The USC Trojans are rising to the top tier of college football in Year 1 under Lincoln Riley. It has to be noted that 20 years ago, USC rose from the ashes under coach Pete Carroll. One of the central moments in the Trojans’ ascendance was their 2002 blowout of Notre Dame, which sealed the Heisman Trophy Award for quarterback Carson Palmer and sent the Men of Troy to Miami for the Orange Bowl against Iowa.
Courtesy of college football historian Chris Kreager, here are some notable facts in the sections below about the 2002 USC-Notre Dame game, the 2002 USC team, the Pete Carroll era, the 2003 Orange Bowl win over Iowa, and more: