USC blows away Hazelton

Chatham (Va.) Hargrave Military wide receiver Vidal Hazelton didn't really know what to expect on his official visit to Southern Cal this past weekend. In talking to fellow recruits he knew that L.A. was a fun place and he obviously knew that USC is a great program, but the Trojans exceeded his expectations and have put themselves right up at the top of this recruiting race.

"It was awesome," said Hazleton, a 6-foot-3, 193-pounder ranked as the nation's No. 2 wide receiver. "I loved everything about it and was blown away. Dwayne Jarrett was my host and he's the man. He's an east coast guy like me and we lived only around 20 minutes apart when he was in Jersey. He's also a great player. I got to speak to Reggie Bush and a bunch of others, but Dwayne and Fred Davis were my boys."

Hazelton saw an offensive show as USC held off Fresno State 50-42.

"That offense is amazing," he said. "And I can see myself getting a chance to play early there. I know Steve Smith might be leaving early and Dwayne will probably be three and out as well. Patrick Turner is there and he's a cool kid too. We talked about the decision to leave the east coast and he's happy with it."

The only drawback to USC is distance from home.

"It's far away, that's the only negative I can think of," he said. "But if that's the offense for me and the place I need to be, I don't mind. I talked to Dwayne about it and he said he was homesick at first but the coaches let the east coast guys get back home a little more at first so they can transition. He said after being homesick at first, he was cool and he loves it now."

Hazelton has taken officials to Virginia Tech, Tennessee and USC now and has Miami set for this upcoming weekend. His fifth will likely be to Florida with an unofficial to Georgia also on the tentative schedule.

"I don't have a date for Florida yet or Georgia," he said. "But I want to see both. I have family in Georgia and Florida uses a ton of wide receivers so that's good."

Does Hazelton have a leader?

"No, not at this point but the USC visit was my best," he said. "It was better than a 10 if that's possible. Virginia Tech was also great, Miami has always been one of my dream schools and Tennessee is in there also. But Southern Cal was just amazing."