Five-star defensive end Jahkeem Stewart, the No. 11 prospect in the 2025 ESPN 300, committed to USC on Wednesday afternoon, announcing his decision live on “College Football Live” from a ceremony at New Orleans’ Edna Karr High School.
Once the No. 1 prospect in the 2026 class, Stewart reclassified into the 2025 cycle in October and visited Oregon, Ohio State, LSU and USC in the final weeks before the early-signing period before handing his commitment to the Trojans on Wednesday, landing as the top-ranked member of Lincoln Riley’s 2025 class.
A 6-foot-6, 290-pound pass rusher capable of playing across the defensive line, Stewart entered Wednesday as the nation’s second-ranked uncommitted prospect.
Originally from Reserve, Louisiana, Stewart emerged among the nation’s top prospects as a middle schooler and spent the first two years of his high school career at New Orleans’ St. Augustine High School, where he logged 85 total tackles (33 for loss) and 20 sacks in his sophomore season last fall. Stewart was ruled ineligible to compete in his junior season this fall following an in-season transfer to Edna Karr, and upon reclassifying will forgo his senior year, meaning Stewart will enter college as an early enrollee in 2025 having played just 12 games of varsity football.
“I feel as though if I go on campus now, I could take somebody’s spot and go get three sacks, easy. I’m a competitor,” Stewart recently told ESPN. “My mindset is different.”
USC was the last of Stewart’s finalists to get a visit from the coveted defensive lineman, hosting him on Nov. 16 following his trips to Oregon, Ohio State and LSU.
Stewart’s commitment comes as a critical recruiting win for a USC class that has lost nine pledges from within the ESPN 300 in the current cycle, headlined by five-star decommitments from quarterback Julian Lewis and defensive linemen Justus Terry.
Stewart now ranks as the highest-rated member of a Trojans recruiting class that includes top-100 pledges from quarterback Husan Longstreet (No. 47 in the ESPN 300) and offensive tackle Aaron Dunn (No. 76). Alongside Stewart, USC’s collection of ESPN 300 defenders features safety Kendarius Reddick (No. 102), linebacker Matai Tagoa’i (No. 159) and Jadon Perlotte (No. 169) and cornerback Trestin Castro (No. 261)
