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No USC Trojans football players will be wearing No. 11 on the field anytime soon.
Of course, that seemed obvious when Matt Leinart retired almost immediately after graduating.
However, the USC legend revealed that USC officials approached him “multiple times” to ask if he would retire the number “for some five-star prospect.”
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Matt Leinhart of the USC Trojans throws a pass during a college football game against the Virginia Tech Hokies on August 24, 2004, at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland. (Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
“And you want to know what I said directly to those guys? I said, ‘Absolutely not,'” Leinart said on his “Throwbacks” podcast. “I’m never going to give up my jersey for some random guy who, by the way, could now wear No. 11 and transfer after a year.”
Of course, there are rare exceptions.
“The only person who will ever wear my USC No. 11 would be [my son] Cole, who’s not there right now. He’s at SMU. Or two of my sons if they end up going to USC and playing football. “That’s all,” he said.
Southern California Trojans head coach Pete Carroll raises the trophy with quarterback Matt Leinart (left) after a victory against the Oklahoma Sooners in the 2005 Orange Bowl held at Pro Player Stadium. The Trojans won the BCS National Championship with the victory. (Matthew Emmons/USA TODAY Sports)
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Leinart won a national championship with the Trojans, losing only two games in his entire career. The second was during their quest for a third straight title, but Vince Young and the Texas Longhorns cruised to victory in the championship in what has been considered one of the greatest college football games of all time.
Leinart led the then-Pac-10 in passing touchdowns in his first two seasons as a player and led in passing yards in his third and final season. He was named the Heisman Trophy winner in 2004 and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2017.
USC Trojans quarterback Matt Leinart in action during the 2005 Orange Bowl against the Oklahoma Sooners. (Preston Mack-USA TODAY Sports)
He was the 10th overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft by the Arizona Cardinals. However, he did not find similar success and was out of the league in 2013.
