Fr., DE Lawrence Jackson, Rs. [6] Matt Leinart passed for a career-high 400 yards and a school record-tying five touchdowns Saturday, leading the top-ranked Trojans to a 4110 victory and adding a highlight performance to his ultimately successful Heisman campaign. Quarterback Matt Leinart was awarded the Heisman Trophy as the most outstanding collegiate football player in the United States, with teammate Reggie Bush coming in 5th place. "The key for us this year will be whether we can return to the work ethic that made it possible to have the success we've had the past few years," said Carroll, who is 29-9 at USC (including 10-0 in November). The official Football Coach List for the University of Southern California Trojans The official Football Coach List for the University of Southern California Trojans Football Coaches - USC Athletics Skip To Main Content USC Athletics Main Navigation Menu Head Coach: Pete Carroll (11-2) Offensive Coordinator: Steve Sarkisian (QB Coach) & Lane Kiffin (PGC) Defensive Coordinator: Nick Holt Other Assistant Coaches: Best Players on the 2006 USC Trojans Football Team. He changes the dynamic of the game when he's on the field. Check out the detailed 2004-05 USC Trojans Roster and Stats for College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. He became the wide receivers coach in 2019 after handling the tight ends and inside receivers in 2018. Henson, 46, spent the past 3 seasons (2019-21 . (Alonzo Adams / Associated Press) Grinch has worked in Norman for the last two seasons as the defensive coordinator and safeties coach. "That's my fundamental approach to the game: control the ball on offense, go get it on defense and make things happen on special teams," said Carroll. Record: 13-0 (1st of 120) (Schedule & Results), Bowl Game: Won Orange Bowl 55-19 versus Oklahoma, Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Saturday, March 4, 6:41AM. [32] USC set both a school home attendance (511,373) as well as the Pac-10 home per game average attendance (85,229) records. The Irish had been inconsistent during the season, coming into the game at 64 having defeated strong teams and lost to weak teams. "We lost one of the greatest receivers in USC history and it will be a challenge to replace him. Whitney Lewis, So. Best Players on the 2007 USC Trojans Football Team. [6], The Trojans prevailed over the Beavers in a tight game in heavy fog at Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Oregon. USC has intercepted a pass in 22 of the last 23 games, held 20 of its past 26 opponents to less than 100 rushing yards (and allowed only 1 player to crack the 100-yard rushing barrier in the last 25 contests) and had a stretch of 22 consecutive quarters without allowing a rushing touchdown. PLACEKICKERS Senior Ryan Killeen (19-of-24 FG, 65-of-57 PAT in 2003) ranks among the nation's top placekickers. "I am very excited to formally announce our coaching staff," said Riley. Troy captured its second consecutive Pac-10 title (going 7-1) and beat Michigan in the Rose Bowl to secure its 10th national crown (its first in 25 years). [43] Dating back to former Trojan QB Carson Palmer's 2002 season, it was the third year in a row that a Trojan was named the Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year. Dwayne Jarrett, In. Despite all of its returning talent, skeptics surely will question USC's ability to replace such impact players as Udeze, Colbert, Rogers and Poole. Troy led the nation in net punting (43.7 avg.) Senior Matt Grootegoed (41 tac, 4.5 for loss, 1.5 sack, 1 dfl, 1 FR, 2 FF), who has started the past 3 years at strongside linebacker (he'll be on the weakside in 2004), has a knack for always being around the ball. But all is not lost, as 2 starters returnand they're among the nation's best. Junior Dominique Byrd (14 rec, 268 yds, 19.1 avg, 1 TD in 2003) started the first half of 2003 and was impressive before suffering a season-ending knee injury (he missed 2004 spring drills while recuperating). [28] Although the fog was thick enough at times to interfere with pass plays, USC tight end Dominique Byrd caught two touchdowns. Last fall, the Trojans used a rotation of 3 young tailbacks that worked so well, look for more of the same in 2004. Cody, Patterson and Grootegoed are All-American candidates. The leading candidates for both roles are redshirt freshman Will Collins, a one-time walk-on who earned a scholarship this spring, and junior walk-on linebacker Collin Ashton. Lincoln Riley is doing a lot of great things. Fr., OT Ross Burruel, Jr., C Jeff Byers, In. 2004 Cotton Bowl and 2004 . Email. [6] However, in the key final series, under heavy crowd noise, the USC defense caused an incomplete pass, a sack by defensive