Leinart

"He is fired up about where he is and about getting in here in the offseason program and working with the guys," Whisenhunt told reporters in Arizona.

"That indicated to me that Matt was in a good place with it and today was another example of that," Whisenhunt said. "I don’t know necessarily that it was a function of any announcements about us reaching an agreement with Derek as much as it was just Matt staying in communication. That is what we want from our players and I was excited to see that."

In the meantime, here's a refresher course on the most high profile, longest-running college football scandal of the decade:

• The Charges: Documents and numerous sources have connected Bush to more than $300,000 in improper benefits from competing camps attempting to woo one of the nation's biggest stars as a client during his sophomore and junior seasons in 2004-05. Between marketing pro Mike Ornstein (an ex-con for whom Bush interned in 2005) and fledgling partners Michael Michaels and Lloyd Lake (another ex-con), Bush was reportedly funneled airfare, limo rides, clothes, expensive hotel stays, $13,000 to buy a Chevrolet Impala and weekly payments of at least $1,500. There was also the infamous 3,000-square-foot home in Spring Valley, Calif., purchased by Michaels, where Bush's mother and stepfather allegedly lived for a year, amounting to about $54,000 in free rent they promised to repay when Bush turned pro.

Michaels and Lake raised reporters' eyebrows after Bush chose Ornstein as his agent in 2006, evicting Bush's parents from the home and preparing multimillion-dollar lawsuits against Bush for fraud. Michaels eventually settled out of court for $300,000; Lake's case against Bush is still creeping forward through a thicket of appeals and depositions reportedly halted by gun-wielding goons.

The most stinging charge the NCAA can levy against USC itself is "lack of institutional control," which became a very real possibility when investigators reportedly combined the Bush probe with their investigation into former Trojan hoops star O.J. Mayo, whose already-notorious handler was caught so red-handed in alleged cash exchanges with ex-coach Tim Floyd that the school went ahead and preemptively flogged itself with a self-imposed postseason ban in exchange for (they hope) leniency from Big Brother. Combined with the program's unusual openness to celebrities and outsiders of all stripes under Pete Carroll, the longstanding innuendo about its generally cozy relationship with agent-type life forms, the fishy rent arrangement between Bush teammates Matt Leinart and Dwayne Jarrett and its own investigation into a suspicious SUV driven by outgoing tailback Joe McKnight (who forebodingly arrived at SC labeled as "the next Reggie Bush"), it's not hard to come to the conclusion that the athletic department is (or was) something of an open market.

• The Defense: The hitch in the "prosecution," from the NCAA's perspective, has always been less about proving Bush was on the take -- almost no one at this point would even attempt to make that argument with a straight face -- than making the crucial leap from innuendo to proof against the university itself. Both Carroll, as he was leaving the school to take over the head coaching job at Seattle, and new coach Lane Kiffin (Bush's offensive coordinator in 2005) have recently pleaded ignorance; Kiffin, attempting to quell the doubts of top recruit Seantrel Henderson earlier this month, reportedly told Henderson's family the program should be fine "because there was no knowledge of anything going on by the staff." New Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott, who can presumably cite the results of the conference's internal investigation in his sleep, said earlier this week he doesn't expect serious sanctions.

If the NCAA is able to tie the Bush and McKnight cases to the more brazen Mayo hijinks under a single, "lack of control" umbrella, it may not have to charge USC with anything except negligence -- i.e. not knowing that ex-cons are buttering up star players is as bad as ignoring or facilitating it -- to justify a heavy-handed response. If not, the burden is much tougher; as NCAA Executive Director David Price reminded Don Yeager for Yeager's book on the scandal, Tarnished Heisman, the NCAA wasn't able to go after Michigan when it learned former Heisman winner Charles Woodson had accepted money from an agent while playing for the Wolverines because it couldn't prove anything against the program: "We had no information that there was any institutional knowledge; therefore, we did not take any action against the institution or even bring charges."

