2002 USC Trojans football team

2002 USC Trojans football
2002 USC Trojans football
National champion; (Dunkel, Matthews, Sagarin); Pac-10 co-champion; Orange Bowl champion
Orange Bowl, W 38–17 vs. Iowa
Conference	Pacific-10 Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 4
AP	No. 4
Record	11–2 (7–1 Pac-10)
Head coach	Pete Carroll (2nd season);
Offensive coordinator	Norm Chow (2nd season)
Captains	Carson Palmer; Troy Polamalu;
Home stadium	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (c. 92,000, grass)
	Seasons ← 2001 2003 →

2002 Pacific-10 Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 10 Washington State $+	7	–	1	10	–	3
No. 4 USC %+	7	–	1	11	–	2
Arizona State	5	–	3	8	–	6
UCLA	4	–	4	8	–	5
Oregon State	4	–	4	8	–	5
California	4	–	4	7	–	5
Washington	4	–	4	7	–	6
Oregon	3	–	5	7	–	6
Arizona	1	–	7	4	–	8
Stanford	1	–	7	2	–	9

$ – BCS representative as conference champion % – BCS at-large representative + – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 2002 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California in the 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season. USC ended the regular season ranked #5 in both the AP Poll and the Coaches' Poll. Trojans quarterback Carson Palmer won the 2002 Heisman Trophy as the best college football player in America. During the bowl games, USC had a convincing 38–17 win over #3 Iowa in the Orange Bowl. USC became #4 in the final AP Poll and Coaches' Poll. Other notable players for the USC Trojans in 2002 include WR#2 Kareem Kelly, RB#21 Malaefou Mackenzie, QB#10 Matt Cassel, RB#4 Sultan McCullough, RB#34 Hershel Dennis (FR) RB#25 Justin Fargas, RB#39 Sunny Byrd, RB#34 Chad Pierson, S#43 Troy Polamalu, WR#44 Gregg Guenther, TE#86 Dominique Byrd, WR#83 Keary Colbert, WR#1 Mike Williams, WR#7 Sandy Fletcher, WR#82 Donald Hale, TE#88 Doyal Butler, and WR#87 Grant Mattos.

The team was named national champion by the Dunkel System, Matthews Grid Ratings, and Sagarin Ratings, all NCAA-designated major selectors,^[1]^: 115 although none are claimed by the university.

Recruiting

USC was ranked highly (#12 by Scout, #13 by Rivals) for getting Darnell Bing, Manuel Wright, Winston Justice, Fred Matua, Tom Malone, Jason Mitchell, Hershel Dennis, Kyle Williams, Dominique Byrd, Dallas Sartz, Justin Wyatt, Chris McFoy, Mike Williams, LaJuan Ramsey, Oscar Lua and Brandon Hancock among others.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 2	5:00 p.m.	Auburn*	No. 20	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	ABC	W 24–17	63,269	^[2]
September 14	12:30 p.m.	at No. 18 Colorado*	No. 17	Folsom Field Boulder, CO	ABC	W 40–3	53,119	^[2]
September 21	4:00 p.m.	at No. 25 Kansas State*	No. 11	KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS	TBS	L 20–27	49,276	^[2]
September 28	3:30 p.m.	No. 23 Oregon State	No. 18	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	FSN	W 22–0	56,417	^[2]
October 5	4:00 p.m.	at No. 17 Washington State	No. 18	Martin Stadium Pullman, WA	TBS	L 27–30 ^OT	36,861	^[2]
October 12	3:30 p.m.	California	No. 20	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	FSN	W 30–28	63,113	^[2]
October 19	12:30 p.m.	No. 22 Washington	No. 19	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	ABC	W 41–21	52,961	^[2]
October 26	12:30 p.m.	at No. 14 Oregon	No. 15	Autzen Stadium Eugene, OR	ABC	W 44–33	56,754	^[2]
November 9	5:00 p.m.	at Stanford	No. 10	Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA (rivalry)	ABC	W 49–17	44,950	^[2]
November 16	4:00 p.m.	Arizona State	No. 8	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	TBS	W 34–13	73,923	^[2]
November 23	12:30 p.m.	at No. 25 UCLA	No. 7	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA (Victory Bell)	ABC	W 52–21	91,084	^[2]
November 30	5:00 p.m.	No. 7 Notre Dame*	No. 6	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA (rivalry)	ABC	W 44–13	91,432	^[2]
January 2, 2003	5:00 p.m.	vs. No. 3 Iowa*	No. 5	Pro Player Stadium Miami Gardens, FL (Orange Bowl)	ABC	W 38–17	75,971	^[2]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Pacific time

