Category:University of Southern California Football History
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[edit] History
The University of Southern California Trojans football program, established in 1888, is a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association and the Pacific 10 Conference under head coach Pete Carroll. The Trojans have been a football mainstay throughout NCAA history and, in recent years, have consistently ranked in the top 5 of the final BCS and AP polls. The football team is regarded as the centerpiece of an athletic program that has won more NCAA men's individual and men's team titles than any other university and is third in co-ed team titles, behind fellow Pac-10 schools Stanford and UCLA.
[edit] 1920s-1930s
After several decades of competition, USC first achieved national prominence under head coach "Gloomy" Gus Henderson in the early 1920s. Success continued under coach Howard Jones from 1925 to 1940, when the Trojans were a one of a handful of nationally dominant teams. It was during this era that the team achieved renown as the "Thundering Herd", earning its first four national titles.
[edit] 1940s-1950s
USC achieved intermittent success in the years following Jones' tenure. Jeff Cravath, who coached from 1942-1950, won the Rose Bowl in 1943 and 1945. Jess Hill, who coached from 1951 to 1956, won the Rose Bowl in 1953.
[edit] 1960s-1970s
The program entered a new golden age upon the arrival of head coach John McKay (1960-1975). During this period the Trojans won 2 Heisman Trophies and 4 national championships. McKay's influence continued even after he departed for the NFL when an assistant coach, John Robinson (1976-1982), took over as head coach. Under Robinson USC won an additional national championship in 1978 and two players garnered 2 Heisman Trophy honors. One player, Sam "Bam" Cunningham, an African American USC running back, is said to have helped speed the integration of Southern football through his performance in a game in the South. In 1970, coach Bear Bryant at the University of Alabama scheduled a game with USC; Bryant's team lost to an exceptional USC team 42-21, with Cunningham scoring five touchdowns. Afterwards Alabama and many other Southern football teams integrated their rosters.
[edit] 1980s-1990s
In the 1980s, USC football did not realize a national champioship though it continued to experience relative success and top 20 AP rankings and PAC-10 Conference Championships. With head coaches Ted Tollner (1983-1986) and Larry Smith (1987-1992), winning the Rose Bowl once under each and USC was recognized among the nation's top ten teams three times. However, some alumni had grown accustomed to the programs' stature as a perennial national championship contender. In 1993, Robinson was named head coach a second time, leading the Trojans to a victory in the 1996 Rose Bowl over Northwestern.
However, losing streaks of 11 years (1983-1993) to intersectional rival Notre Dame and 8 years (1991-1998) to crosstown rival UCLA were unacceptable to some USC supporters. In 1998, head coach Paul Hackett took over the team, but posted an even more disappointing 19-18 record in three seasons. By 2000, some observers surmised that USC football's days of national dominance were fading; the football team's record of 37-35 from 1996 to 2001 was their second-worst over any five-year span in history (only the mark of 29-29-2 from 1956-1961 was worse), and the period marked the first and only time USC had been out of the final top 20 teams for four straight years.
[edit] 2000-Today
In 2001, athletic director Mike Garrett (the 1965 Heisman winner) released Hackett and hired Pete Carroll, a former NFL head coach. Carroll went 6-6 in his first year, losing to Utah in the Las Vegas Bowl, 10-6.
USC opened 3-2 in 2002, suffering losses to Kansas State and Washington State. However, the Trojans went on to win the rest of their games, completing the regular season 11-2 on the strength of senior quarterback Carson Palmer's breakout performance. In fact, Palmer's performance, particularly in the season-ending rivalry games against Notre Dame and UCLA, impressed so many pundits that he went on to win the Heisman Trophy, carrying every single region of voting and becoming the first USC quarterback to be so honored. Despite tying for the Pacific-10 Conference title (with Washington State), having the highest BCS "strength of schedule" rating, and fielding the nation's top defense, USC finished the season ranked No. 5 in the BCS rankings. Facing off against BCS No. 3 Iowa in the Orange Bowl, USC defeated the Hawkeyes 38-17.