On that front, the most damning claim against USC is Lake's allegation in Yeager's book that he was in the room with Bush's stepfather as he discussed the sketchy housing arrangement with Carroll over the phone. Other evidence is similarly vague and circumstantial, such as various rumors that coaches and administrators (including Carroll and athletic director Mike Garrett, another former Heisman winner) were tipped off about Bush's arrangements, were well-acquainted with the sleazier elements on the fringes of the program and were often in position to notice Bush and his family spending well above their means. Running backs coach Todd McNair (twice convicted himself on suspicion of breeding dogs for fighting during his NFL career) has been accused of socializing with sketchy characters who wanted access to players and with Bush during at least one of his high-priced hotel stays.

Even if you could prove that kind of chatter, it doesn't amount to much in the way of a smoking gun. So far, there is no firm evidence in any published reports to date that anyone at USC had direct knowledge of improper benefits to any football player, which probably means the NCAA doesn't have it, either.

• The Fallout: Long-held visions of white-gloved men marching out of Heritage Hall with Bush's 2005 Heisman Trophy and/or the 2004 BCS championship trophy are misplaced, not least because the NCAA has no control over either. BCS power brokers or the Downtown Athletic Club of New York may confer later to dole out their own brand of justice, but the worst the NCAA will do in the way of that kind of symbolism is "vacate" wins from the wildly successful 2004-05 seasons -- a popular punishment lately, employed against Oklahoma, Florida State and Alabama in the last four years, but a relatively empty one when it comes to deterrence. If this case is about anything from the NCAA's point of view, it' has to be preventing a dozen more like from breaking out across the country.

As pointed out earlier this week, and the L.A. Times chronicled on Wednesday, significant sanctions -- postseason bans, television bans, aggressive scholarship reductions -- are almost unheard of against Division I-A football programs, Florida States and Central Floridas alike, over the last decade. After 20 years of consistent, meaningful probation against powerhouse programs (outstanding teams from Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Miami, Texas A&M and Washington were all held out of bowl games in the eighties and nineties, to name only a few, and SMU's program was famously disbanded for two years at the height of its success), the heavy hand disappeared almost entirely under late president Myles Brand, who came into office in 2002 with two major teams (Alabama and California) serving bowl bans and oversaw the administration of exactly zero over the next seven years. If the Infractions Committee finds USC guilty of any serious infraction, it could easily look to make an example of the Trojans to rebuff that increasingly soft image. There's no evidence it's prepared to do that.

If they get off scott-free, or with just a token slap on the wrist, well, I'll be getting a lot of infuriated comments about the miscarriage of justice, and the NCAA's credibility as a consistent, potent enforcer of its own regulations -- rightly or wrongly -- will be at an all-time low. That's not a comment on anyone's innocence or guilt; behind closed doors, the actual facts may not warrant a significant punishment. But when a case is allowed to sprawl and flourish for this long as the exemplar of open, arrogant defiance in the eyes of fans and media, anything less than a sledgehammer is inevitably going to be greeted like the O.J. verdict. Even if it wins in front of the NCAA, I don't think there's any way SC can come on top of the PR battle.

———————————————————————————————————

Not every recruiting class contains a future Heisman winner.  Here are the last 10 Heisman winners and the classes that produced them:

Chris Weinke (1990*/1997)

Erich Crouch (1997)

Carson Palmer (1998)

Jason White (1999)

Matt Leinart (2001)

Reggie Bush (2003)

Troy Smith (2002)

Tim Tebow (2006)

Sam Bradford (2006)

Mark Ingram (2008)

* — Weinke originally signed with Florida State in 1990 but he embarked on a pro baseball career before returning to the Seminoles in 1997.

Recent classes missing out on Heismans: 2000, 2004, 2005, 2007 (so far).

