USC True Freshman Star Draws Inspiration from These NFL Studs

The whole world has talked about USC freshman Zachariah Branch for the past week following his electric debut against San Jose State.

Many outlets have already compared him to current NFL stars such as Jaylen Waddle. 

Branch's debut got some NFL players to notice him as well. A few days after the game, Branch received a FaceTime from Odell Beckham Jr., who is someone he looks up to.

In his media availability before Saturday's USC game against Nevada, Branch described which NFL players he mirrors his game after.

“I feel like there are a lot of mixtures of receivers that people are comparing me to,” he said. “I definitely do watch a lot of those guys that people are talking about: Tyreek Hill, Tavon Austin and Jaylen Waddle. All of those guys I watch, but I try to be my own person. I’m trying to create my own legacy and everything like that. It’s definitely an honor being compared to those guys because I used to watch them growing up.” 

^{(Via 247 Sports)}

Hill, Austin, and Waddle were elite players on offense and special teams when they were in college. 

Austin is on the all-time leaderboard when returning kickoffs with four career touchdowns. Branch is already halfway to Waddle's career total after taking a kick to the house on Saturday. Hill also returned two kicks for a touchdown in his one season at Oklahoma State.

Branch will continue to mirror these three players' games in college and make a legacy of his own as he continues his journey at USC.