tackle Manuel Wright, and two more incomplete passes to cause a loss of possession and effectively end the game. But, in my. We also have some talented young players who can make a mark.". The 2004 season featured a win over No. Phone. Other key defenders returning with starting experience include linebacker Dallas Sartz (6 starts), end Frostee Rucker (5 starts), and cornerbacks Ronald Nunn and Kevin Arbet (he missed 2002 and most of 2003 with a foot injury). He started all of 2002 and could win back his job in 2004. USC has accomplished this with a multi-pronged offensive attack that stresses efficiency and ball control, an aggressive defensive approach that thrives on getting turnovers and an effective, mistake-free kicking game. Gone from the defense are All-American end Kenechi Udeze, a 3-year starter who left after his junior season to enter the NFL draft (he was the nation's sack co-leader in 2003 when he had 16.5 sacks, 26 tackles for loss and 5 forced fumbles), and fellow end Omar Nazel (a 2-year starter), plus both starting cornerbacks (All-Pac-10er Will Poole, who had 7 interceptions and 80 tackles in 2003, and Marcell Allmond, who led USC to an 18-1 mark when he started in the secondary) and 2-year starting outside linebacker Melvin Simmons. [6][14] Both USC and Stanford had just previously beat BYU in convincing fashion; however, Stanford had the added benefit of a bye week to rest and reorganize between games. In his first two years at . He was last a . OFFENSIVE LINEMEN A key to USC's success in 2004 will be the play of the partially-rebuilt offensive line, which could be the biggest in Trojan history (there are 8 linemen who weigh at least 300 pounds). Also, junior tackle Winston Justice, who from his right side spot protects Leinart's blind side, was slated to start for his third year and be an All-American candidate. A mix of players with experience and youth will contend for both vacant end jobs: junior Frostee Rucker (26 tac, 4 for loss, 1.5 sack, 1 int, 1 dfl, 1 FF, 2 FR in 2003), who started 5 games last year when Nazel was injured, and redshirt freshmen Chris Barrett, Lawrence Jackson and Alex Morrow. The 2004 Trojans football team won the 2004 BCS National Championship by winning the 2005 Orange Bowl, that year's BCS National Championship Game. And he punctuated USC's Rose Bowl victory over Michigan by catching a 15-yard scoring pass off a reverse. All the running backs return, also: starting tailback Hershel Dennis (661 rushing yards in 2003) and top backups LenDale White (his 754 yards last season made him the first true freshman to lead USC in rushing, while his 13 rushing TDs was a Trojan frosh record) and Reggie Bush (a Freshman All-American who set the USC freshman all-purpose yardage mark with 1,331 yards last fall), plus fullback Brandon Hancock (but he'll miss 2004 with a knee injury). Walk-on redshirt freshman Sean Kelly, another former tailback, also is available. Orgeron had two stints with the Trojans. Fr., FB David Kirtman, Jr., FB Desmond Reed, Rs. [29] LenDale White ran for 118 yards and three touchdowns while Matt Leinart passed for 280 yards and three more scores; the game guaranteed USC a spot in, at worst, the Rose Bowl[30], After two weeks off, the Trojans were visited by the rival Fighting Irish, led by Coach Tyrone Willingham, in the inter-sectional rivalry for the Jeweled Shillelagh. Shaun Cody (26 tac, 10.5 for loss, 6 sack, 1 FF, 1 dfl, 3 blk FG in 2003) will be starting for his fourth year, this year sliding out to end after spending his career at tackle. "The competition in the wide receiver group will be critical," said Carroll. Matt Cassel, Sr. Brandon Hance, Sr. Billy Hart, Jr. Rocky Hinds, In. Each of them had very productive seasons last year and we're hoping for more of the same this year. Then there's senior Brandon Hance (4-of-9, 44.4%, 44 yds in 2003), who started 9 games at Purdue in 2001 and was No. Find out more. His 65 PATs last fall were a Pac-10 season record and his 19 field goals tied the USC season mark. Ryan Powdrell, In. LOS ANGELES New USC football head coach Lincoln Riley has named his full-time assistant coaching staff. And we have the potential to be explosive in the return game.". ", Head Coach Pete Carroll, 2023 University of Southern California Athletics, United Airlines Field at L.A. Memorial Coliseum, Allyson Felix Field at Loker Track Stadium & Colich Center. [8] [9] Bush, who had one year left of eligibility, announced his plans to skip his senior season a week after the team's loss in the Rose Bowl. 1, "Hammer falls: USC to vacate football, basketball wins", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2004_USC_Trojans_football_team&oldid=1116882498, 110, 2 wins vacated (70 Pac-10, 1 win vacated), Defensive line coach/ Recruiting Coordinator, Wide receivers coach/Pass game coordinator. All rights reserved. He received a sixth year of eligibility from the NCAA because he was out of action for most of the past 2 seasons with a foot injury (he'll miss 2004 spring drills while recuperating). 