With signing day in the books, here are the players from the class of 2010 (in no particular order) who I think have the best chance of competing for future Heismans:

Michael Dyer, RB, Auburn–Dyer is a slippery, low-to-the-ground runner who should immediately thrive in Gus Malzahn’s offense.  I predict he will hit the 1,000-yard mark as a freshman (assuming health and qualification) and go on to a stellar career on the Plains.

Lache Seastrunk, RB, Oregon–I thought it was funny that reaction in the recruiting world to Seastrunk going to Oregon was rather muted.  Said one coach to me “He’s going to Oregon–there must be something wrong with him.”  Well, this is a guy who everyone wanted just a few months ago and now all of a sudden schools are poo-pooing him.  I don’t buy it.  This is one amazingly fast back who is perfect for the Chip Kelly scheme.  He should be an instant star.

Mack Brown, RB, Florida–There haven’t been many ultra-productive running backs coming out of Urban Meyer’s offenses of late, but Brown could be the exception.  He’s a nifty north-south runner who should thrive in the wide-open space of Meyer’s attack.

D.J. Morgan, RB, USC–Morgan could possibly redshirt his first season at USC due to an injury suffered his senior season.  But once he gets healthy, he’ll be one of the more exciting players in the country.  A legitimate track star (world junior champ in the high hurdles), he has the speed and moves to take it the distance on every play.

Cameron Newton, QB, Auburn–I was a big fan of Newton’s game when he went to Florida and I’m still high on him as he heads to Auburn.  If he wins the starting job, he’ll throw for a lot of yards and touchdowns for the Tigers and could end up being one of the better quarterbacks in the SEC.

Devin Gardner, QB, Michigan–If Rich Rodriguez is to resurrect Michigan, he may need Gardner to come through sooner rather than later.  Reminiscent of Vince Young and Terrelle Pryor physically and should be a great fit for the Wolverine offense.  If he develops, watch out.

Andrew Hendrix, QB, Notre Dame–Hendrix is an underrated talent, with a very good arm and excellent athleticism.  He could very well be the future for Notre Dame once Dane Crist’s eligibility expires.  He looks like a typical Brian Kelly quarterback to me and that means he’ll be putting up big numbers one day.

Blake Bell, QB, Oklahoma–Bell is a raw talent with a lot of upside.  It looks like he is tailor-made for the Oklahoma offense. Can really move his feet despite his 6-6 height.  Keep an eye on him.

There’s my top Heisman guys from the class of 2010.  It’s not an especially deep class as far as this list goes and it could well be that no Heisman winners emerge from this group.  However, I think these guys I’ve listed have the best chance.

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As we move forward I will probably do more in looking back on Pete Carroll's tenure at USC, but for now I just have some general thoughts as it all sinks in...

So, we turn the page on the Pete Carroll era at USC...

If you didn't see the presser you can watch it again here.

There will be many who write and dissect PC's tenure at Heritage Hall. Some will be positive, some will be negative. I just hope many will be fair. No coach does everything right and all the good ones have their share of controversy and when they are in charge at a nationally prominent program every little issue is magnified into a national conspiracy by those who would wish said program ill will.

Pete Carroll changed the atmosphere around the program. He embraced its traditions and made a few of his own along the way. His easy going style made it easy to get comfortable with the program again. He changed the culture as he embraced the fans and opened up practices.

He made it fun to enjoy USC football again!

I am not going to try and write a historical piece on Pete Carroll. Others are already doing that so I will leave it to the professionals.

For a change Dennis Dodd actually writes something decent...

Pete injected a personality we thought he never had into a rudderless program. Who knew that an out-of-work average former NFL coach from the University of Pacific had these kind of chops?

From the get go, he was recruiting. Not just players either. In 2005, Pat Ruel was happy with his NFL job with the New York Giants. Carroll convinced the veteran offensive line coach to come out and talk about a job. It took one lunch with Carroll in Manhattan Beach on a cloudless sunny day with the waves crashing in the background for Ruel to change jobs.