Roster

2002 USC Trojans football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
WR	`31`	Will Buchanon	Fr
TE	`88`	Doyal Butler	Jr
RB	`39`	Sunny Byrd	So
WR	`19`	Greig Carlson	Fr
TE	`86`	Dominique Byrd	Fr
QB	`10`	Matt Cassel	So
WR	`83`	Keary Colbert	Jr
RB	`25`	Justin Fargas	Sr
TE	`44`	Gregg Guenther	Fr
TE	`81`	Alex Holmes	Jr
C	`62`	Norm Katnik	Jr
WR	`2`	Kareem Kelly	Sr
RB	`37`	David Kirtman	Fr
QB	`11`	Matt Leinart	Fr
FB	`21`	Malaefou MacKenzie	Sr
RB	`4`	Sultan McCullough	Sr
QB	`3`	Carson Palmer	Sr
OT	`77`	Jacob Rogers	Jr
G	`78`	Lenny Vandermade	So
RB	`35`	Lee Webb	So
WR	`1`	Mike Williams	Fr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
CB	`8`	Marcell Allmond	Jr
LB	`59`	Collin Ashton	Fr
DT	`84`	Shaun Cody	Fr
LB	`6`	Matt Grootegoed	So
DB	`27`	Jason Leach	So
DT	`99`	Mike Patterson	So
S	`43`	Troy Polamalu	Sr
DT	`93`	Bernard Riley	Sr
LB	`42`	Dallas Sartz	Fr
DE	`94`	Kenechi Udeze	So
CB	`24`	Justin Wyatt	Fr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
K	`16`	Ryan Killeen	Fr
P	`14`	Tom Malone	Fr

Head coach

Pete Carroll

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Norm Chow – offensive coordinator
Lane Kiffin – wide receivers
Ryan Nielsen – volunteer assistant

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Roster
Last update: 2004-05-13

Game summaries

Auburn

Auburn at No. 20 USC

	1	2	3	4	Total
Tigers	7	7	0	3	17
• No. 20 Trojans	7	7	3	7	24

Date: September 2
Location: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles

at No. 18 Colorado

No. 17 USC at No. 18 Colorado

	1	2	3	4	Total
• No. 17 Trojans	14	6	0	20	40
No. 18 Buffaloes	0	0	3	0	3

Date: September 14
Location: Folsom Field, Boulder, Colorado
Game start: 12:30 p.m. PST
Game attendance: 53,119
Television network: ABC

at No. 25 Kansas State

No. 11 USC at No. 25 Kansas State

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 11 Trojans	0	6	0	14	20
• No. 25 Wildcats	0	12	7	8	27

Date: September 21
Location: KSU Stadium, Manhattan, Kansas
Referee: John Laurie
TV announcers (TBS): Ron Thulin, Charles Davis, Craig Sager, and Erin Andrews

^[3]

Statistics	USC	KSU
First downs	16	19
Total yards	276	347
Rushing yards	90	188
Passing yards	186	159
Turnovers	1	5
Time of possession	29:37	30:23

No. 23 Oregon State

No. 23 Oregon State at No. 18 USC

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 23 Beavers	0	0	0	0	0
• No. 18 Trojans	0	13	6	3	22

Date: September 28
Location: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles

at No. 17 Washington State

No. 18 USC at No. 17 Washington State

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
No. 18 Trojans	7	0	7	13	0	27
• No. 17 Cougars	10	0	7	10	3	30

Date: October 5
Location: Martin Stadium, Pullman, Washington

California

California at No. 20 USC

	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Bears	14	7	0	7	28
• No. 20 Trojans	3	14	7	6	30

Date: October 12
Location: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles

No. 22 Washington

#22/17 Washington at #19/20 USC

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 22 Huskies	7	0	0	14	21
• No. 19 Trojans	7	10	17	7	41

Date: October 19
Location: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles
TV announcers (ABC): Keith Jackson, Dan Fouts & Todd Harris

at No. 14 Oregon

No. 15 USC at No. 14 Oregon

	1	2	3	4	Total
• No. 15 Trojans	14	0	20	10	44
No. 14 Ducks	13	6	0	14	33

Date: October 26
Location: Autzen Stadium, Eugene, Oregon
Game attendance: 56,754

at Stanford

No. 10 USC at Stanford

	1	2	3	4	Total
• No. 10 Trojans	14	7	14	14	49
Cardinal	7	3	0	7	17

Date: October 19
Location: Stanford Stadium, Palo Alto, California
Game attendance: 44,950

Arizona State

Arizona State at No. 8 USC

	1	2	3	4	Total
Sun Devils	3	7	3	0	13
• No. 8 Trojans	10	10	0	14	34

Date: November 16
Location: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles

^[4]

at No. 25 UCLA

No. 7 USC at No. 25 UCLA

	1	2	3	4	Total
• No. 7 Trojans	21	7	14	10	52
No. 25 Bruins	0	7	0	14	21

Date: November 23
Location: Rose Bowl, Pasadena
Game start: 3:30 p.m. EST
Elapsed time: 3:26
Game attendance: 91,084
Television network: ABC

Carson Palmer 19/32, 254 Yds, 4 TD
Kareem Kelly 4 Rec, 94 Yds, 1 TD

^[5]