In 2003, highly touted but unproven redshirt sophomore Matt Leinart took over for Palmer at quarterback. Although his first pass went for a touchdown in a win over Auburn, the Trojans suffered an early season triple-overtime loss to conference rival California in Berkeley. Nevertheless, Carroll guided the team to wins in their remaining games and they completed the regular season 11-1. Before the postseason, both the coaches' poll and the Associated Press poll ranked USC number #1, but the BCS - which also gave consideration to computer rankings - ranked Oklahoma first, another one-loss team but one that had lost its own Big 12 Conference title game 35-7, with USC ranked third. In that year's Sugar Bowl BCS National Championship Game, BCS #2 Louisiana State defeated BCS #1 Oklahoma 21-14. Meanwhile, USC defeated BCS #4 Michigan 28-14 in the Rose Bowl. USC finished the season ranked #1 in the AP poll, prompting a split national title between LSU and USC. USC finished the season ranked #1 in the AP poll; LSU, however, won the BCS championship title for that year.
In 2004, USC was picked #1 in the preseason by the Associated Press, thanks to the return of Leinart as well as sophomore running backs LenDale White and Reggie Bush. The defense—led by All-American defensive tackles Shaun Cody and Mike Patterson, as well as All-American linebackers Lofa Tatupu and Matt Grootegoed—was considered to be among the finest in the nation. Key questions included the offensive line, with few returning starters, and the receiving corps, which had lost last year's senior Keary Colbert and the breakout star of 2003, Mike Williams. Williams had tried to enter the NFL draft a year early during the Maurice Clarett trial, only to be rebuffed by the NFL and subsequently denied eligibility by the NCAA.
Despite close calls against Stanford and California, the Trojans finished the season undefeated and headed for the 2004 BCS Championship at the Orange Bowl. USC was the second team in NCAA football history to have gone wire-to-wire (ranked first place from preseason to postseason since the AP began releasing preseason rankings); the first was Florida State in 1999 (three other schools went wire-to-wire before the existence of preseason polls - Notre Dame in 1943, Army in 1945 and USC in 1972). Quarterback Leinart won the Heisman Trophy, with running back Bush placing fifth in the vote tally. The Trojans' opponent in the Orange Bowl, Oklahoma, were themselves undefeated and captained by sixth-year quarterback Jason White, who had won the Heisman in 2003; the game marked the first time in NCAA history that two players who had already won the Heisman played against each other. Most analysts expected the game to be close—as USC matched its speed and defense against the Oklahoma running game and skilled offensive line—but the reality proved to be far different. USC scored 38 points by halftime, and won by the score of 55-19. USC won the undisputed national championship, despite the fact that both Auburn and Utah were also undefeated following their bowl games.
The 2005 regular season climaxed with USC defeating cross-town rival UCLA 66-19, and running back Reggie Bush finishing his stellar year by winning the Heisman Trophy. Matt Leinart finished third in the Heisman voting. Several other players also earned accolades, being named All-Americans (AP, Football Coaches, Football Writers, Walter Camp, ESPN.com, SI.com, CBS Sportsline.com, Rivals.com, Collegefootballnews.com). These include QB Matt Leinart, RB Reggie Bush, RB LenDale White, S Darnell Bing, OT Taitusi Lutui, OT Sam Baker, WR Dwayne Jarrett, C Ryan Kalil, OG Fred Matua, and DE Lawrence Jackson. Additionally, OL Winston Justice did well enough to forego his senior year and go professional.
However, USC's hopes for another national championship were dashed by the University of Texas at Austin Longhorns, led by quarterback Vince Young, in a dramatic 41-38 loss at the 2006 Rose Bowl.
