2003 USC Trojans football team
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 State |
#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. Homecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll. All times are in Pacific Time. |
Game notes
Auburn
|
1 |
2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
---|
• USC |
10 |
0 | 6 | 7 |
23 |
Auburn |
0 |
0 | 0 | 0 |
0 |
|
|
Scoring summary |
---|
|
1 |
12:38 | USC | Mike Williams 5 yard pass from Matt Leinart (Ryan Killeen kick) | USC 7-0 |
|
1 |
3:21 | USC | Ryan Killeen 28 yard field goal | USC 10-0 |
|
3 |
11:50 | USC | Ryan Killeen 42 yard field goal | USC 13-0 |
|
3 |
7:22 | USC | Ryan Killeen 35 yard field goal | USC 16-0 |
|
4 |
13:51 | USC | Hershel Dennis 14 yard run (Ryan Killeen kick) | YSC 23-0 |
|
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 dominating 23–0 performance.[5]
2003 team players in the NFL
References
- ↑ Miller, Ted (May 20, 2008). "BCS system leaves long trail of wounded victims". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 20, 2008.
- ↑ Newberg, Jamie (May 22, 2003). "Upon further review ...". SI.com. Retrieved April 30, 2008.
- ↑ "USC wins on recruiting trail by grabbing California talent". USA Today. February 6, 2003.
- ↑ 2003 USC FOOTBALL SIGNEES, USC Trojans - Official Site, Retrieved April 30, 2008.
- ↑ Forde, Pat (August 28, 2007) The Dash is off and running, ESPN.com.
|
---|
| Venues | |
---|
| Bowls & rivalries | |
---|
| Culture & lore | |
---|
| People | |
---|
| Seasons | |
---|
| National championship seasons in bold |
|
|
---|
| Pacific Coast | |
---|
| AAWU | |
---|
| Pacific-8 | |
---|
| Pacific-10 | |
---|
| Pac-12 | |
---|
| National championships in bold |
|