USC first non-SEC team to land top recruiting class in modern era; Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rumors heat up

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Good morning and happy Thursday, sports fans! It's Austin Nivison on the keyboard today. The Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions will kick off Week 14 in the NFL later tonight, but we have a lot of ground to cover before that. The Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rumor mill is running at full steam after a new development, USC had a lot to celebrate on National Signing Day and the Bills have bolstered their secondary.

Let's dive right into that and a whole lot more.

✍️ Five things to know Thursday

1. USC inked the No. 1 class on National Signing Day -- a first for a non-SEC team in the modern era. Say what you will about Lincoln Riley's tenure in L.A., but the future is very bright for the Trojans. Riley and USC snapped the SEC's 17-year streak of landing the No. 1 recruiting class. It's headlined by 5-star OT Keenyi Pope and includes a whopping 18 4-star recruits. On the other end of the spectrum, Penn State's interminable coaching search created an unprecedented disaster on National Signing Day. Meanwhile, former Nittany Lions coach James Franklin was leading a major surge up the rankings at Virginia Tech.
2. Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown listed as questionable vs. Cowboys. The Lions seem to have avoided the worst-case scenario when St. Brown left their Thanksgiving game against the Packers with what appeared to be a nasty ankle injury. Still, Detroit may be without its star as St. Brown was officially listed as questionable on the team's Wednesday injury report. If St. Brown can't go, that should mean a bigger workload for Jameson Williams, Tom Kennedy and Isaac TeSlaa.
3. The Bills claimed six-time Pro Bowl CB Darius Slay off waivers. The Steelers released Slay on Tuesday, and it didn't take long for the veteran cornerback to find a new home. The Bills picked up him off waivers to bolster their secondary as they gear up for a possible Super Bowl run. Oddly enough, Slay was just a healthy scratch against the Bills last week, but that clearly didn't deter Buffalo. The Bills' secondary will get a huge test this weekend against Joe Burrow, Ja'Marr Chase and the Bengals. It remains to be seen whether Slay will suit up for that one.
4. Kansas State coach Chris Klieman retires, and school legend Collin Klein takes his place. After leading Kansas State for seven seasons (and tons of success at NDSU), Klieman announced his retirement on Wednesday. Klieman went 54-34 with the Wildcats and 3-2 in bowl games. Kansas State already has a succession plan with Klein, a 2012 Heisman Trophy finalist and the current Texas A&M offensive coordinator, tabbed as his replacement. The Kansas State icon will be tasked with getting his team to the next level.
5. NBA champion and Clemson legend Elden Campbell dies at 57. In much more tragic news, the NBA lost a champion with the passing of Campbell. He spent nine years with the Lakers from 1990-99 but won an NBA title with the Pistons in 2004. Campbell also spent time with the Hornets, SuperSonics and Nets over his 15-year NBA career. A star at Clemson, Campbell was a two-time All-ACC player and his school scoring record of 1,880 points still stands today.

🏀 Do not miss this: Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rumors reignite

Well, Bucks fans got a couple months without having to hear and see Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rumors in full swing. The rumor mill be making up for lost time, however, after a report that Antetokounmpo is re-opening discussions about his future with the franchise.

After a 2-8 run in their last 10 games, the Bucks are 9-13 and going nowhere fast this season. That has prompted Antetokounmpo to start looking around again, and if he does want out, you can expect the list of suitors to be 29 teams long. That being the case, Sam Quinn has broken down all 29 possible destinations into 10 tiers.

Some teams, like the Nuggets and Mavericks, simply don't have enough ammo in the war chest to land a player of Antetokounmpo's caliber. Others, like the Cavaliers, would have to work miracles with the salary cap. Then, there's the apple of Antetokounmpo's eye -- the Knicks. Do they have the most assets for a trade? No. Will it matter? Maybe not.

• Quinn: "The Bucks don't want to trade with the Knicks. They want to trade with the Pistons, Spurs or Rockets. It just may not be up to them. If Antetokounmpo forces their hand and no viable rental alternative emerges, there's a good chance this ends with the Knicks getting a two-time MVP at a bargain-basement price."

There is one thing that could throw a wrench into all these grand plans. Antetokounmpo left last night's game against the Pistons with a calf injury and didn't return. The severity of that injury may determine his future -- at least in the short-term.

🏈 Lamar Jackson plummets in NFL QB Power Rankings

After a miserable start to the season, the Ravens have worked their way back to the top of the AFC North standings, but something seems off. For starters, superstar quarterback Lamar Jackson simply hasn't looked the same since returning from a hamstring injury.

Baltimore is 4-1 since Jackson returned, but his production has taken a clear dip. That's especially true in the running game:

• 194.4 pass yards per game
• 19.6 rush yards per game
• 5 total TDs (all passing)
• 3 INTs

Jackson clearly isn't himself right now, and he plummeted in Cody Benjamin's latest NFL QB Power Rankings. We all expect the MVP-caliber version of Jackson to return, but when?

• Benjamin: "Who is this No. 8 in purple, and what has he done with Lamar Jackson? We still expect the two-time MVP to rediscover his electricity before season's end, but he's operated out of rhythm since returning from injury."

The Ravens would love for Jackson to play closer to his peak this weekend as they host the Steelers with first place on the line in one of the five biggest games of the weekend.

👍👎 The best (and not-so-best) of the rest

• These are the top landing spots for Chris Paul ... but it's a little complicated.
• As far as Paul's fit with the Clippers? It wasn't a good one, per coach Ty Lue.
• Shedeur Sanders and Jerry Jeudy are downplaying their sideline blow up.
• The Chiefs are on upset alert in a game they can't afford to lose.
• Here's what is driving the best season of Jaylen Brown's career.
• Jeff Brohm is the latest coach to rebuff Penn State and will stay put at Louisville instead.
• Ole Miss AD Keith Carter has refuted a key detail about Lane Kiffin's account of leaving Oxford. 
• You know the Penn State search has been bad when Ben Roethlisberger suggests Mike Tomlin as a candidate.
• Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman is puzzled by his team's drop in the new CFP Rankings.
• College basketball just had its best November ever, and that needs to be the new standard.
• Jesper Wallstedt is unbeatable, and he has the Wild flying up the latest NHL Power Rankings.
• Shocker: Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy headline the PGA Tour Player of the Year nominees.
• Disgraced ex-FIFA president Sepp Blatter has blasted World Cup expansion.
• The 2026 World Cup draw is Friday: Here are the best- and worst-case scenarios for USMNT.

📺 What we're watching Thursday

⚽ West Ham at Manchester United, 3 p.m. on USA Network
🏀 No. 7 North Carolina at No. 2 Texas (W), 7 p.m. on ESPN2
🏀 No. 3 South Carolina at No. 22 Louisville (W), 7 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 Warriors at 76ers, 7 p.m. on NBA TV
🏒 Red Wings at Blue Jackets, 7:30 p.m. on Hulu
🏈 Cowboys at Lions, 8:15 p.m. on Prime Video
🏀 No. 5 LSU at Duke, 9 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 No. 18 Notre Dame at No. 13 Ole Miss (W), 9 p.m. on ESPN2
🏒 Blackhawks at Kings, 10 p.m. on Hulu