Here are some week 9 highlights of former Trojans now playing in the NFL. This week features
David Buehler, Dwayne Jarrett, Reggie Bush, Terrell Thomas, Steve Smith, Kevin Ellison, Keith Rivers, Rey Maualuga (Cinco Ocho), Carson Palmer, Troy Polamalu and Brian Cushing.
Fight On!
(Video created by Eric Espinoza and the USC video operations department)
How bout some USC Alumni NFL highlights…. Carson Palmer had a big day on Sunday going 20 of 24 for 233 with 5 TD passes. Other former Trojans featured in the highlights are Clay Matthews, Troy Polamalu, Reggie Bush, Fred Davis, Steve Smith, Terrell Thomas, Justin Fargas and Mark Sanchez.
The NFL 2010 Pro Bowl ballots are now available online. Click here to vote for any of your favorite Trojans.
Road games at Ohio State, Washington, California, Notre Dame, Oregon, Arizona State and for some reason the media thinks the world is going to crash down upon the Trojans. Articles like "Tough road slate could derail USC in '09" and "Don't be surprised if ... USC's run of seven consecutive Pac-10 titles ends in 2009", cast a shadow of gloom upon the 2009 season. And why? New quarterback in Aaron Corp, bunch of defensive leaders gone to the NFL, a situation that USC has never faced before under Carroll. The last time Pete Carroll has faced such an extraordinary predicament was way back when...in 2008.
Here we are, only minutes away from the '09 draft. But before the clock starts running, how about a look back to the Trojans of '08. How did they fare in their rookie seasons?
Sedrick Ellis, 7th overall, Saints: 30 tackles, 4 sacks. Keith Rivers, 9th overall, Bengals: 37 tackles (in 7 games), a forced fumble and an interception before being eliminated from the season by a crushing block from Hines Ward. Sam Baker, 21st overall, Falcons: Started 5 games, played 7. Integral force in Matt Ryan and the Falcons impressive post-Vick turnaround. Lawrence Jackson, 28th overall, Seahawks: 29 tackles, 2 sacks. Chilo Rachal, 2nd round - 7th pick, 49ers: Started 6 games, played 8. Fred Davis, 2nd round -17th pick, Redskins: 3 receptions for 27 yards. If Sanchez lands there, Davis may get a increase in passes thrown his way. Terrell Thomas, 2nd round, 32nd pick, Giants: 45 tackles, a blocked kick, a forced fumble and an interception. John David Booty, 5th round, 2nd pick, Vikings: Has yet to get his feet wet. Thomas Williams, 5th round, 20th pick, Jaguars: 1 tackle, 1 forced fumble. Chauncey Washington, 7th round, 6th pick, Jaguars: 4 carries, 9 yards. 1 reception, 9 yards.
So the big winners last year were Terrell Thomas and Keith Rivers until...
Here are our thoughts on the guys that stood out in last nights presentation. Full bios and direct quotes from Pete Carroll after the jump.
John Martinez, OL, 4-STAR
Just a nasty, pancake blocking guard. He can get down field too (a la Jeff Byers). Highlight after highlight he would pull from his guard position, run and then just destroy someone. They want him to play center. He will be a cornerstone of a future O-line group.
Kevin Graf, OL, 4-STAR
This guy is 6'6" and 315 pounds. He looked like the green giant against his high school peers.
Matt Barkley, QB, 5-STAR
Not much needs to be said. #1 player in the country. Big arm. Can read defenses. Dedicated. His eyes were nearly popping out of his head when he spoke to the coaches following Mark Sanchez's departure.
De'Von Flournoy, WR, 4-STAR
Holy cow. Not sure if we have ever seen a highlight reel like his. There were over 20 plays. And not one that didn't go for a touchdown. Very impressive speed and sense of other players around him.
Jacob Harfman, K, 2-STAR
A little shorter than David Buehler but definitely of the same mold (a big, physical kicker). He can do it all — placekicking and punts. He was 3 for 3 over 50 yards and has kicked a 70 yarder in practice. He has incredible hangtime on his kickoffs if anyone ever does decide to take it out, they will be met with the Trojans special teams before getting to the 20. The ball just explodes off his foot.
