COMMENTARY: Booty's Success Shouldn't Be Debated
As quarterback John David Booty walked up the conducting ladder, sword in hand, to direct the Spirit of Troy after USC’s convincing 49-17 win over Illinois, he finally got the praise he always deserved from the USC faithful.
The senior elicited the loudest cheer from the USC section after he led his team to its second straight Rose Bowl win and set the Rose Bowl Game record for touchdown passes with seven, breaking the previous record of five.
After an up-and-down career as USC’s quarterback, he deserved the praise after his record-setting performance.
In his five years at USC, the Trojans won four BCS bowl games and two national titles. As a two-year starter for the Trojans, John David Booty compiled a 20-3 record and threw 55 touchdown passes.
He finished fourth on the school’s all-time touchdown passing list and threw at least one touchdown pass in all but one of his games as a starter.
"Those last five years have been the best years of my life," Booty said. "That’s the only way I can put it."
It was quite a career for John David Booty, indeed, but it didn’t come without criticism. He never won a national title as a starter and never won a Heisman Trophy like his predecessors Matt Leinart and Carson Palmer.
Booty had lofty expectations after graduating from high school a year early to join the Trojans in 2003. And although some might say he never quite fulfilled the expectations, his fellow players and coaches disagree, especially after he threw for 255 yards and three touchdowns against the Illini to win the Rose Bowl Offensive MVP Award.
"For John, to finish his career like this - this is how we dreamed it," USC coach Pete Carroll said. "We talked about it five years ago with his family and all - that this could be the situation he could be in. To see it come true is just awesome."
His All-American left tackle, Sam Baker, feels Booty got an unfair deal after replacing one of the greatest quarterbacks in college football history.
"There was so much pressure on him after Matt left to keep that going," Baker said. "I think he’s done a great job but people don’t give him the credit because he came after Matt Leinart."
Leinart, who watched the game from the sidelines, said Booty had a great career at USC.
"To lead this team to two Rose Bowls in a row, he’s done a great job," Leinart said. "I think he should be greatly appreciated for what he’s done at USC."
Booty did what he was asked from the coaches and kept the train rolling. He ran the Trojans streak of conference titles to six and never lost to a ranked team, going 9-0 against them.
And even in his three losses, coming against underdogs Oregon State, UCLA and Stanford, it clearly wasn’t entirely his fault. He averaged 348 yards passing in those losses and played the Stanford game with a broken finger.
That’s why the John David Booty era at USC should be looked at as a success.
Every year USC’s goal is to win the Rose Bowl, and he did it both years as a starter.
And so what if he never won a Heisman? If he didn’t get hurt this season. maybe he would have had a shot.
It’s simply unrealistic for fans to expect a national title and a Heisman Trophy every year.
"He had an incredible career and did everything you could do here," Carroll said. "He’s a championship quarterback, and the MVP in the Rose Bowl and a two-time captain. It’s just been a wonderful run for us."
But now for Booty that run at USC is over, and a new phase of his career will begin in the NFL.
Booty could be a possible first-day pick in NFL draft, and if former Pac-10 quarterbacks Matt Moore, Derek Anderson and Trent Edwards can succeed in the NFL, why can’t Booty?
"I think he’s gonna be around for a long time, and I think he knows that," said his brother Josh Booty, who was a backup quarterback for three years in the NFL. "He doesn’t want to be good one week from now - he wants to be good for 12 years."
Booty received even higher praise from backup quarterback Mark Sanchez, who feels Booty should be a starter in the pros.
"He’s gonna be a stud in the NFL," Sanchez said. "A team is going to have build the rest of their team around him, because he’s going to be an impact player."
For now, Booty doesn’t have to worry about his draft position. He can just soak in his five years at USC and his Rose Bowl victory.
"I dreamed of this situation as a young kid, playing for an unbelievable coach, a great school and an awesome program," Booty said. "I’m just fortunate to have that chance."
And USC was just as fortunate to have Booty as its quarterback.
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