Kentucky EDGE decommit Lorenzo Cowan commits to Southern California

It only took Lorenzo Cowan a couple of days to find his new home. After decommitting from Kentucky on Wednesday, the three-star recruit announced on Friday that he has committed to the Southern California Trojans.

“I love the way Coach (Lincoln) Riley leads his team,” Cowan told On3’s Chad Simmons. “I just wanted to be a part of the culture that they have there. The people that are on the team, they all show love. You always feel love all the time and you’re in LA. It doesn’t get much better than that.”

Cowan is a 6-foot-3, 215-pound EDGE prospect from the class of 2024 out of Savannah (GA) Jenkins. Ranked as the No. 1,112 overall high school senior by the On3 Industry Ranking, he initially committed to Kentucky back in September, choosing the Wildcats over South Florida and West Virginia. Cowan took official visits to all three schools prior to landing with the ‘Cats.

However, an offer from Southern California in October changed his recruitment. Cowan took an official visit to Los Angeles last weekend, backed off his pledge from Kentucky a few days later, and then committed to the Trojans all within less than a week.

Cali Here I Come❗️✌️ pic.twitter.com/mLKv3QIhJw

— Lorenzo Cowan (@LorenzoCowan10) December 15, 2023

Cowan is Southern California’s lowest-rated 2024 high school commit, but outside linebacker coach Roy Manning went all the way in on the Georgia product. According to Simmons, it was the official visit to USC that flipped Cowan from Kentucky to the Trojans.

“On the visit, my family and I were just so mind blown by the opportunity that they presented to me,” Cowan added. “Once I got there and saw it for myself, saw the people and saw the possibilities that they may have at the University of Southern California, that’s what did it.”

With Cowan’s flip from USC to Kentucky, the Wildcats are now down to 20 commitments for this cycle. That being said, the star power at the top continues to keep UK among the country’s top 25 classes. On3 ranks Kentucky’s 2024 class as the 23rd best in the nation. Kentucky still has two four-star EDGE commits on board with Brian Robinson and Jacob Smith along with three-star EDGE Caleb Redd.