For the 2006 football season, USC must attempt to rebuild following the loss of offensive stalwarts Leinart, Bush, and White, defensive leader Bing, and offensive linemen Matua, Justice, and Lutui. The Trojans are expected to develop their offense using unproven QB John David Booty and returning star receivers Dwayne Jarrett and Steve Smith along with second-year WR Patrick Turner. Mark Sanchez, the highly-touted recruit from the class of 2005 (Mission Viejo High School, CA) is widely viewed as a dark horse to win the starting job from Booty, while the starting tailback position looks to be a battle between several returning players (many recovering from injuries) and heralded RB recruit Stafon Johnson (Dorsey High School in Los Angeles, CA). USC should have many experienced players as well, including linebacker Dallas Sartz, wide receiver Chris McFoy and fullback Brandon Hancock, all of whom have already graduated with their bachelors degrees and are pursuing Masters degrees to be eligible for one last year of college football. Additionally, fifth year (redshirt) seniors linebacker Oscar Lua, running back Ryan Powdrell and offensive lineman Kyle Williams should either start or play frequently in 2006.
[edit] Tailback U
"Tailback U" is a nickname that emerged when legendary college football coach John McKay ('60-'75) and successor John Robinson ('76-'82) began producing a number of top-rated players at the tailback position. Coach Pete Carroll has continued the trend in recent years with Heisman Trophy winning tailback Reggie Bush and current NFL player LenDale White.
Coach McKay's play calling emphasized and refined the run, taking full advantage of his quality backs-a trend followed by his former offensive coordinator and immediate successor, John Robinson. Carroll has had success and Heisman winners, both at Quarterback and Running Back.
[edit] Individual awards
Individual players have won numerous accolades with 7 Heisman Trophy winners, 34 College Football Hall of Fame inductees, and over 130 All-Americans.
[edit] Heisman Trophy winners
- Mike Garrett, TB (1965)
- O.J. Simpson, TB (1968)
- Charles White, TB (1979)
- Marcus Allen, TB (1981)
- Carson Palmer, QB (2002)
- Matt Leinart, QB (2004)
- Reggie Bush, TB (2005)
[edit] Outland Trophy winners
- Ron Yary, OT (1967)
[edit] Lombardi Award winners
- Brad Budde, OG (1979)
[edit] Thorpe Award winners
- Mark Carrier, FS (1989)
[edit] Butkus Award winners
- Chris Claiborne, MLB (1998)
[edit] College Football Hall of Fame Inductees
- Howard Jones, Head Coach (1951)
- Morley Drury, B (1954)
- Mel Hein, Assistant Coach (1954)
- Harry Smith, G (1955)
- Erny Pinckert, B (1957)
- Aaron Rosenberg, G (1966)
- Ernie Smith, T (1970)
- Dan McMillan, T (1971)
- Mort Kaer, B (1972)
- John Ferraro, T (1974)
- Frank Gifford, B (1975)
- Cotton Warburton, B (1975)
- Tay Brown, T (1980)
- Johnny Baker, G (1983)
- O.J. Simpson, TB (1983)
- Mike Garrett, B (1985)
- Bob Blackman, Assistant Coach (1987)
- Mike McKeever, G (1987)
- Ron Yary, T (1987)
- John McKay, Head Coach (1988)
- Paul Cleary, E (1989)
- Mike McGee, Athletic Director (1990)
- Lynn Swann, FL (1993)
- Marvin Powell, T (1994)
- Charles White, TB (1996)
- Ken O'Brien, Assistant Coach (1997)
- Brad Budde, G (1998)
- Don Coryell, Assistant Coach (1999)
- Marcus Allen, TB (2000)
- Jon Arnett, HB (2001)
- Ronnie Lott, S (2002)
- Ricky Bell, TB (2003)
- Charles Young, TE (2004)
- Anthony Davis, TB (2005)
[edit] Other notable individual accomplishments
[edit] Heisman finalists
- Jim Sears, HB/S (7th in 1952)
- John Arnett, HB (10th in 1956)
- O.J. Simpson, TB (2nd in 1967)
- Anthony Davis, TB (2nd in 1974)
- Ricky Bell, TB (3rd in 1975 and 2nd in 1976)
- Charles White, TB (4th in 1978)
- Paul McDonald, QB (6th in 1979)
- Rodney Peete, QB (2nd in 1988)
- Keyshawn Johnson, WR (7th in 1995)
- Matt Leinart, QB (6th in 2003)