Hebron Fangupo, DT, 4-STAR
Great penetration up the middle, even while drawing double teams on every play.
James Boyd, DE, 4-STAR
An incredible athlete that was actually the starting QB for his high school too. He is a freaking defensive end! He plays basketball too (and averages 25 points and 22 rebounds).
Devon Kennard, DE, 5-STAR
A prototypical freak defensive end. Hopefully with a more malleable attitude than Everson Griffen.
Frankie Telfort, LB, 4-STAR
He ran a 4.39. He is a cerebral player. He wants to major pre-med. He has a cool name. He has potential to be a really, really special player.
Jarvis Jones, LB, 4-STAR
A mean hitter that doesn't take any wasted steps before blowing up his opponent. Impressive.
Jawanza Starling, DB, 4-STAR
Another mean hitter. He is going to play baseball for SC too.
Troy Polamalu (S, Pittsburgh) had one of the crazier weekends in the NFL. His three tackles (one for a 4-yard loss) and 4-yard interception return were pretty typical. His broken-up lateral returned for a touchdown was not. Referees incorrectly overturned the play, and later admitted their mistake. The Steelers pulled out a 11-10 victory over San Diego, the first... more »
A great weekend for the USC program cemented just how amazing the Trojans' 2003 recruiting class was. Sedrick Ellis, Sam Baker and Lawrence Jackson are the three latest members of USC's 2003 class, which I think should go down as the best recruiting class in modern college football history (i.e. when teams couldn't sign as many recruits as they want), to be drafted in the first round, joining Reggie Bush from two years ago. As of now, the Trojans have an astounding nine first-day draft picks from that class: Baker, Bush, Ellis, Jackson, Ryan Kalil, Steve Smith, Terrell Thomas, LenDale White and Eric Wright. (There also could be a 10th coming in 2009 when DT Fili Moala comes through.) Other USC '03s that have been drafted are John David Booty, Will Poole, Chauncey Washington and Thomas Williams.
This Year: USC had another huge draft weekend with ten players getting selected overall -- the most of any school. They also led the way with four first round picks. Historical Perspective: USC has sent 446 players to the League via the draft. 42 have been picked in the 7 years since Pete Carroll arrived, including 11 in the... more »
Draft footage of USC first-rounders: Ellis, Rivers, Baker and Jackson
USC had a phenomenal draft. Nearly 13% of picks drafted in the first round were USC Trojans. USC owned 11% of picks through the end of the second round. USC had 10 draft picks overall, the most out of any school, including four in the first round (also the most out of any school). Here's the draft breakdown by Trojan player.
Sedrick Ellis - 1st round, 7th pick to the New Orleans, Saints. Keith Rivers - 1st round, 9th pick, to the Cincinnati Bengals. Sam Baker - 1st round, 21st pick - to the Atlanta Falcons Lawrence Jackson - 1st round, 28th pick - Seattle Seahawks
Chilo Rachal - 2nd round, 8th pick - San Francisco, 49ers Fred Davis - 2nd round, 17th pick - to the Washington Redskins Terrell Thomas - New York Giants - 2nd round, 32nd pick (63rd overall)
In this latest installment of our Exit Interview series, WeAreSC’s LQ Singian sits down with cornerback Terrell Thomas to talk about his USC career, his biggest fan and his relationship with Drean Rucker.... more »
<!--start image--><!-- end image-->Senior Kevin Ellison is now the elder statesmen of the secondary with the departure of Terrell Thomas to the NFL. 'Be the best' can be clearly seen tattooed on Ellison's shoulder, describing perfectly the goals he and his mates in the secondary have for the 2008 seaso... more »
Day two of Senior Bowl practice in Mobile, Ala. was as good as it gets for the nine Trojan players on the North squad. Superstars like Sedrick Ellis and Sam Baker continued their impressive run, but even the late additions to the game like Drew Radovich and Terrell Thomas were turning heads. Check out these video highlights of all... more »
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