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5-star LB Xavier Griffin lands Colorado offer following decommitment from USC

hunterby: Hunter Shelton05/16/25HunterShelton_
Xavier Griffin
Photo by Jeremy Johnson.

Can Colorado land another elite prospect from the Peach State that was formerly committed to USC?

In one of the most high-profile recruitments in the 2025 cycle, the Buffaloes flipped Carrollton (Ga.) four-star quarterback Julian Lewis from the Trojans at the end of November. Lewis, now competing for the starting job in Boulder as a true freshman, finished as the nation’s No. 7 QB.

Head coach Deion Sanders and the CU staff will look to land another touted recruit out of Georgia in the 2026 cycle. Earlier this week, Gainesville (Ga.) five-star linebacker Xavier Griffin backed off his commitment to USC. On Friday, he announced an offer from the Buffaloes:

While Griffin is back on the board, he still has some top schools in his line of sight heading into the summer. He told On3’s Chad Simmons that Ohio State (May 30), Alabama (June 6), Texas (June 13) and Florida State (June 15) are each set to receive official visits this summer.

“My commitment has been a question for a few months now, but the hard decision has came within the last two weeks,” Griffin said. “I wanted to still be able to enjoy my process and go on my official visits, but respectful of USC at the same time, so this happened after a lot of talking with my mom and praying.”

Griffin also said that he’s still looking to have a decision by the beginning of his senior season at Gainesville, so this likely won’t be an extensive process that trudges into the winter. Colorado has gotten a slew of elite recruits to Boulder for official visits this month and it’ll look to add Griffin to the list.

The 6-foot-3, 205-pounder is the No. 28 overall prospect and No. 2 LB in the 2026 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He’s also the No. 3 player in Georgia.

Griffin has tallied more than 90 tackles and 22 sacks across his last two high school seasons. In 2024, Gainesville won seven games and finished as the No. 17 team in Georgia, according to the On3 Composite Rankings.

Colorado now has two commits in its 2026 recruiting class after landing a pledge from South Elgin (Ill.) three-star tight end Gavin Mueller earlier this week. Last cycle, the Buffs signed the nation’s No. 35 class, per the On3 Industry Team Recruiting Rankings.