- Mike Williams, WR (8th in 2003)
- Reggie Bush, TB (5th in 2004)
- Matt Leinart, QB (3rd in 2005)
[edit] From the field to the sidelines
- Jeff Fisher, CB (head coach of the Tennessee Titans)
- Jack Del Rio, LB (head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars)
- Mike Holmgren, QB (head coach of the Seattle Seahawks)
[edit] From the field to the broadcast booth
- Frank Gifford, RB (former Monday Night Football commentator)
- Pat Haden, QB (NBC color commentator for Notre Dame games)
- Sean Salisbury, QB (ESPN NFL analyst)
- Paul McDonald, QB (color commentator for USC games)
- Lynn Swann, WR (ABC Sports commentator; currently running for Governor of Pennsylvania)
[edit] From the field to the red carpet
- John Wayne, OL (Hollywood movie star from the 1920's through the 1970's)
[edit] From the field to problems
- Todd Marinovich, QB (problems with drug use)
- O.J. Simpson, RB (former TV commentator and film star found liable for the deaths of his ex-wife and another in civil court)
[edit] Trojans in the NFL
USC has had more NFL Draft picks (67) than any other team. One hundred and sixty two (162) Trojans have been selected to the NFL Pro Bowl, overshadowing Notre Dame's 135. Moreover, a Trojan has played in all but two Super Bowls.
[edit] Pro Football Hall of Fame Inductees
- Frank Gifford, B (1977)
- Ron Mix, OT (1979)
- Morris 'Red' Badgro, E (1981)
- O.J. Simpson, RB (1985)
- Willie Wood, DB (1989)
- Anthony Muñoz, OT (1998)
- Ronnie Lott, DB (2000)
- Lynn Swann, WR (2001)
- Ron Yary, OT (2001)
- Marcus Allen, RB (2003)
[edit] Bowl History
[edit] Rivalries
A majority of Trojan alumni and fans consider the Notre Dame Fighting Irish USC’s greatest (and, perhaps, only) gridiron rival. The intersectional game has featured more national championship teams, Heisman trophy winners, All-Americans, and future NFL hall-of-famers than any other collegiate match-up. The two schools have kept the annual game on their schedules since 1926 despite the fact that it enjoys neither the possibility of acquiring regional “bragging rights” nor the import of intra-league play that drive most rivalries.
UCLA has also been considered a traditional rival and is often the focus of student supporters since many USC students have friends or family members attending "that other school" (of course, many UCLA students refer to their USC friends in the same way) and many southern California families are evenly divided between Trojan Cardinal and Bruin Blue. Moreover, UCLA’s proximity to USC means that city bragging rights are on the line. Still, the fan base, in general, tends to emphasize the Notre Dame rivalry over the UCLA rivalry. A common saying among USC supporters bears this out: "There’s nothing better than beating Notre Dame and nothing worse than losing to UCLA."
Older USC supporters often regard Stanford as one of USC’s major rivals. During the early and mid-20th century Stanford football occasionally enjoyed periods of great regional success on the gridiron. USC and Stanford, being two major private universities on the west coast, naturally drew the ire of one another. In recent history, however, Stanford has not maintained their earlier success and the rivalry has faded.
The term "rivalry" is often used quite loosely. After USC’s 2003 loss to California some began to suggest that a budding rivalry between the Trojans and the Golden Bears was taking shape within the Pac-10. A close 2004 game between the two teams furthered this talk but a one-sided Trojan victory at Berkeley in 2005 effectively quashed it. For most Trojan fans the notion of what makes a rival will always be measured against the Notre Dame and, for that reason, it is unlikely that any other team will ever be considered a true rival for USC.
Articles in category "University of Southern California Football History"
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