2003 USC Trojans football team

2003 USC Trojans football
Associated Press National Champions
Rose Bowl Champions
Pac-10 Champions
Rose Bowl vs. Michigan, W 28–14
Conference Pacific-10 Conference
Ranking
Coaches #2
AP #1
2003 record 12–1 (7–1 Pac-10)
Head coach Pete Carroll
Offensive coordinator Norm Chow
Captain Keary Colbert
Captain Melvin Simmons
Home stadium Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (c. 92,000, grass)
2003 Pacific-10 football standings
Conf     Overall
Team   W   L         W   L  
#1 USC †   7 – 1         12 – 1  
#9 Washington State   6 – 2         10 – 3  
Oregon   5 – 3         8 – 5  
California   5 – 3         8 – 6  
Oregon State   4 – 4         8 – 5  
Washington   4 – 4         6 – 6  
UCLA   4 – 4         6 – 7  
Arizona State   2 – 6         5 – 7  
Stanford   2 – 6         4 – 7  
Arizona   1 – 7         2 – 10  
† – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2003 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California in the 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season. They were named the Associated Press and Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) National Champions but were denied a spot in the BCS National Championship Game due to controversy with the BCS selections for the national championship game.

The regular season ended with three one-loss teams in BCS contention: Oklahoma, LSU and USC. USC ended the regular season ranked #1 and LSU #2 in both the AP Poll and the Coaches' Poll. USC lost one triple-overtime game at California, which finished 8–6; LSU had a 12-point home loss against a Florida team that went 8–5; Oklahoma, which had been ranked #1 for most of the season, fell to #3 after suffering a 35–7 defeat in the 2003 Big 12 Championship Game to Kansas State, which finished 11–4. Controversy erupted when the BCS computers selected Oklahoma-LSU as the BCS title game. During the bowl games, USC had a convincing 28–14 win over #4 Michigan in the Rose Bowl while LSU beat Oklahoma 21–14 in the Sugar Bowl (designated the BCS title game). USC remained #1 in the final AP Poll with 48 of the 65 votes, and LSU was ranked, by contractual obligation, #1 in the final Coaches' Poll, though three coaches did not follow instructions and voted USC #1 in that poll as well.[1]

Recruiting

With the late arrival of highly touted quarterback John David Booty, who left high school a year early to attend USC, the Trojan's 2003 recruiting class was considered by some to be the best in the country.[2][3]

Its legacy included many NFL Draft picks over several years, including five first round picks.[4]

2004 NFL Draft:

2006 NFL Draft:

2007 NFL Draft:

2008 NFL Draft:

Schedule

The Trojans finished the season with a 12–1 record, 7–1 in the Pac-10.

Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Result Attendance
August 30 3:00 PM at #6 Auburn* #8 Jordan-Hare Stadium • Auburn, AL CBS W 23–0   86,063
September 6 5:00 PM BYU* #5 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, CA ABC W 35–18   75,315
September 13 1:00 PM Hawaii* #4 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, CA FSN W 61–32   73,654
September 27 3:30 PM at California #3 California Memorial Stadium • Berkeley, CA FSN L 31–34 3OT  51,208
October 4 12:30 PM at Arizona State #10 Sun Devil Stadium • Tempe, AZ ABC W 37–17   56,527
October 11 7:00 PM Stanford #9 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, CA FSN W 44–21   68,341
October 18 11:30 AM at Notre Dame* #4 Notre Dame Stadium • Notre Dame, IN (Battle for the Jeweled Shillelagh) NBC W 45–14   80,795
October 25 12:30 PM at Washington #4 Husky Stadium • Seattle, WA ABC W 43–23   72,015
November 1 4:00 PM #6 Washington Statedagger #3 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, CA ABC W 43–16   82,478
November 15 4:00 PM at Arizona #2 Arizona Stadium • Tucson, AZ TBS W 45–0   39,201
November 22 12:30 PM UCLA #2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, CA (Battle for the Victory Bell) ABC W 47–22   93,172
December 6 1:30 PM Oregon State #2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, CA ABC W 52–28   73,864
January 1, 2004 1:30 PM vs. #4 Michigan* #1 Rose Bowl • Pasadena, CA (Rose Bowl) ABC W 28–14   93,849
*Non-conference game. daggerHomecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll. All times are in Pacific Time.

Game notes

Auburn

1 234Total
• USC 10 067 23
Auburn 0 000 0
  • Date: August 30
  • Location: Jordan-Hare Stadium • Auburn, Alabama
  • Game attendance: 86,063
  • Television network: CBS

USC opened the season visiting Auburn University: the Tigers were also ranked in the top-10 and had been named a pre-season favorite to be the national champion by at least one major news organization. In his first start, quarterback Matt Leinart led the Trojans on a domineering 23–0 performance.[5]


2003 team players in the NFL

References

  1. ↑ Miller, Ted (May 20, 2008). "BCS system leaves long trail of wounded victims". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 20, 2008.
  2. ↑ Newberg, Jamie (May 22, 2003). "Upon further review ...". SI.com. Retrieved April 30, 2008.
  3. ↑ "USC wins on recruiting trail by grabbing California talent". USA Today. February 6, 2003.
  4. ↑ 2003 USC FOOTBALL SIGNEES, USC Trojans - Official Site, Retrieved April 30, 2008.
  5. ↑ Forde, Pat (August 28, 2007) The Dash is off and running, ESPN.com.