Carroll's coaching tree continues to grow. Steve Sarkisian is at Washington and has already been mentioned as a possible replacement. Kiffin took some of Carroll's exuberance with him to Tennessee. Carroll allowed them to run USC's offense while still in their early 30's. Both run their practices the same as Pete did at USC.

Players loved him. Recruits flocked to him. In one three-year period, 40 true freshmen saw the field for the Trojans. The downside was that a lot of those players developed quickly and went to the NFL after three years. The upside was that the cycle started all over again. Carroll sold that possibility to the next round of recruits.

Pete embraced the history, tradition, the hype, the hangers on. Even the media.

Open locker rooms, open practices, Win Forever. Game day at the Coliseum, sellouts, Tommy Trojan, the Song Girls. I walked off the field with Matt Leinart a night after he beat Notre Dame at home. The look in his eyes told me the kid knew his whole life was about to change.

Matt, you had no idea.

God, you not only wanted to cover it, you wanted to be part of it.

Everyone wanted to be a part of it!

SC wasn't this much fun since McKay left.

And just like that it is over...

It went by pretty fast!

I refuse to think and say "what if" as many have and will do about a number of moves that Pete Carroll made (or didn't make).

In for a dime in for a dollar...

You take the good with the bad...

I really couldn't be happier for Pete Carroll as he makes the move to Seattle.

SC has a bit of a rough road ahead but SC will be fine.

We will have to take our licks in the coming months but as we have seen with other programs who have had issues with the NCAA it isn't the end of the world. Oklahoma and Alabama come to mind. Whatever the punishment is will be real, it will kind of be like getting the flu, we'll feel crummy and slog through it but sooner or later it will pass. With the right staff and with the right attitude anything is possible.

Everything happens for a reason.

I refuse to be down or melancholy. It couldn't last forever, nor should it have.

I do not know what the future holds but I am confident that those pulling the strings will make the right moves to continue to keep this program nationally prominent.

It won't be easy as we are about to go through change. A new coach and staff mean new rules and a different way of doing things. That will good and bad. The expectations will be high but we need to be supportive and understand that it just won't continue like the way it was before.

There will be fits and starts. There will be stumbling blocks along the way but I have no doubt that SC will still be in the national discussion from a football perspective and not from a punishment perspective.

USC is bigger than just one coach no matter what he accomplished at during his time at USC.

So its a new beginning with a lot of unanswered questions...

And I am excited to see what the future holds!

FIGHT ON!

USC football players have a history with chicks in Carl's Jr. commercials. Reggie Bush with Kim Kardashian. Matt Leinart with Paris Hilton. Someone could one-up both of them by pursuing Padma Lakshmi.

Kim Kardashian advertising the NEW Grilled Chicken Salads at Carl's Jr. after the jump.

Moment of truth for Weis, Clausen - Wetzel

Notre Dame's aim: Win USC game to regain name - Dodd

Notre Dame and QB Jimmy Clausen must rise to occasion against sixth-ranked USC- Weiss

As you can see everyone in the press is tired of ND getting smacked around year in and year out...They want to see a competitive game.

As noted in our post below this could be the make or break game for Weis. Win and the pressure could be off. Lose and who knows...Notre Dame AD Jack Swarbrick says a loss to USC doesn't mean the sky is falling. He might want to talk to the boosters and fans who pump a lot of money into ND's kitty.

Heck, even the LA press thinks the USC-Notre Dame rivalry should be back to old form. I don't know about that, old form wold be the teams trading victories that are close games. We haven't seen that in a few years now.

Now finally, after seven years of lopsided USC drubbings, Saturday's game between the two teams in South Bend has a chance to be good. Meaningful. And, um, competitive.

How can you tell?

The team's 4-1 records and national rankings are a good start. But there's more to it. A tension, a testiness. Competitive juices flowing that only really get moving when there's a real competition on the field.

Last year at the Coliseum, the teams fought on the field before the game.