1 and No. [26] The Trojans had lost in their previous visit to WSU, a 3027 overtime game in 2002; since then the Trojans had gone 281. For a while, it appeared that Williams--who has 176 receptions for 2,579 yards and a USC record 30 touchdowns in his 2-year career--would not return in 2004 after taking advantage of a court ruling to leave after his sophomore year for the NFL. The 41-year . Enrolling this fall is J.C. All-American Ryan Powdrell (Saddleback Community College in Mission Viejo, Calif.), who is a junior, and prep All-Americans Keith Rivers (Lake Mary High in Lake Mary, Fla.) and Eugene Germany (Pomona High in Pomona, Calif.), who both are freshmen. 2008 USC Coaching Staff Head Coach: Pete Carroll (12-1) Offensive Coordinator: Steve Sarkisian Defensive Coordinator: Nick Holt Other Assistant Coaches: Todd McNair (RB/ST Coach) Brennan Carroll (TE Coach) John Morton (WR Coach) Ken Norton Jr (LB Coach) Best Players on the 2008 USC Trojans Football Team QB Mark Sanchez RB Stafon Johnson The tight end corps is deep, with Gregg Guenther Jr. (17 catches and 2 TDs in 2003)-also a star on the Trojan basketball team-back after starting the last half of 2003, along with Dominique Byrd (14 catches and 6 early starts in 2003) and Alex Holmes (58 career catches), USC's starter in 2002 but injured last season. LOS ANGELES New USC football head coach . Derrick Jones, In. "We know we can expect a high level of play out of our experienced returning players. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. The 2004 Trojans football team won the 2004 BCS National Championship by winning the 2005 Orange Bowl, that year's BCS National Championship Game. In all, 79 squadmen return from last year's national championship team, including 56 who saw playing time in 2003 (50 were lettermen and 31 were on the season-ending 2-deep). 2004 USC >> 2003 USC Coaching Staff Head Coach: Pete Carroll (12-1) Offensive Coordinator: Norm Chow Defensive Coordinator: Other Assistant Coaches: Steve Sarkisian (QB Coach) Lane Kiffin (WR Coach) Ed Orgeron (AHC/RC/DL Coach) Best Players on the 2003 USC Trojans Football Team QB Matt Leinart QB John David Booty RB Lendale White RB Reggie Bush TIGHT ENDS Dominique Byrd, Jr. GREGG GUENTHER JR., Sr. Owen Hanson, Sr. Alex Holmes, Sr. Kurt Katnik, So. If we can have that kind of work ethic, we'll be on the right track.". "We had a lot of weapons and scored lots of points. Tackle Winston Justice and guard Fred Matua return as starters on the line (John Drake, who started 7 times last year at guard and tackle, is back as well). Fr., CB Justin Wyatt, Jr., CB. So he sought to have his collegiate eligibility restored (as of mid-July, the NCAA hadn't ruled). But we have a lot of players fighting for playing time, including some exciting young guys who will be fun to watch.". [37], There was some controversy in the final team selections as the Auburn Tigers had also finished the regular season undefeated and won their bowl game, the Sugar Bowl, against the same Virginia Tech team USC defeated in the season opener; Auburn began the season ranked outside the top 15 and perhaps because of this they were unable to secure a spot in the national championship game,[38] although they did tie Oklahoma at No. We had tremendous fan support last year and we'll need all of them again in our quest to be the best in 2004.". Providing that safety depth will be twin redshirt freshmen Brandon Ting (3 tac in 2003) and Ryan Ting (1 tac in 2003), and senior walk-ons Greg Farr (6 tac in 2003) and Chris Bocage (1 tac in 2003), who missed 2004 spring practice while recovering from a knee injury. [22], At halftime USC recognized the 1939 Trojans as National Champions based on their #1 ranking in the contemporary Dickinson System, with surviving members of the team in attendance. He's good enough to merit All-American consideration (he was a Butkus Award and Lombardi Award semifinalist last season). "They're both really hard to block and are relentless in how they play the game. [22] The decisive victory helped USC dispel concerns over its ability to dominate opponents. . (Simon Park | Daily Trojan) Just look what happened last year when Troy had to replace a number of top performers, including the 2002 Heisman winner (Carson Palmer), the nation's best safety (Troy Polamalu) and 3 NFL-caliber tailbacks (Justin Fargas, Sultan McCullough and Malaefou MacKenzie). Fr. Fr. Senior