prospect Mychale Salahuddin might go in that direction. However, Salahuddin is certainly not following that blueprint, as he announced on Monday that he is committing to play for Clay Helton and the USC Trojans.

Salahuddin hails from Washington DC and, in fact, he is the top-rated prospect from the nation's capital according to 247Sports. That is good enough for a top-250 ranking overall as a prospect and, when compared to other running backs, Salahuddin ranks as the No. 4 all-purpose player in the nation at the position.

From USC's perspective, this is a big win in that Salahuddin is the 10th player to pledge to play for Helton and his staff in 2018. The Trojans still have a long way to go toward a truly elite recruiting class but they now rank at No. 13 overall in the 247Sports team rankings and that signifies a large leap forward. This looks to be a strong marriage of prospect and program, even if it takes a long flight to bring the two sides together.

USC has blown up the recruiting trail in the last week. 4-star tight end Camren McDonald, a pair of offensive lineman — Liam Douglass (3-star), Justin Dedich (4-star), —  linebacker Kana'i Mauga, another 4-star athlete, have all committed to t he Trojans. Dedich is the nation's top-ranked center.