Afterward, defensive tackle Fili Moala said, "They thought they were hyped and they weren't as hyped as us.

"It started in the tunnel. They started talking and we were talking. We bit before they did and their bite wasn't hard."

Shelburne is reaching here with the whole tone of her piece. Yeah ND is 4-1...those wins came against teams with losing records and Notre Dame's one win was against a Michigan team that is 4-2. UM has their issues as well but they are still 4-2.

The fact remains that Clausen will face the toughest defense he will see this season. USC hopes to shut down Clausen like they have in the past. That means containing WR Golden Tate and TE Kyle Rudolf. That also means that USC has to get pressure on Clausen and the ND refuses to get ‘Manhandled' no more...We'll see.

Maybe they will maybe they won't but they will be in for the fight of their lives...

Regardless, Pete Carroll continues to keep focused on the task at hand...

"You have to have a really over-arching plan," Carroll said. "You need to have a plan to handle the challenge of the transition. You can't deviate from that plan.

"You have to approach the job with a vision so that you're not going to a mystery place. You have to know where you're going, accept the challenges and take it all in stride."

The Trojans do better than just take things in stride. They take things on a dead run.

They replace a Heisman Trophy winner (quarterback Carson Palmer, 2002) with a Heisman Trophy winner (Matt Leinart, 2004), and then the next year had a third Heisman Trophy winner (Reggie Bush) at running back.

With Carroll in charge, the Trojans have had 53 NFL draft picks, 14 in the first round. In that same period, Notre Dame has had 35 players selected, and two — center Jeff Faine and quarterback Brady Quinn — in the first round.

During Holtz's 11-year regime, the Irish had 75 players chosen in the NFL draft, 12 in the first round. Receiver/kick returner Tim Brown was the only Heisman winner.

Carroll said a diligence to the execution of the grand plan keeps the program on track.

Another part of that Plan is reloading the talent pool. Much has been made of Pete Carroll not being able to get back to MNC game with all the talent he has amassed. But look at ND Weis continues to draw big time recruits but he does verry little with them...I will address this more in another post.

It all comes down to the quarterbacks. Jimmy Clausen is finally living up to expectations (hype?) and even though he is just a true freshman Barkley acts like an old rookie.

Nobody on the Southern Cal campus takes Barkley for granted.

He's led the Trojans to four victories. Their only loss, to Washington, came with Barkley sidelined with a shoulder injury.

He got that injury in the win at Ohio State. Though struggling with a bone bruise, Barkley completed three passes for 35 yards on a 14-play, 86-yard drive that ended with a game-winning TD run by Johnson and a conversion pass to Joe McKnight that made the final difference, 18-15.

That performance in a high-profile game served notice that this is no ordinary freshman at the controls.

"He really has something you're looking for," USC coach Pete Carroll said of Barkley. "The stuff that has really jumped out lately is that he anticipates so well, in throwing the football. He waits until guys get open. He understands the principles of guys getting open in the zone and man (defensive schemes). He throws the ball early.

"That's a tremendous asset, being able to get the ball to guys. It's an instinct he has."

"The one thing (Barkley) does very well is he knows who his playmakers are and he gets the ball in their hands," Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis said. "That is a good tact for a young quarterback to understand."

ESPN's Tood McSHay breaks down the QB's

CJ Gable injured his knee in practice yesterday but he will be available for the ND game.

ESPN debates USC vs. Notre Dame From ted Millers Blog...

As the third string QB on the depth chart, Mitch Mustain is jonesing to get on the field and compete. So he is considering pitching for the Trojans this spring. When asked about this, Mustain said:

"I've kind of missed baseball. It's been six years since I played competitively. I'll figure it out in the next month."

Mustain is not the first backup QB to pitch for the Trojans. Matt Cassell also turned to baseball while backing up Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart. Mustain said that his decision to possibly play baseball will not have an impact on his football status next year.

USC quarterback Mustain might use his arm for baseball [dailynews]