Jaylen Harvey’s Decision Likely Coming in October

Four-Star Quince Orchard Edge Jaylen Harvey revealed a top three of Maryland, Penn State, and USC nearly six weeks ago. He originally released a top five in June, which featured three schools listed above. 

Harvey is the No. 348 overall prospect and No. 27 EDGE in the 2024 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He is also the No. 9 player in Maryland. 

This Spring/Summer Harvey took official visits to each of his top schools schools in June. He first visited Penn State on June 2, followed by USC on June 16, and Maryland on June 23. 

The USC official visit was a huge success and left the Trojans feeling like they were in a good place moving forward. Right now we believe it’s USC versus Penn St., but Maryland is still in the race as well.

“My interest in USC was already there, but when I went up there, I felt like I was home,” said Harvey about the USC official visit. “I felt like I could be myself up there around the coaches and players. Out of all my official visits, USC was No. 1.

“The people out there in Cali are calm, cool, collected and keep to themselves. That’s the kind of person I am.”

Final USC visit impressed Jaylen & family

Earlier this month Harvey was back in Los Angeles with his family for a third visit. He arrived on Saturday August 26 for the USC vs San Jose State game. He and his family had a great time in Los Angeles.

A few days after the visit, WeAreSC went to see Harvey for the fourth time this year. He shared his thoughts on what he gained from final USC visit.

“I wanted to see how the coaches were coaching, live,” said Harvey. “See how they coach my position. That was pretty much it. They were giving the guys who weren’t playing mental reps.”

Harvey said they also had an opportunity to sit in on film sessions, position group preparation and get a true feel for the culture at USC. Harvey and his family left Los Angeles last weekend impressed with what they saw and experienced. It was Jaylen’s third visit.

Family matters

Considering USC’s distance from home, it’s of great significance when mom and dad are on board with a school thousands of miles away. Both of Harvey’s parents are sold on USC and Lincoln Riley’s program. The feeling is Riley’s one of the top head football coaches in the country.

We should add, Harvey also considers Manning one of the best coaching Edge rushers and Outside Linebackers. Coach Manning has also done an outstanding job building solid relationship with the Harvey and his family. That’s a must in order to lure guys like him to the West Coast.

One more visit before announcing

Last week Harvey thought he could potentially announce a school choice by the end of September, but told us it’ll now likely happen in October. Harvey attended a game at Maryland last week and he’ll be at Penn St. this Saturday when they face Iowa.

Penn St. will likely be the final visit prior to announcing a school choice, but nothing is set at this point.

Lincoln Riley’s impact on Harvey’s decision 

While at Quince Orchard on Monday afternoon, a discussion began about whether Lincoln Riley or James Franklin was a better coach. My reply was both are coaching top programs right now. But it was interesting to learn how highly a few Quince Orchard players thought of Riley.

Anyway, Harvey has shared his thoughts on Riley several times with us. 

“Of course, he’s a really big part,” Harvey said of Lincoln Riley. “He’s a very important factor in my decision, because I’m going to spend the next three to four years with him. I feel as though he’s one of the top head coaches in the game right now. Out of everybody, out of all the leagues. 

“I know he’s going to teach me, develop me and help make me a better man on and off the field.”

Scott’s Thoughts

The momentum has seemingly been building for USC ever since the June 16-18 official visit. I gave USC a low percentage at getting Harvey prior that visit. Not only was the official visit eye-opening for Jaylen, it was for his family as well.

As of September 20, Penn St. would be considered trending per the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM). But in reality, it actually feels like USC is trending for Harvey. Can’t guarantee where he’ll end up with three amazing choices, but I left Quince Orchard the last three times feeling like USC will be the school when an announcement is made. Time will tell and stay tuned.

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