USC football returned to grabbing the national recruiting spotlight Sunday in a major way. Former Texas A&M commit and five-star quarterback Husan Longstreet flipped to the Trojans. Longstreet's decision comes on the same day longtime USC QB commit Julian Lewis officially backed off the Trojans.

Many fans will credit head coach Lincoln Riley for pulling off the flip. But USC football insider for The Athletic Antonio Morales says a different coach deserves the shine. Morales cites USC QB coach Luke Huard as the man behind the Corona, California prospect's flip.

“USC QB coach Luke Huard deserves praise with the Husan Longstreet commit,” Morales began on X (formerly known as Twitter). “Got Longstreet on campus back in the spring when the Trojans weren’t even a finalist, stayed in contact through the summer, went to Longstreet’s game on Friday night and got the 5-star on campus yesterday.”
If the surname rings a bell, Huard is the brother of former NFL quarterbacks Brock and Damon Huard. Both siblings rose to prominence at the University of Washington before heading to the league. Damon now works for his college alma mater while Brock is an established football analyst.
Luke Huard emerged as the Gatorade Player of the Year in Washington as a high school senior. He played his college football at North Carolina. He's coached at USC the last three seasons.

Can Husan Longstreet's commitment spark strong finish for USC? 

Huard not only stayed proactive with Longstreet. He even conversed with a past USC quarterback before Longstreet made his final verbal decision. Captured by longtime USC reporter Scott Schrader of On3.com, Huard was seen speaking with Rob Johnson before the Centennial/Mission Viejo playoff contest.

Longstreet now becomes USC's second five-star verbal commit. Lewis held that title before his decommitment. But is Longstreet who USC needs to spark a strong recruiting finish?

The Trojans rank No. 13 in the 2025 recruiting rankings by 247Sports. That makes USC the highest ranked California team for recruiting classes. But the Trojans rank fourth among Big 10 Conference teams. USC, though, could still load up ahead of the December signing period from Dec. 4-6.

North Carolina verbal commit Alex Payne was among the recruits attending USC versus Nebraska, per 247Sports USC recruiting insider Gerard Martinez. The state of Georgia prospect Payne is the nation's 15th best tackle prospect by 247 composite rankings. Utah '25 tight end commit Nela Tupou also watched the Trojans against the Cornhuskers, Martinez added. USC has made both two possible changes to watch post Longstreet.

As many have seen, verbal commits can change swiftly during this time of year. The brother of the famed Huard QB family is credited for delivering the latest big flip on the trail. Huard could end up sparking a late recruiting charge in the Land of Troy.