Never mind that you are dealing with seventeen and eighteen year old high school kids who are about to make some life-changing decisions by selecting the college they will attend the next four or five years. Add to that, the pressure of the "world watching" as these young athletes go through their own college recruiting journey.

This is college football recruiting, and it reserves the right to change on a daily basis

For PrepStar Magazine Recruiting Analyst, Jeff Duva, "predicitng where these top guys end up can be nerve racking." "It's a gut feeling so to speak."

As is in the case of the recent signing by Joe McKnight, the talented super athlete/running back from Louisiana, who signed his letter of intent with the USC Trojans, this morning at his high school.

In a pre-signing day interview with the LA Daily News on Tuesday, Duva's "prediction" has come true!

"USC's unrivaled status as a recruiting power will probably take a small hit today, but it's a significant drop when you consider how easily the Trojans (or Pete Carroll) seem to get whatever player they want."

"After four years of No. 1 recruiting classes, USC will have to settle for a top-three class today. That's nothing to be ashamed of, unless you consider how high the standards are at USC."

"That might be the price they pay for merely winning the Rose Bowl at a school where playing for the national championship is considered a birthright."

The Trojans' final ranking will be influenced by the decision of tailback Joe McKnight (River Ridge, La.). McKnight is ranked as the No. 1 Athlete in the nation by PrepStar Magazine.

Recruiting analyst Jeff Duva of PrepStar said he thinks McKnight will choose USC.

"My gut tells me USC," Duva said. "I think he'll shock the recruiting world. That's a longshot, by the way."

Duva said even with the losses, he ranks the Trojans' class as high as anyone else's.

"No other school has that quality. Every pick is a top 250 guy, and more than half are top 100," Duva said. "Florida and Texas are the top two classes, but I would put USC up against anybody."

The unquestionable gem of the Trojans' recruiting class is defensive end Everson Griffen of Avondale, Ariz. Griffen is ranked as the third-best defensive player in the nation by PrepStar, and one Pacific-10 Conference coach said Griffen would be ready to play in the NFL next year.

The next-highest ranked player is linebacker Chris Galippo of Servite High in Anaheim, who is expected to push middle linebacker Rey Maualuga for playing time.

Duva gushed over quarterback Aaron Corp of Orange Lutheran.

"Aaron Corp is a Vince Young clone," he said.

When it came to Joe McKnight, Jeff Duva had a gut-feeling that leaned toward the men of Troy. He was right on with that prediction.

As for the 2007 Trojan recruiting class, Duva's earlier gut feeling could be a few signing's closer to a move up to #2 in the recruiting rankings. In the next few days, we'll find out how that gut feeling plays out!