Palmer Wants to Take the Fifth

Light and sound technicians scurried about the Yale Club on Friday, transforming the huge main lounge into the cozy setting for tonight’s Heisman Trophy announcement.

Front-row seats were reserved for USC quarterback Carson Palmer and four other finalists, who will be poised before one of sports’ most recognizable statuettes during the nationally televised one-hour ceremony.

When Palmer arrived at USC as a freshman in 1998, he dreamed of hearing his name called and accepting the award as college football’s most outstanding player. But he never allowed himself to truly believe it was possible.

“It’s such a farfetched goal,” he said. “You can’t really see yourself up on the podium.”

Palmer might be holding the trophy and delivering an acceptance speech if he wins what is expected to be one of the closest Heisman votes in history. Iowa quarterback Brad Banks, Penn State running back Larry Johnson, Miami quarterback Ken Dorsey and Hurricane running back Willis McGahee are other finalists for an award presented annually since 1935.

Palmer, a fifth-year senior, is trying to become the fifth USC player, and first Trojan quarterback, to win the Heisman. History, however, is not on Palmer’s side.

Only three of the 21 quarterbacks who won the Heisman were from West Coast schools -- Terry Baker of Oregon State in 1962, Gary Beban of UCLA in 1967 and Jim Plunkett of Stanford in 1970.

No player from a West Coast school has won the Heisman since USC’s Marcus Allen in 1981.

But Palmer’s performance against the toughest schedule in the nation and his showcase effort in the regular-season finale against Notre Dame might have been enough to sway Heisman voters in six regions across the country.

“I’m not worried about it,” said Palmer, who passed for 3,639 yards and 32 touchdowns with 10 interceptions this season. “It’s such an honor just to be a part of the whole thing. I wasn’t thinking about any of this when the season started.”

Neither, apparently, was anyone else.

After passing for 39 touchdowns with 39 interceptions in three-plus seasons, Palmer’s name did not appear on major Heisman Trophy watch-lists. He was not even featured on the cover of USC’s media guide. All-American safety Troy Polamalu garnered that spot while Palmer made a cameo on the back in a photograph with Polamalu.

Palmer, however, seemed to display a new maturity in a prime-time Labor Day opener against Auburn, driving the Trojans to a game-winning touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

His Heisman campaign began in earnest after he passed for a school-record 448 yards and five touchdowns in a 44-33 victory at Oregon on Oct. 26. USC’s sports information office sent a promotional postcard to national media outlets. The “V.I.P. Pass” for the “The Carson Show” featured a picture of Palmer on the front and detailed his achievements on the back.

Palmer played well in the next two games against Stanford and Arizona State, then finished in spectacular fashion. He passed for 254 yards and four touchdowns in a 52-21 rout of UCLA and made national highlights when he somersaulted after being hit on a dive near the goal line.

The following week, he torched Notre Dame for 425 yards passing and four touchdowns as the Trojans routed the Irish, 44-13, and earned an eventual berth in the Orange Bowl.

Last week, Palmer was named to the All-American team selected by the Football Writers Assn. of America and also won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm award as the nation’s top senior quarterback.

On Thursday, he lost out to Banks for the Davey O’Brien Award given to the nation’s top quarterback; Johnson won the Maxwell Award as the nation’s top player.

“It’s really great to be player of the year, but somehow I feel like I’ve been fattened up for New York,” Johnson told the Associated Press. “I think I’ve won all the awards I’m going to win. I think the Heisman is going to go to somebody else.”

Dorsey is the only Heisman finalist who began the season among the favorites to win it. Last year, he finished third behind winner Eric Crouch and Rex Grossman. Dorsey, a senior, is 38-1 as a starter and has the Hurricanes on the verge of winning a second consecutive national championship.

“I think it would be nice to win it, but it won’t ruin my season or career if I don’t,” said Dorsey, who passed for 3,073 yards and 26 touchdowns.

Banks, a backup as a junior in 2001, led the nation in passing efficiency (60.1%) and threw for 2,369 yards and 25 touchdowns with only four interceptions. Last week, he edged Palmer in voting for the Associated Press player-of-the-year award.

Johnson, a senior, led the nation with 2,015 yards rushing and averaged an NCAA-record 8.02 yards a carry.

McGahee, a sophomore, rushed for more than 100 yards 10 times and finished with 1,686 rushing yards and 27 touchdowns, both school records. He completed the regular season with a flourish, gaining 205 yards and scoring six touchdowns in 39 carries last week in a 56-45 victory over Virginia Tech that sent the Hurricanes to the Fiesta Bowl against Ohio State.

Palmer was 8 years old in 1988 when Rodney Peete became the first USC quarterback to be named a Heisman finalist. Peete finished second to Barry Sanders, and USC’s legacy of producing Heisman-winning tailbacks such as Mike Garrett (1965), O.J. Simpson (1968), Charles White (1979) and Allen (1981) was safe.

If Palmer wins today, he does not expect that legacy to change.

“It will still be Tailback U,” he said. “It would still be four Heismans to one, so they would definitely have the upper hand on me there.

“But it will be fun to see how it all turns out.”

*

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

Breaking It Down

Heisman Trophy winners by position, with last winner in parenthesis:

*--* RBs 40 (Ron Dayne, 1999) QBs 21 (Eric Crouch, 2001) WRs 3 (Desmond Howard, 1991) DEs 2 (Leon Hart, 1949) CB 1 (Charles Woodson, 1997) Note: Today’s Heisman show will be on ESPN at 5 p.m

*--*

*

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

Rating Game

Times staff writer Sam Farmer ranks the Heisman Trophy finalists on NFL ability:

*--* 1. WILLIS McGAHEE, Miami Running Back * Could be the next Edgerrin James 2. CARSON PALMER, USC Quarterback * Looks like a classic pro quarterback and has mobility 3. LARRY JOHNSON, Penn St. Running Back * Struggled against tougher opponents, which could be a problem in the NFL 4. KEN DORSEY, Miami Quarterback * Ty Detmer, Danny Wuerffel and Heath Shuler were also great college quarterbacks 5. BRAD BANKS, Iowa Quarterback * Great skills but has only one season as a Division I starter

*--*