Gregg Guenther Jr. (17 rec, 167 yds, 9.8 avg, 2 TD in 2003, plus 1 blk FG) became the starter by mid-2003 and performed well. Colbert was selected in the NFL's second round. Obviously there are emotional swings with sports and so the mathematical ratings do not always line up with the emotional expectations from a team. 1 spot, so Matt will have to continue to work hard if he wants to hold them off.". Matt Grootegoed, Sr. Oscar Lua, So. It's always difficult to lose a player the caliber of 4-year starter Keary Colbert, USC's career receptions leader (207) who had 1,000-yard receiving seasons the past 2 years (including 1,013 yards and 9 TDs on 69 catches in 2003). ", USC will defend its national championship against a schedule that features 6 opponents who played in bowls last season. Matt Leinart, Jr. Michael McDonald, Rs. Alex Grinch. The talk will be inevitable, and understandably so. On June 6, 2011, the BCS officially vacated USC's 2004 National Championship. College Football at Sports-Reference.com Blog and Articles. [20], The 15th-ranked Sun Devils, under Coach Dirk Koetter, were out to prove that they were a part of the national title picture and USC was out to prove it deserved its top-ranking after a series of close games to the Bay Area schools. The Bruins, having come off a three-week break of consecutive bye weeks, came into the game as serious underdogs in the Victory Bell. The USC football coaching staff has been rounded out by Lincoln Riley with the hire of Josh Henson as offensive line coach late Sunday night. Josh Henson, who has 23 years of coaching experience primarily in the SEC and Big 12 and has been part of a national championship staff, joined the USC staff as the offensive coordinator and offensive line coach in December of 2021. Fr., OG-OT Drew Radovich, Rs. [22] It was the second time the Trojans played before consecutive sellout crowds in the Coliseum, the first was in 1947 when the UCLA and Notre Dame rivalry games sold out, and the first against non-rival opponents. [6] White threw for 24-of-36 for 244 yards with three interceptions and two touchdowns; Peterson ran for 82 yards on 25 carries. . Last year, USC allowed just 1.2 sacks a game (its lowest average since 1987). QB John David Booty. "That's how we're looking at it. "But we must overcome several obstacles on the offensive side of the ball. Key losses from the offense are wide receiver Keary Colbert, a 4-year starter who set the USC career receptions record (207), and a trio of experienced linemen: All-American tackle Jacob Rogers (a 3-year starter), All-Pac-10 center Norm Katnik (a 3-year starter) and guard Lenny Vandermade (a 4-year starter). [36] The game also featured four out of five of the 2004 Heisman finalists with Leinart, White, Reggie Bush and Sooner running back Adrian Peterson, the Heisman runner-up. Fr. And USC's rushing offense (155.9), though not nationally ranked, was its best since 1991. Reggie Bush will be a key in the Trojans' running game this season. [44], In June 2010, the NCAA imposed sanctions on USC as a result of an investigation into the football program. football@usc.edu. "We understand how to handle personnel losses and move on," said Carroll. [7] This was the first time the two teams had competed in football;[7] and with the game held only three hours away from Virginia Tech, the crowd was dominated by Hokies fans. Also a key special teams player, he led the Trojans in punt returns in 2001 with 25 for 225 yards (9.0 average) and earned All-Pac-10 first team honors as a special teamer that season. Ryan Ting also can play cornerback. [14], ESPN's College GameDay program visited the Los Angeles Coliseum for the first time[3] in anticipation of a game between highly ranked and undefeated teams: 7th-ranked California had given USC its only loss in the 2003 season, resulting in the Trojans sharing the 2003 National Championship. [6] The game marked the return of USC Offensive Coordinator Norm Chow to the program where he spent 27 years as an assistant under former Coach LaVell Edwards. Finally, senior leadership must surface even though we might not have more than two or three seniors starting on offense.". They comprise what many are saying is the school's second consecutive No. Losing that duo might not be as much of a concern as it appears, however, because their possible replacements are experienced seniors with plenty of starts under their belts. Marco Chavez, Sr. Eugene Germany, In. RB Chauncey Washington. DEFENSIVE BACKS The good news in the secondary is that both starting safeties return. "The key for us this year will be whether we can return to the work ethic that made it possible to have the success we've had the past few years.