Our countdown to kickoff series has been looking at notable USC players to wear each number from zero through 99. But where do those players rank among all-time college football greats?
In a recent story, ESPN’s college football writers selected the sport’s greatest player to ever wear each number. Now that we have looked at all of the Trojans who made the list, let’s examine some notable USC players who were left off of it.
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Notably, six of USC’s eight Heisman Trophy winners (and retired jersey numbers) did not make the cut. For the No. 5, ESPN passed up on Reggie Bush in favor of another 2000s star running back: Arkansas‘s Darren McFadden. One of Bush’s teammates with the Trojans was also snubbed, as Penn State linebacker Lavar Arrington earned the honor for No. 11 over USC quarterback Matt Leinart.
With the No. 12, there may have been some recency bias, as ESPN selected Colorado two-way standout Travis Hunter over legendary USC running back Charles White. At No. 20, Texas Heisman Trophy running back Earl Campbell got the nod over the Trojans’ Mike Garrett in probably the least controversial USC omission on the list.
At No. 32, ESPN selected Johnny Lujack, who played a little bit of everything for Notre Dame back in the 1940s, over USC’s O.J. Simpson. While USC fans certainly never enjoy seeing a Trojan lose out to a member of the Irish, there are obviously other factors that may very well have kept the late Simpson off of the list. Finally, at No. 33, USC running back Marcus Allen lost out to another star rusher from his era in Tony Dorsett of Pitt.
Interestingly, the two USC Heisman winners who made the cut (Carson Palmer and Caleb Williams) did not win a national championship with the Trojans, while five of the six who were left off did. Based on ESPN’s selections, then, it seems as though they valued individual statistics more than contributions to team accomplishments when putting together the list.
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This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Greatest college football players by number: Notable USC omissions
