USC’s Mark Carrier won the fourth annual...

USC’s Mark Carrier won the fourth annual Jim Thorpe Award for the nation’s best collegiate defensive back.

Carrier, a 6-foot-1 free safety, and the other finalists, Nathan LaDuke of Arizona State and Todd Lyght of Notre Dame, were honored at a banquet in Oklahoma City.

“This caps a fine season for me,” Carrier said. “Winning the Rose Bowl was the greatest feeling from a team standpoint. Now winning the Jim Thorpe Award is like winning the Heisman for me.”