Return to Splendor

The game plan worked so well last year, USC quarterback Matt Leinart intends to follow it again this weekend.

Last December, as he nervously took a seat on the stage for the Heisman Trophy announcement in New York, Leinart focused on 2002 winner Carson Palmer’s advice: Don’t even think about winning. That way you won’t be disappointed.

Leinart, of course, took home college football’s most prestigious award, setting in motion a year of huge decisions off and on the field.

On Saturday, when Leinart joins Trojan running back Reggie Bush and Texas quarterback Vince Young on stage for this year’s Heisman announcement, he once again will reference Palmer’s words of wisdom.

But he will not be anxious.

Because this time Leinart knows he will not win.

The dynamic Bush is regarded as the front-runner to become the third USC player in four years to take home the trophy. Young is thought to be his closest competition.

And that suits Leinart just fine.

“It’s not like I’m the forgotten guy, but my name is kind of in the background now,” Leinart said. “That’s how it always works: New people come in.

“Like Reggie, he deserves everything he’s getting. He deserves all the attention, all the awards. It’s kind of nice to kind of sit back and let him take all that I’ve dealt with the past two years.”

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Leinart walked through the lobby of a hotel in downtown Los Angeles this week and grinned when he saw a sign informing camera-ready and camera-shy visitors that the television show “American Idol” was being taped on the premises.

“I want to go up there and sing,” Leinart said, laughing.

After trying to escape the spotlight for much of the season, Leinart’s ever-present Angel cap is no longer tugged down over his eyes. He is intent on taking in all that his final month of college football offers.

Leinart, 22, said he had achieved the goals he set last January when he announced that he would pass up the opportunity to earn millions as a pro and return for a final season of eligibility.

The top-ranked Trojans finished the regular season 12-0 and will play second-ranked and unbeaten Texas in the Rose Bowl, this year’s bowl championship series title game, with a chance to win an unprecedented third consecutive Associated Press national title.

“My whole goal coming back was just to win; my goal was not to win the Heisman again,” said Leinart, who is 37-1 as a starter. “Obviously, it would be cool, and to be mentioned in the race again is awesome, but my goal was just to come back, be a leader, win, be a better football player and be a better person. And I think I’ve done that.”

Leinart’s statistical performance is not far off from 2004, when he became USC’s sixth Heisman winner. In some categories, the numbers are better.

Last year, Leinart completed 251 of 377 passes (67%) for 2,990 yards and 28 touchdowns with six interceptions during the regular season. He was voted the most valuable player of the Orange Bowl after passing for 332 yards and five touchdowns in a 55-19 rout of Oklahoma that finished a 13-0 season.

Leinart has completed 254 of 391 passes (65%) for 3,450 and 27 touchdowns with seven interceptions this season. He rebounded from a concussive hit against Arizona State, executed some of the most clutch plays in USC history against Notre Dame, and rallied from a tearful start in his final home game against UCLA to help the Trojans earn their shot at history.

“Everything goes through him,” Texas safety Michael Huff said. “Reggie Bush is getting all of the hype, but Matt Leinart runs the offense, makes the decisions at the line and gets everyone in the right place.”

USC Coach Pete Carroll said Leinart surpassed expectations.

“With everything that was put upon him when he decided to come back? Heck, it’s amazing,” Carroll said.

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Last January, as he stood at a lectern in Heritage Hall, Leinart announced that he would return for a fifth season to win another national title, play for the love of the game, be with teammates and graduate.

Left unsaid: Leinart also wanted to fix the ache in his left elbow.

The pain started toward the end of the 2003 season and remained through the summer and 2004 training camp. After winning the Heisman and passing for five touchdowns against Oklahoma, Leinart was regarded as the possible top pick in the NFL draft.

“I didn’t want to go into a [scouting] combine with question marks about my elbow,” he said this week.

Asked to quantify how much his desire to return and his elbow’s condition influenced his decision, Leinart said, “70%-30%, maybe 60%-40%.”

“My whole thing was, if I come back I’m getting the surgery,” he said.

A 40-minute procedure to alleviate problems caused by tendinitis was performed in late January. Leinart wondered if he would ever be the same.

“It scared me throughout the summer because I was just like, ‘Is it going to get better?’ It was still achy all the way up until fall camp,” Leinart said. “It felt exactly as the same as it did before.

“I was getting nervous. I was getting mad at the doctor. ‘What’s going on?’ He said, ‘I promise, once you start throwing it’s just going to slowly go away.’ Sure enough, camp came around and I felt pretty good, just a different feeling than I had the past couple years.”

Leinart said he felt strong throughout the season -- he passed for more than 300 yards six times -- and would be ready for NFL workouts before the April draft.

“Physically, I’m way better than I was last year,” he said.

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In any other season, Leinart’s audible and 61-yard pass to receiver Dwayne Jarrett on fourth and nine at Notre Dame Stadium might have won him another Heisman.

With seven seconds left in the game and with no timeouts remaining, Leinart sneaked into the end zone with a push from Bush for an epic 34-31 victory.

But Bush’s spectacular three-touchdown performance against the Fighting Irish vaulted him to the forefront of Heisman discussion.

Five weeks later, Bush rushed for 294 yards and amassed 513 all-purpose yards in a victory over Fresno State. Last Saturday, Bush rushed for 260 yards and two touchdowns in a nationally televised rout of UCLA while Leinart struggled to overcome the emotions of playing in the Coliseum for the final time.

After the game, Leinart said that he would cast his Heisman ballot for Bush, a finalist in 2004.

The running back then paid tribute to Leinart.

“His personality, who he is, is what makes him so special,” Bush said. “He’s our leader out there. He’s done it all the last three years and we all love him. It’s been a great run and he’ll be looked at as one of the greatest quarterbacks in college football history.”

Leinart started his farewell tour Wednesday, traveling to Florida with Bush, Jarrett and offensive lineman Taitusi Lutui for a nationally televised college football awards show tonight in Orlando. Leinart will make a stop in Louisville, Ky., on Friday to accept the Johnny Unitas Award as college football’s top senior quarterback, and then head to New York on Saturday morning.

Later that evening, he fully expects to congratulate Bush after the Heisman announcement.

“The whole attention is going to be shifted,” Leinart said. “And it’s nice because I’m still doing my thing.”

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Winning formula

Matt Leinart’s .974 winning percentage is the second-best mark in Division I-A history among quarterbacks with a minimum of 25 starts:

*--* Chuck Ealey, Toledo (1969-71) 35-0-0 1.000 MATT LEINART, USC (2002-05) 37-1-0 974 Steve Davis, Oklahoma (1973-75) 32-1-1 956 Ken Dorsey, Miami (1999-02) 38-2-0 950 Jerry Tagge, Nebraska (1969-71) 24-1-1 942 Vince Young, Texas (2003-05) 29-2-0 935 Jay Barker, Alabama (1991-94) 35-2-1 934 Turner Gill, Nebraska (1981-83) 28-2-0 933 Gino Toretta, Miami (1989-92) 26-2-0 929 Tommie Frazier, Nebraska (1992-95) 33-3-0 917

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Where Leinart ranks nationally this season in passing statistics (NCAA rank in parentheses):

*--* Passing efficiency 158.3 (7) Completion percentage 64.96 (8) Yards passing 3,450 (4) Yards passing per game 290.3 (15) Touchdowns 27 (t7)

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