Coach:
Paul Hackett
14-11, 2 years
27-31-1, 5 years overall |
1999 Record: 6-6
Sep
04 |
@Hawaii |
Won
62-7 |
Sep
18 |
San
Diego State |
Won
24-21 |
Sep
25 |
@Oregon |
Lost
30-33 |
Oct
02 |
Oregon
State |
Won
37-29 |
Oct
09 |
@Arizona |
Lost
24-31 |
Oct
16 |
@Notre
Dame |
Lost
24-25 |
Oct
23 |
Stanford |
Lost
31-35 |
Oct
30 |
@California |
Lost
7-17 |
Nov
06 |
Arizona
State |
Lost
16-26 |
Nov
13 |
@Washington
State |
Won
31-28 |
Nov
20 |
UCLA |
Won
17-7 |
Nov
26 |
Louisiana
Tech |
Won
45-19 |
|
|
1999
Final Rankings
|
AP-NR, BCS-NR,
Coaches-NR
|
2000 Outlook
|
It's probably no surprise that Coach
Hackett is already under pressure after two seasons
left USC with a 14-11 mark and no bowl appearance last
year. Needless to say, USC has overhauled the coaching
staff during the offseason. Things will get better in
2000 with a defense that is as solid as they come. A
major key will be the health of quarterback Carson Palmer
after going down last year with an injury that caused
the Trojans to struggle immediately afterwards. Especially,
since the running back situation has not been so dominating
as of late. USC will be favored to make a run for the
Roses after a five year absence. Anything less than
a New Years Day Bowl Game will be a disapointment. Coach
Hackett will find out by the second weekend in September
what type of team he has as Penn State and Colorado
start the schedule off with a bang. The defense will
lead the way.
Projected Record: 9-4
Southern
Cal 2000 Schedule
|
SOUTHERN
CAL
*POWER RATINGS
|
Offense
|
Defense
|
QB - 3.5 |
DL - 4 |
RB - 2 |
LB - 4 |
WR - 3 |
DB - 4 |
OL - 2 |
|
|
|
|
SOUTHERN
CAL
TROJANS
2000 FOOTBALL PREVIEW
|
|
|
2000
OFFENSE
|
Leading the charge will be quarterback Carson
Palmer who completed 73.6 percent of his passes last year
before going down with a broken a collar bone after the third
game of the season. He is now completely healthy and will
have some talent to throw to when the ball is snapped. The
Trojans are extremely deep at wide receiver. Pac Ten Freshman
of The Year Kareem Kelly is poised for a big season as he
caught 54 passes for 904 yards in '99. The days of Tailback
U. are gone and USC will figure to be a passing team if a
running back doesn't emerge. Other than Palmer's injury, much
of the Trojans offensive struggles last season had to do with
the offensive line, which lost its best player Travis Claridge.
Depth will be better in 2000 with 5 returning players having
gained starting experience in the lineup. The kicking duties
are still up in the air. Last year's starter, David Newbury,
returns but was only 11-20 in field goal attempts last year.
|
OFFENSIVE DEPTH CHART
|
QB |
Carson
Palmer |
6-5 |
220 |
Jr. |
|
Mike
Van Raaphorst |
6-5 |
220 |
Sr. |
RB |
Sultan
McCullough |
6-0 |
185 |
So. |
|
Malaefou
MacKenzie |
6-0 |
215 |
Jr. |
FB |
Charlie
Landrigan |
6-0 |
225 |
Jr. |
|
Chad
Pierson |
6-1 |
240 |
So. |
WR |
Kareem
Kelly |
6-1 |
185 |
So. |
|
Matt
Nickels |
6-2 |
200 |
Sr. |
WR |
Marcell
Allmond |
6-1 |
190 |
So. |
|
Steve
Stevenson |
6-2 |
200 |
So. |
T |
Brent
McCaffrey |
6-5 |
275 |
Sr. |
|
Derek
Graf |
6-4 |
275 |
So. |
G |
Trevor
Roberts |
6-4 |
305 |
Sr. |
|
Faaesea
Mailo |
6-4 |
330 |
Jr. |
C |
Eric
Denmon |
6-1 |
280 |
Sr. |
|
Lenny
Vandermade |
6-4 |
270 |
Fr. |
G |
Zach
Wilson |
6-5 |
315 |
So. |
|
Lenny
Vandermade |
6-4 |
270 |
Fr. |
T |
Jacob
Rogers |
6-6 |
275 |
Fr. |
|
Nate
Steinbacher |
6-6 |
320 |
Fr. |
TE |
Antoine
Harris |
6-4 |
245 |
Sr. |
|
Alex
Holmes |
6-2 |
295 |
Fr. |
K |
David
Newbury |
5-9 |
170 |
Jr. |
|
David
Bell |
6-0 |
190 |
Sr. |
Returning
starters in bold. |
Key
Losses:
|
|
2000
DEFENSE
|
Coach Hackett should have a big
smile on his face when he thinks about the defense he has returning
at USC this fall. There are ten returning starters forming a
defense that should be able to dominate opponents with overwhelming
speed. The front line is not the biggest group of guys but certainly
has tons of skill and experience as all four started together
last year. Look for rising senior star Sultan Abdul-Malik to
turn heads as he moves from linebacker to defensive end where
coaches feel he is more comfortable. USC has two of the best
linebackers in the conference in Moreno and Steele so there
is little reason to believe that stopping the run will be a
problem. The Trojans may take a huge blow as it looks like third
year starting cornerback Antuan Simmons may not be able to play
this fall due to abdominal tumor surgery. But there is depth
and talent in the backfield. JC transfer Chris Cash is good
enough that he may find a starting spot. If Simmons can return
USC may possess the best secondary in the country. Can there
be another team in the league with such options at cornerback? |
DEFENSIVE DEPTH CHART
|
DE |
Sultan
Abdul-Malik |
6-3 |
240 |
Sr. |
|
Lonnie
Ford |
6-3 |
250 |
Jr. |
DT |
Ryan
Nielsen |
6-5 |
275 |
Jr. |
|
Bernard
Riley |
6-3 |
305 |
So. |
DT |
Ennis
Davis |
6-4 |
300 |
Sr. |
|
Bobby
DeMars |
6-4 |
250 |
Jr. |
DE |
Matt
Childers |
6-4 |
260 |
Sr. |
|
S.
Abdul-Shaheed |
6-4 |
250 |
Sr. |
OLB |
Kori
Dickerson |
6-4 |
220 |
Jr. |
|
Chris
Prosser |
6-2 |
225 |
Fr. |
MLB |
Zeke
Moreno |
6-3 |
240 |
Sr. |
|
Aaron
Graham |
6-1 |
225 |
So. |
OLB |
Markus
Steele |
6-3 |
215 |
Sr. |
|
Henry
Wallace |
6-2 |
210 |
Jr. |
CB |
Antuan
Simmons |
5-10 |
190 |
Sr. |
|
Darrell
Rideaux |
5-9 |
175 |
So. |
CB |
Kris
Richard |
6-0 |
180 |
Jr. |
|
Chris
Cash |
5-11 |
170 |
Jr. |
SS |
Ifeanyi
Ohalete |
6-2 |
225 |
Sr. |
|
Troy
Polamalu |
5-10 |
210 |
So. |
FS |
Kevin
Arbet |
5-11 |
175 |
So. |
|
Frank
Strong |
6-1 |
220 |
Jr. |
P |
Mike
MacGillivray |
5-10 |
205 |
Jr. |
|
|
|
|
|
Returning
starters in bold. |
Key
Losses:
|
|
|
|
|
|