On March 19, 2018, no one could have seen this coming. And by “this” we mean that USC currently has 2019’s No. 1 recruiting class according to the 247Sports Composite Team Recruiting Rankings. With 247Sports updating the 2019 player rankings Wednesday, that’s a story worth revisiting.

Considered by many to be a Final Four contender heading into the 2017-18 season, on that Monday night, Southern Cal lost a second-round NIT game to Western Kentucky at home at the Galen Center, capping off a season in which almost everything that could go wrong for one program did.

On Sept. 26, 2017, Trojans associate head coach Tony Bland was arrested as part of the FBI’s investigation into college basketball, resulting in his suspension and eventual dismissal from the program.

As a result of that investigation, USC standout sophomore De’Anthony Melton was indefinitely suspended before he ultimately withdrew from school, while the Trojans’ 2018 recruiting class took a serious blow, including the loss of five-star small forward Taeshon Cherry.

USC was entering the off-season without Bland, who in four years – along with fellow ace recruiter Jason Hart - helped turn the program from the worst team in the Pac-12 to a legitimate national contender, on paper.

Further, the Trojans’ recruiting momentum was crushed and many in Los Angeles wondered if head coach Andy Enfield could survive.

While USC was set to return plenty of talent for 2018-19, the disappointment of the past season combined with the uncertainty of the future led to plenty of questions regarding Enfield’s sustainability as Trojans head coach.

For one, how was he supposed to continue to recruit at nearly the same level he did previously?

With the help of one of the best recruiting duos in the country in Bland and Hart, Enfield quickly rebuilt a once desolate roster into a consistent NCAA tournament contender, but with the federal investigation over the program’s head and Bland out of the equation, many questioned the program’s future.

However, Enfield had an ace up his sleeve.

On March 24, five days after USC’s NIT exit, Enfield announced the hiring of Eric Mobley, a member of local AAU program Compton Magic and the father of two five-star prospects in 2019 power forward Isaiah Mobley and 2020 center Evan Mobley.

For the last several years, the Magic had been an extremely UCLA-friendly program. T.J. Leaf, Ike Anigbogu, Jalen Hill, Jaylen Hands and Jules Bernard were all coveted former Magic players to sign with the Bruins.

With the hiring of Eric Mobley at USC – and aided by the soon-after dismissal of UCLA assistant and former Magic coach David Grace – Enfield had quickly established a new recruiting pipeline for the future.

On May 14, USC struck first in 2019, landing a commitment from Top 20 Compton Magic center Onyeka Okongwu, a player who Hart had been recruiting for years and ultimately was expected to end up either with the Trojans or Bruins.

Four days later, on May 19, USC landed another five-star prospect, when Top 25 power forward Isaiah Mobley pledged to the Trojans.

USC had momentum on its side once again in Los Angeles and capitalized, landing Top 70 Moorpark (Calif.) shooting guard Drake London in June and then Top 50 Santa Margarita (Calif.) small forward Max Agbonkpolo in July.

The four prospects make up 247Sports’ top-ranked 2019 recruiting class, and USC may not be done.

The Trojans are serious contenders for two other five-star Southern California prospects in Mission Bay point guard Boogie Ellis and Chatsworth Sierra Canyon shooting guard Cassius Stanley, while five-star Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy wing Josh Green and four-star Norcross (Ga.) point guard Kyle Sturdivant are amongst other possibilities in the class.

With so much talent left on the board for USC – along with the four prospects already committed — the Trojans’ class is unlikely to descend too far, if at all, from its current spot atop the rankings, with momentum building towards what could be another big crop in 2020.

While Evan Mobley has yet to publicly commit to USC, it’s not exactly a secret where he’s expected to end up, and when 247Sports updates its 2020 rankings, there’s a legitimate chance that the younger Mobley headlines that group.

It’s been just over five months since Enfield and staff entered an off-season filled with questions. In that time period, the program has rebounded in a way that few could have ever expected.