Innocence Lost, but He’s Not Guilty

Look, Bill Palmer said, it was never his son, Carson, the quarterback with the big arm and the lost innocence, who had declared himself USC’s savior or its hero or its star.

All Carson has ever wanted, Bill said, was to learn how to be a great college quarterback and to do what his coaches wanted him to do. It was never Carson who called himself the best high school quarterback in the nation or the best college prospect or a potential Heisman Trophy winner or a sure-fire pro.

So, yes, Bill said, the boos have hurt and the criticism has seemed unfair and when Trojan fans by the dozens write to the newspaper and criticize his son’s arm or feet or intelligence, Bill Palmer isn’t quite sure why.

Carson Palmer was booed Saturday at the Coliseum and then USC beat Arizona State, 48-17, because of him.

He was booed on USC’s second offensive play, when he was sacked for a seven-yard loss. He was booed on USC’s fourth offensive play when he was sacked for a six-yard loss. Palmer never had a chance to escape those knockdowns, but he got up and he didn’t get flustered or angry or discouraged. Or if he did, he didn’t say.

What Palmer is learning is what Trojan football fans should be learning, what the USC athletic department should understand. Winning is not a natural byproduct of tradition, and stardom is never guaranteed. Stardom is not passed from the last high school game to the first college game.

Just because you have a white horse that prances around a famous stadium while a wonderful band plays the best fight song, that does not mean Arizona State will come to town and give up immediately.

To be a top-notch football team means you need the best head coach and the best staff; the best training table and workout room and game plan and an incontrovertible idea of what you want your football team to be.

In the second quarter at the Coliseum, Palmer completed his first pass, a simple six-yard throw over the middle to tight end Kori Dickerson. Two plays later Palmer hit Kareem Kelly for nine yards and then he found flanker Keary Colbert for six. Not spectacular. No cheering yet because the drive stalled and Arizona State, which was supposed to be the big underdog, still led the Trojans, 3-0.

But then Palmer got lucky. He was stuck running the ball, and it was not planned and Palmer is not swift. But an official, not on purpose, ended up freeing Palmer with the best block the quarterback had gotten in the game. Palmer gained 20 yards and, it seemed, a miraculous sense of freedom.

One play after his rushing first down, Palmer made a perfect read and whipped a strong, hard pass to Dickerson, 21 yards for a touchdown. Cheers, finally.

The Trojan running game had gone away when tailback Sultan McCullough was left on the bench midway through the first quarter with a persistent abdominal strain. Last week against Washington, Palmer had thrown only 14 passes and, almost always, McCullough had run on first down.

Not that Palmer would ever say he was happy McCullough was hurting, but with the pass the first, second and, maybe, the only option, Palmer grew up. He threw for three touchdowns and had no interceptions. He was 18 for 26 for 295 yards.

“Carson made good reads, good decisions,” offensive coordinator Norm Chow said. “Some of the criticism Carson has heard, it’s been very unfair. Things happen much faster in this offense and Carson is still learning.”

At halftime Palmer was USC’s leading rusher too. “I was watching Carson go,” McCullough said, “and I was thinking, ‘Way to do it, man.’ He’s gone through some tough stuff and Carson has never let it get him down or lose his faith. I’m proud of what he did today.”

Across town, at the Rose Bowl, DeShaun Foster had gained 301 yards and probably stepped to the head of the Heisman race. Palmer and Foster had been high school rivals in Orange County and both had been expected to find immediate stardom and early entry into the NFL.

Stuff happens--injuries and coaching changes, some bad decisions by players and staffs--and still Palmer seemed happy to hear what Foster had done. “Wow,” Palmer said. “Good for him.”

There has always been a modesty about Palmer and that is why his father has never understood how it is that so many people have been so eager to hammer his son.

“Look,” Bill said, “Carson never expected anything other than that he would have to work hard. Carson doesn’t want credit and doesn’t expect it, but when people say that quarterbacks get all the credit when the team wins and all the blame when the team loses, from what I’ve seen, the part about the blame is right.”

As Chow was speaking of how well Palmer reacted, Palmer was praising his offensive line, his receivers (“Kareem just makes me look good,” he said), backup running back Sunny Byrd, the defense, the coaches, everybody but himself. “I’m still learning this offense and I’m not ashamed to say that,” he said. “But I think today we all gained some confidence.”

The Trojans are 2-4 and a minor bowl game is the only big goal left. A trip to Notre Dame comes next and the 2-3 Irish are also learning about what tradition means nowadays.

Palmer hesitates when asked what he expects next week. “I hope to just improve some more,” he said.

He knows. Don’t expect anything.

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Diane Pucin can be reached at diane.pucin@latimes.com.