WR Feaster, top-25 recruit in '26, chooses USC

Four-star wide receiver Ethan "Boobie" Feaster has committed to USC over Alabama, LSU and Texas A&M, he tells ESPN, landing as the latest blue-chip prospect in the Trojans' No. 1-ranked 2026 recruiting class.

Feaster, a 6-foot-1, 180-pound pass catcher from DeSoto, Texas, is ESPN's No. 25 overall prospect and third-ranked wide receiver in the 2026 cycle.

Initially part of the Class of 2027, Feaster immediately emerged among the 2026 cycle's top skill position talents following his decision to reclassify in February. He announced his commitment to USC in a ceremony Friday afternoon and joins as the the third-ranked prospect in Trojans coach Lincoln Riley's incoming class following visits with all four of his finalists this spring.

"They're going to put me in the best position to go in the first round," Feaster told ESPN. "I know coach Riley, no matter what he's going to throw the ball and get it to his best player, and they're always going to have a quarterback."

Feaster's pledge continues an impressive recruiting cycle for Riley and first-year general manager Chad Bowden, who will close the first week of July with 31 total commits in 2026. That group includes more ESPN 300 pledges -- 18-- than any other program in the country.

Feaster follows the likes of five-star pledges Elbert Hill (No. 16 overall) and Keenyi Pepe (No. 18) as USC's seventh ESPN 300 pledge since May 1. He also now leads a talent-rich skill position class forming around Trojans quarterback pledge Jonas Williams (No. 159), which features a ESPN 300 pledges in tight end Mark Bowman (No. 26), running backs Shahn Alston II (No. 97) and Deshonne Redeaux (No. 119) and wide receiver Trent Mosley (No. 189), among others.

USC's latest class entered ranked No. 1 in ESPN's latest class rankings for the 2026 cycle, in position to finish as the program's first top-ranked class since the 2007 recruiting cycle.

ESPN's top uncommitted wide receiver before Friday, Feaster has accounted for 87 receptions, 1,489 yards and 23 touchdowns over his first two varsity seasons with Texas powerhouse DeSoto High School, where he claimed a 6A D-II State title as a freshman in 2023. Feaster told ESPN that his relationship with USC wide receivers coach Dennis Simmons, who began recruiting him in middle school as a member of Riley's staff at Oklahoma, played a significant role in his decision.

"I trust coach Simmons," Feaster said. "He's coached guys like CeeDee Lamb, Michael Crabtree and Jordan Addison. I feel good about what I can do with him."

Per ESPN sources, Texas A&M rivaled USC with the most lucrative financial package among the runner-ups in Feaster's recruitment. The Aggies reach early July with the nation's No. 3 overall recruiting class and are considered among the front-runners to flip five-star LSU wide receiver pledge Tristen Keys, ESPN's No. 10 overall prospect.