Not that it needs to be reiterated at this point, but it's good advice to never count out USC associated head coach/cornerbacks coach Donte Williams in any recruiting battle.

Going into the week, the national perception was that Penn State was the strong leader for four-star East Coast cornerback Jaeden Gould (Bergen Catholic/Oradell, N.J.) and that a commitment could be coming soon.

Well, part of that was correct.

Gould announced his decision on Sunday and committed to USC, after his official visit two weekends ago helped seal the deal for the Trojans.

RELATED: Jaeden Gould breaks down his USC commitment decision

Williams pulled the same kind of surprise last cycle when he landed a commitment from four-star CB Prophet Brown after most everyone thought Oklahoma was the clear leader in his recruitment.

Williams' impact for the Trojans can't be stated enough (five-star DE Korey Foreman, five-star CB Domani Jackson, etc., etc.).

Meanwhile, let's break down Gould's commitment as we do here, with a look at what it means for the roster, a look inside the film room and a scouting report.

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USC now has three cornerback commits in this 2022 class with five-star Domani Jackson (Mater Dei HS), four-star Fabian Ross (Bishop Gorman HS/Las Vegas, Nev.) and Gould.

And the Trojans might not be done at the position.

They had allotted room to for four to five defensive backs in this class and at this point are likely to sign one or zero safeties, after landing two high-profile transfers at the position in Xavion Alford (from Texas) and Chris Thompson Jr. (Auburn). So there's still space for another cornerback and USC just hosted four-star CB Gentry Williams (Booker T. Washington HS/Tulsa, Okla.) on campus this weekend. (The Trojans are also still pushing for five-star Michigan commit Will Johnson and hosted four-star CB Earl Little Jr., from Florida, last weekend).

Add whatever this cornerback class ends up being to the 2021 haul of four-stars Ceyair Wright, Prophet Brown and nickel Jaylin Smith and the youth movement could be underway soon in the Trojans secondary.

One starting corner, Olaijah Griffin, left for the NFL this year and another, Chris Steele, could and potentially Isaac Taylor-Stuart could do so after the 2021 season. Juniors Dorian Hewett, Jayden Williams and Adonis Otey will look to prove they're ready for larger opportunities, but the highly-ranked newcomers could step into early playing time by 2022.

As for the 2022 recruiting class, USC is up to eight commitments and we expect more to follow very soon. This also marks the second commitment this week, both from prospects who had taken official visits this month with five-star DE Mykel Williams announcing his decision on Tuesday.

Here's how the class looks:

-5-star DE Mykel Williams (Columbus, Ga.)

-5-star CB Domani Jackson (Mater Dei HS)

-4-star QB Devin Brown (Queen Creek, Ariz.)

-4-star TE Keyan Burnett (Servite HS)

-4-star CB Fabian Ross (Las Vegas, Nev.)

-4-star CB Jaeden Gould (Oradell, N.J.)

-3-star LB Ty Kana (Katy, Texas)

-3-star WR Kevin Green Jr. (Bishop Alemany HS)