WSU recruiting is on the verge of flipping Tae'on Mason from USC

If you needed any more proof that WSU has entered a brave new world when it comes to recruiting, here you go: It appears WSU is on the verge of flipping cornerback/wide reciever Tae'on Mason from USC.

You read that correctly.

Mason -- who is a consensus three-star recruit via 247sports but is rated as four stars by both Rivals and Scout -- has been committed to USC for nearly a year, but he told Cougfan.com last night that he's decommitting from USC ($), news that also has now been reported by other recruiting services.

He hasn't yet committed to the Cougs, but it appears the smart money is on WSU winning his services, as he told Cougfan that he had a great in-home visit with head coach Mike Leach, area recruiter Ken Wilson, outside receivers coach Dennis Simmons and new defensive coordinator Alex Grinch.

Great home visit from Wsu yesterday

— 1⃣8⃣™ (@taeonm18) January 20, 2015

If you're wondering why Simmons and Grinch would both be there, it seems both wide receiver and cornerback (Grinch will also coach the secondary) are on the table as WSU simply looks to add playmakers who can continue to transform the team.

The last time WSU flipped someone from USC, it was Michael Bumpus more than a decade ago, and that involved the Trojans trying to push Bumpus into a grayshirt. Britton Ransford of WazzuWatch.com told me this also appears to somewhat be about the Trojans cooling on Mason, but WSU had his ear the whole way and might have pulled this off regardless.

And even if USC was waffling a bit, make no mistake: This isn't a case of "we didn't want him anyway." Mason is incredibly talented. Observe:

If WSU is able to add Mason, 247sports' nifty little class calculator shows WSU's 2015 class score moving up to 28th nationally -- one spot ahead of Wisconsin.

Stay tuned.