SPORTS EXTRA / FOOTBALL ’99 : Trojans Can Assure You of One Thing : Players say they will beat UCLA, and that’s not the only way they hope 1999 is different.

USC has had enough.

Enough of not being good enough to satisfy the old Trojan expectations.

Enough of not knowing who the quarterback will be: It’s Carson Palmer, and USC is ready to watch his star rise.

Enough of worrying about an old coach or breaking in a new one, now that Paul Hackett is entrenched.

And enough of things going wrong at USC.

The Trojans had an exceptionally quiet training camp as they prepared to open the season ranked 21st in the nation and picked second in the Pacific 10 Conference--and that was fine with them.

“For a while, we always seemed to go into situations with one foot on a banana peel and the other foot in the grave,” safety David Gibson said.

“This is the first time in a while USC is going in with a clean slate, so to speak. We have everything to look forward to.”

If the banana peel has slid over to Westwood, that’s OK with most Trojans.

After watching their words for their share of the eight-year losing streak to the Bruins, some USC players have decided that saying they will win is the first step toward finally doing it.

Tailback Chad Morton used the G-word, “guarantee,” when he talked to Sports Illustrated about ending the streak.

“Some of the guys told me, ‘I’m glad you spoke up,’ ” Morton said.

Palmer started talking victory in the losing locker room at the Rose Bowl last season.

“We’re going to beat ‘em,” Palmer said again in August. “There’s no way I’m going to feel like that again. That was the worst feeling I’ve ever felt.”

He has his sights on other games as well.

“I mean, I want to go to the Rose Bowl, but I want to win every single game,” he said. “Beat UCLA. And we have a tough schedule--especially going to Arizona and Notre Dame--but I want to win every game.”

If they can be the best team in the city, maybe that will begin to be enough.

QUARTERBACKS: This is the Carson Show, and mop-up duty is all anyone but Palmer figures to see, unless he gets hurt.

Palmer learned on the fly last season as only the second true freshman to start at quarterback for USC (Rob Johnson was the other), taking over for the final five games.

His 130 completions already rank 20th on USC’s passing list--and if he has 170 this season he will pass Paul McDonald for sixth place.

A far more sophisticated quarterback after a year of studying the playbook and college defenses, Palmer is displaying a repertoire more varied than the diet of deep routes and swing passes he lived on last year.

Get ready for a little something else on occasion: Palmer on the run.

“I love to run the ball,” he said. “I wish I was faster. This year there are a lot more plays where I’m rolling out of the pocket or setting up outside the pocket, and if something breaks down I have the option of running and taking off.”

RUNNING BACKS: The search for the Trojans’ next 1,000-yard rusher continues.

Morton was only 15 yards shy of 1,000 last season--a mark only one USC tailback has reached in the last eight years, Delon Washington in 1995.

Morton would love to be the next, but injury concerns remain because of his history of bothersome twinges and because of his 5-foot-8, 185-pound frame.

It’s important for someone else to help with the load, and though there are lots of candidates--Sultan McCullough, Frank Strong, Jabari Jackson and Malaefou MacKenzie--there is no proven No. 2 to take the place of Petros Papadakis, who has been lost for the season because of foot surgery.

Part of Hackett’s plan to preserve Morton is to sometimes line him up outside and throw him the ball, taking advantage of his speed and slipperiness on the edges of the offense.

One other question is at fullback. Neither Brennan Ochs nor Chad Pierson has yet proved himself as a blocker.

RECEIVERS: Despite the big-play ability of R. Jay Soward, the other senior, Windrell Hayes, may catch more passes.

Soward is more likely to score on a 50-yard bomb, but Hayes runs better routes.

A trio of talented freshmen has taken care of the worry about depth. Kareem Kelly, a sprinter with a flair for leaping catches, looks like the No. 3 option, with Marcell Allmond, an accomplished decathlete, and Steve Stevenson right behind.

Soward showed signs in camp of overcoming his tendency to drop passes, and though the odds are probably against him fulfilling his considerable promise, it will be something to see if he does.

OFFENSIVE LINE: The eternal question mark for USC, and its latest version is this: Is it good to have virtually everyone back from what has long been considered an underachieving line?

Travis Claridge, who has started all 36 games since he arrived at USC, has moved from right guard to right tackle for his senior season and still has a chip on his shoulder about lack of respect for the line.

Left tackle Brent McCaffrey, left guard Donta Kendrick, center Eric Denmon and right guard Jason Grain all have starting experience, and there is some depth too.

“If Chad gets his yards and Carson throws for I don’t know how many yards, we’ll get the respect we deserve,” Claridge said. “We’re going to be the best offensive line in the city.”

DEFENSIVE LINE: Tackle Ennis Davis made a huge splash last season--making first-team all-conference as a sophomore--and he has a knack for forcing fumbles and blocking kicks.

He should be just as good when he hits his stride after rehabbing from knee surgery for an injury he suffered in the Sun Bowl.

Losing sack leader Sultan Abdul-Malik to the linebacker corps hurts, but linebacker coach Shawn Slocum says Abdul-Malik definitely will still be rushing the quarterback.

LINEBACKERS: Zeke Moreno has taken Chris Claiborne’s place as the signal-caller at middle linebacker, but junior college transfer Markus Steele has taken Claiborne’s No. 55 and looks as if he’ll be an impact player on the outside.

Abdul-Malik has yet to play a college game as a linebacker, but already is on the Butkus Award’s “player to watch” preseason list

of 65.

“This place has a long history of outstanding linebackers,” Slocum said. “Chris solidified that last year, so what they say, is ‘Who’s the next guy?’ ”

SECONDARY: This could be a weak point because of inexperience at cornerback beyond Antuan Simmons, who was second-team all-conference as a sophomore.

Simmons takes Daylon McCutcheon’s position, and Kris Richard won the other starting spot, though freshman Darrell Rideaux isn’t far behind.

With all the wide-open offenses USC will face, the Trojans need help from such players as Eric Reese, Tanqueray Clark and standout walk-on Kevin Arbet.

Gibson, a hard-hitting safety who has returned to his natural position after playing linebacker last season, will have to be the anchor.

SPECIAL TEAMS: The uncertainty at kicker may make people recall fondly Adam Abrams, whose topsy-turvy career the last four years nevertheless had its high points. The candidates are junior David Bell and sophomore newcomer David Newbury, and Hackett is still debating.

The return men, led by Soward and Morton, are always a threat to score--and Simmons, with his knack for blocking kicks, is another special-teams standout.

COACHING: Hackett hit a few bumps in his first season back in college after having spent the previous five in the NFL as Kansas City’s offensive coordinator.

Clock management was occasionally an issue, and calling the plays from the sidelines was an adjustment.

But his staff is intact, with the addition of Steve Morton as tight end coach after Larry Petroff moved to off-field duties, so there should be progress.

“This time last year, it was unknown, from quarterback to the offensive line,” Hackett said. “All those questions, it’s just a feeling that is different in Year 2.”

USC

STARTERS LOST: 8

LETTERMEN RETURNING: 41

FIRST GAME

Saturday, at Hawaii

9:30 p.m.

FIRST PACIFIC 10 GAME

Sept. 25 at Oregon