2016 USC Recruiting: E.J. Price Picks USC over UGA

On National Signing Day, E.J. Price has announced his intentions to take his talents to the Coliseum. Price was seriously considering Georgia since he attended Archer High School in Lawerenceville, GA. In addition to these two schools. he considered Auburn, but also had offers from LSU and Michigan State.

Price is a four-star recruit, in all three major recruiting sites (Rivals, ESPN, and 247sports). He is also a top 10 recruit in his respective position, which is offensive tackle, in all three of these sites as well. He is the 8th ranked offensive tackle in both 247sports and ESPN and he is rated as the 11th best offensive tackle on Rivals. This class is incredibly deep at the lineman position, so these rankings shouldn't be underestimated.

Adding Price to this stacked 2016 class is a great get for the Trojans because there is no such thing as too many linemen. He is the third offensive tackle in the class and he joins fellow four-stars, Frank Martin II and Nathan Smith. Price is also the 12th blue chip recruit of this class and should move USC up in the rankings.

At first glance, Price is a huge tackle. He is 6-6 and around 320 lbs. His body alone makes him a candidate to see some playing time his freshman year. His length allows him to keep defenders off of him and for him to be able to push them around the pocket, giving the quarterback more time to stay in the pocket and go through his progressions. His mobility is another great aspect of his pass rushing ability. He is quick enough to set up square up with the edge rushers and not let them into the backfield. Something Price needs to work on is his stance, however. He is prone to opening up, which lets the defender attack that side and go right past him. With more experience, I believe that it will be cleaned up.

In the run protection he tends to come out a little high which doesn't give him any leverage against the defender. He needs to keep his pad level low so he doesn't get pushed back or laid out by a strong defensive end. When he is technically sound, his hands are great. He puts them between the shoulders and he has developed grip strength to hold on.

Overall E.J. Price is a great player who just needs a little bit more time to develop. Check out his highlights courtesy of Hudl and the updated USC class brought to you by 247sports: