College football
USC happy, humble and hungry for more titles
By wire services
Published January 6, 2004
[Last modified January 6, 2004, 01:33:37]
LOS ANGELES - Coach Pete Carroll promised the USC Trojans will remain humble in their reign as the Associated Press national champion - humble and hungry.
"How do you top this? How about doing it again a couple times?" a jubilant Carroll said Monday morning after he was presented the AP's championship trophy.
"It's so great to be standing in front of you representing what this university has always been about: winning championships, national championships," Carroll said during a brief ceremony in front of Heritage Hall on campus.
Several hundred students and fans interrupted the coach's remarks by chanting, "Pete! Pete! Pete!" Some players gleefully chimed in, including quarterback Matt Leinart and defensive end Kenechi Udeze.
USC cornerback Marcell Allmond said the BCS controversy that resulted in a shared national championship with LSU didn't seem all that important anymore after the Trojans got their trophy.
"That's real, that's tangible," Allmond said, nodding toward the 3-foot tall trophy featuring a silver football. "That's what counts. It's a great feeling for me and all of us."
The Trojans hadn't won the AP poll since 1972, but have four AP titles overall.
TV RATINGS: Drama in the polls is no match for drama on the field when it comes to the television ratings for the Bowl Championship Series title game.
LSU's 21-14 win over Oklahoma in the Sugar Bowl on Sunday night garnered a 14.4 overnight rating with a 22 share for ABC. That's a 22.5 percent drop from the 18.6/29 the network garnered for Ohio State's double-overtime victory over Miami in last year's championship at the Fiesta Bowl. That game drew the highest overnight rating for a BCS game since the system began in 1998.
The Rose Bowl pitting USC and Michigan received a national rating of 14.3 with a 25 share for ABC. That's up 27 percent from last year. Miami's 16-14 win over Florida State in the Orange Bowl got a 9.1 national rating with a 16 share.
ARKANSAS: Cornerback Ahmad Carroll will skip his senior season and make himself eligible for the NFL draft, the fourth Razorbacks junior to do so in the past month.
FLORIDA: Special-teams coordinator and secondary coach Mike Woodford is not expected to have his annual contract renewed. Gators coach Ron Zook is expected to make the announcement at his season-ending news conference this week. Woodford, 44, was a Saints quality control defensive assistant during Zook's tenure with New Orleans and came to Gainesville with him. Florida lost its regular-season finale to FSU on a late touchdown pass and had a punt blocked for the first time this season in the Outback Bowl, fueling speculation Woodford's job was in jeopardy.
- Times staff writer Antonya English contributed to this report.
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