Defensive lineman Scott Pagano plans to make long trip from Honolulu to visit USC and Clemson

Scott Pagano of Honolulu has 52 offers overall and plans to narrow his list to 15 this week. Visiting schools is not easy for the defensive lineman because of the distance, but he plans to get to South Carolina and Clemson in July.

“I’m going to LSU, Florida, Florida State, Alabama, Clemson and South Carolina if things work out,” he said. “I’ve got family in South Carolina so that could work out real well,” Pagano said. “They’re both really good programs. I want to play in a power conference and Clemson is in the ACC and South Carolina is in the SEC.”

His top two right now are LSU and Florida.

“They’re my two favorites right now, but a lot could change over the next seven months. They both play in the SEC, and that’s my number one conference.”

In other recruiting news:
Highly regarded LB Larenz Bryant (6-1, 210)of Charlotte committed Monday afternoon to USC. Bryant chose USC from other offers that included Clemson, N.C. State, Virginia, Georgia Tech, Florida, Georgia, Texas A&M and Oklahoma. He was named the MVP of a major combine in April and will attend The Opening in Oregon next month. This is a come-from-behind recruiting win for USC because in mid-April Bryant listed Clemson, Florida and Georgia as his top three. Last season, Bryant had 69 tackles with 3 interceptions. He also plays running back and last season he rushed for 1,435 yards and 21 TDs and had 1,300 yards receiving with 14 TDs. He’s the 18th commitment for USC’s 2013 class.

DL Michael Hill of Pendleton made an unofficial visit to USC last week and will visit Clemson this week. Hill has been to all eight schools he’s considering: Clemson, USC, Tennessee, Georgia Tech, Ohio State, Alabama, Florida and LSU. This week, Pendleton coach Paul Sutherland will meet with Hill and his father and they will reduce the list to 2-3 teams. Ohio State has been his favorite.

WR Richard Benjamin of Tampa plans to announce his decision July 3 and is down to Clemson, Vanderbilt, Auburn, South Florida and Central Florida. He was at Clemson’s camp earlier this month. Benjamin is a multi-position athlete who plays receiver, running back, quarterback, safety and cornerback. Last season, he had 1,200 all-purpose yards with 8 TDs.

TE Jordan Davis of Thomson, Ga., attended camps at Florida and Georgia earlier in the month, and along with USC, he is set with his final three schools. He visited USC earlier in the month as well. He plans to make visits with his mom to all three later in the summer before making his decision.

TE Josh McNeil of Durham, N.C., said last week his top two schools are Georgia and Alabama. Clemson and USC are among the other schools he had on his top 10 list.

WR Dejon Funderburk of Pensacola, Fla., recently added a USC offer to offers from Clemson, Alabama, Kentucky, Missouri, Virginia, South Florida, Memphis, South Alabama, Tennessee State and Troy. He has 19 in all. Though the Gamecocks have offered, the Tigers continue to show more interest. He has not narrowed his list but has a lot of interest in the Tigers and Gamecocks.

OL Gabe Brandner of Heathwood Hall committed to Duke last week and received an offer from Clemson shortly after. Brandner has attended camps at Clemson, USC, N.C. State and Appalachian State with trips to Elon, Navy and Maryland on the horizon. As for the strength of his commitment to Duke he said, “I’m a man of my word.” His other offers are from Appalachian State and Air Force with Maryland and N.C. State showing interest. Brandner plays both ways and totaled 70 tackles at defensive end.

DB Marcus Edmond of Lower Richland committed to N.C. State. He also had offers from Arizona and Wake Forest.

Basketball news
6-2 LaShay Page of Latta will transfer from Southern Miss to USC. Page made his commitment to the Gamecocks on Saturday morning after wrapping up an official visit. Page will still need to get a waiver from the SEC to allow him to play right away. Page played his senior season at Dillon where he averaged 31 points per game. He averaged 12 points per game last season in helping his team reach the NCAA tournament where they lost to Martin’s Kansas State team in the second round. Page scored 16 points in that game.

7-1 Jordan Dickerson of Alexandria, Va., made an official visit to SMU late last week. He has now been to USC, Providence, Auburn and SMU for visits. His uncle said he remains undecided and USC remains under consideration.