No. 7 Notre Dame

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 7 Fighting Irish	6	7	0	0	13
• No. 6 Trojans	0	17	13	14	44

Date: November 30
Location: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles
Game start: 8:00 p.m. EST
Elapsed time: 3:26
Game attendance: 91,432
Game weather: Cloudy; 60 °F (16 °C); wind variable
Referee: Chuck McFerrin
Television network: ABC

Carson Palmer 32/46, 425 Yds
Justin Fargas 20 Rush, 120 Yds
Mike Williams 10 Rec, 169 Yds

^[6] ^[7]

vs. No. 3 Iowa (Orange Bowl)

#3/5 Iowa Hawkeyes at #5/4 USC Trojans

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 3 Hawkeyes	10	0	0	7	17
• No. 5 Trojans	7	3	14	14	38

Date: January 2
Location: Pro Player Stadium
Game attendance: 75,971^[8]
TV announcers (ABC): Tim Brant, Ed Cunningham

USC played third ranked Iowa in the Orange Bowl. The matchup featured the top two finalists for that season's Heisman Trophy; Trophy winner Carson Palmer and runner up Brad Banks.^[9] Banks was the quarterback for the Hawkeyes. The Hawkeyes had only lost one game all year and it was to their rival Iowa State. Iowa opened the play up with a bang and set an Orange Bowl record when C.J. Jones returned the opening kickoff of the game 100 yards for a touchdown. USC responded with a touchdown run on from running back Justin Fargas. Iowa regained the lead with a field goal from Nate Kaeding. USC would kick a field goal in the second quarter to even the score 10-10 at the half. USC came out in the second half and separated themselves from Iowa scoring twice in the third quarter to take a 24-10 lead. The first score was a pass from Palmer to Mike Williams and the second was another run from Fargas. USC ended the third quarter with the ball and scored quickly in the fourth quarter giving them a 31-10 lead. The lead grew when Iowa continued to be unable to do anything with the ball and USC took advantage on a rushing touchdown from fan favorite Sunny Byrd to make the score 38-10. Iowa would score off a touchdown pass from Banks however it was too late. USC would end up winning 38-17.

The Trojans dominated time of possession in the game, having control of the ball for 38:06 seconds. This allowed for the Trojans defense to rest while keeping the Iowa defense out on the field and making them tired. USC's defense did not give up a touchdown to Iowa until the fourth quarter of the game and forced Banks to throw his first interception since October 19.^[10]

Statistics	IOWA	USC
First downs	18	30
Total yards	323	550
Rushing yards	119	247
Passing yards	204	303
Turnovers	2	0
Time of possession	21:54	38:06

2002 team players in the NFL

References

^ 2018 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records (PDF). Indianapolis: National Collegiate Athletic Association. August 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m "Cumulative Season Statistics". University of Southern California Department of Athletics. Retrieved November 7, 2014.
^ Plaschke, Bill (September 22, 2002). "Palmer's Legacy Hangs in Balance". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 8, 2019.
^ Klein, Gary (November 17, 2002). "Trojans Focus Is Unrivaled". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 10, 2002.
^ [1]. Retrieved 2017-Feb-14.
^ "Palmer's Offense Boosts U.S.C. over Notre Dame". The New York Times. December 1, 2002. Retrieved December 10, 2002.
^ "Southern Cal's Palmer Captures the Heisman". The New York Times. December 15, 2002. Retrieved December 10, 2002.
^ "BCS GAME RESULTS - OrangeBowl.org The Official Site of The FedEx Orange Bowl Championship". www.orangebowl.org. Archived from the original on June 2, 2009. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
^ "2002 Heisman Trophy Voting".
^ "Iowa vs. USC - Game Recap - January 2, 2003 - ESPN". Archived from the original on January 24, 2013.

[2018ncaabook-1] 2018 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records (PDF). Indianapolis: National Collegiate Athletic Association. August 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2018.

[statistics-2] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m "Cumulative Season Statistics". University of Southern California Department of Athletics. Retrieved November 7, 2014.

[3] Plaschke, Bill (September 22, 2002). "Palmer's Legacy Hangs in Balance". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 8, 2019.

[4] Klein, Gary (November 17, 2002). "Trojans Focus Is Unrivaled". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 10, 2002.

[5] [1]. Retrieved 2017-Feb-14.

[6] "Palmer's Offense Boosts U.S.C. over Notre Dame". The New York Times. December 1, 2002. Retrieved December 10, 2002.

[7] "Southern Cal's Palmer Captures the Heisman". The New York Times. December 15, 2002. Retrieved December 10, 2002.

[8] "BCS GAME RESULTS - OrangeBowl.org The Official Site of The FedEx Orange Bowl Championship". www.orangebowl.org. Archived from the original on June 2, 2009. Retrieved January 11, 2022.

[9] "2002 Heisman Trophy Voting".

[10] "Iowa vs. USC - Game Recap - January 2, 2003 - ESPN". Archived from the original on January 24, 2013.

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