The University of Southern California (USC) Trojans finished the 2003 season at 12-1 and earned a share of the national championship with the LSU Tigers after defeating the Michigan Wolverines 28-14 in the Rose Bowl. After the end of the season, receiver Mike Williams entered his name in the NFL draft and signed with an agent but a court injunction ruled him ineligible to sign with the NFL because of his age. He’s attempting to get back into the school and on to the team but the NCAA will have the final say. If he is allowed back on the team, the Trojans are easily the best team in the nation and worthy of a #1 ranking, but even if Williams is forced to sit out, the Trojans still earn that ranking in my pre-season poll.

All-American defensive end Kenechi Udeze left for the NFL, but defensive tackle Shaun Cody moved to end in the spring and will fill that position this season. The top recruiting class of 2004 is also full of talent and potential on defense and many youngsters will have the chance to show what they can do throughout the season. On offense, freshman QB Matt Leinart had the unfair expectations of replacing Heisman Trophy winner Carson Palmer last season, but the only thing unfair about Leinart’s performance last year was the result. Leinart, as a freshman, put up better numbers than Palmer across the board but his name wasn’t tossed around in the Heisman running. This season, the sophomore might even improve on his numbers from last year (255-402, 3,556 yards, 38 touchdowns and nine interceptions). Running backs Hershel Dennis, Reggie Bush and LenDale White will all get plenty of carries this season and each of them seems okay with that. Any one of them could probably be a 1,000 yard back if they were the focal point but they’ve each found that the combination of carries and the chance to win national championships is enough to keep them around.

Leinart has lost his top two receivers of last year (Mike Williams and Keary Colbert) but the team is hopeful Williams will be back in practice before the season begins. If not, Leinart has plenty of young receivers and tight ends that he can spread the ball to and a defense that won’t need him to put up too many points to get a win. USC will likely need to run the table this season to find itself in the national championship game because their strength of schedule is relatively weak. They’ll open at home to Virginia Tech on August 28 and the next big game is at home to Cal on October 9. Cal is one of the few teams in the Pac-10 that can touch the Trojans and they’ll have to play well to get by the Bears. The team finishes with a home game against Notre Dame and road games against UCLA, Washington State, and Oregon State. There’s no reason to think the Trojans can’t finish #1 again, and this time, they don’t want to share it with anyone.

College Teams Football Home

All Images, Content and Design © 2004 CollegeTeamsFootball.com