Gus Cordova talks shutting down recruitment and what he sees as the future of the USC defense

Class of 2025 defensive end Gus Cordova made sure this week that he’ll be one of the pieces of what looks like it could be a phenomenal group of defensive linemen to sign with the USC Trojans later this year. On Tuesday, Cordova took to social media to put an end to his recruiting process.

“Shutting my recruitment down completely,” Cordova posted to X, finishing it with the hashtag #DAWGWORK, which USC defensive line coach Eric Henderson uses as the mentality he looks for from his group.

Cordova said the decision came from two places — both wanting to end the constant communication from coaches at other programs, and feeling a deep connection with the USC staff and program. He said 20-25 schools were still pursuing him and he was getting recruiting messages consistently. Oklahoma, Ohio State, Georgia, Michigan, Miami, Texas, Texas A&M were some of the schools Cordova listed as still in pursuit.

“I really am feeling USC, so I just wanted to kill two birds with one stone and make it really official,” Cordova said, adding the USC staff “knew it was coming,” but was happy to hear it.

Cordova’s connection to USC goes back to the unofficial visit he took to campus in March. He committed coming off that trip and Cordova was maybe as surprised as anybody that happened.

“I didn’t walk in there thinking any of that would have happened, that I would have committed right off the joint or any of that,” Cordova said, adding defensive line coach Eric Henderson and Shaun Nua were big keys there. “They just blew me away. The facility. The coaching. The relationship-building. Anything you could ever want is down there in LA and I can’t wait to be a part of it.”

“It’s just the place to be,” Cordova said of USC. “Not enough people see it yet, but they’re going to soon.”

Cordova is slated to head to USC as a 5-tech defensive end but said Nua, Henderson and defensive analyst Skyler Jones are all in communication with him. Head coach Lincoln Riley is involved heavily as well.

Cordova will be back on the USC campus later this month when he takes his official visit as part of an absolutely loaded June 21 weekend. He’s scheduled to attend that at the same time as fellow USC commit Justus Terry. And they’re set to be joined by some huge targets along the defensive line, including five-star Elijah Griffin, and four-stars Jared Smith, Trajen Odom and Brandon Brown.

Cordova said he’s not a vocally active recruiter, but he tries to do his part on social media when he sees something USC-related. He’ll have a chance to pitch his future school when he’s on campus soon.

“I’m very excited,” Cordova said of the upcoming visit. “Lots of people are already making the choice to come on down to USC. The more people that go, the more people are going to realize that’s home. The people who come down on the OV, most of them will commit I feel, because they don’t even realize it until you’re actually there, but it’s really hard to beat.”

Cordova said he’s in a group chat with a number of commits in this class, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Riley and the Trojans invested heavily on that side of the ball this offseason, bringing in new defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn along with Henderson and several other position coaches. Cordova sees the vision there.

“With how everything is going right now, it’s picture perfect,” Cordova said. “All the puzzle pieces are getting filled in. The DC coming out of UCLA and before that with the Ravens…You cannot get any better than the defensive coordinator and the D-Line coaches that we have at USC. He showed us what he can do at the college level after leaving the Ravens. He showed us what he was doing in the NFL with the Ravens. And now he’s going to do it for USC. Offense has always been the standout at USC, but now it’s about to be the defense. I can’t wait.”

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