UW Football | Booty answers the call

Even though John David Booty showed up early, it looked like he might miss the party anyway.

But just when everyone was about to take off without him, Booty reminded them he was still there.

And now, as USC readies to play the Washington Huskies at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, it is Booty who will be the host of ceremonies.

"It's just great to be out there," says Booty, USC's junior quarterback. "This is what I've wanted to do since I was a little kid, and now that I'm getting the opportunity, it's real special."

Not that he ever figured he'd have to wait this long when he made headlines in 2003 by graduating from Evangel Christian High in Shreveport, La., after his junior year so he could enroll at USC a year early. Booty made the decision after his father was fired as Evangel Christian's quarterbacks coach.

He's believed to be the first player to graduate a full year early from high school to enroll at a Division I school, though he was already 18 when he showed up at USC in the fall of 2003.

It didn't hurt that the USC quarterback job would be wide open with Heisman Trophy winner Carson Palmer having graduated after the 2002 season.

All that stood in Booty's way of going straight from heralded high-schooler to USC's starter was an untested sophomore named Matt Leinart.

As Booty says, "Matt went on to do what he did, and there we were."

Where Booty seemed was stuck, especially when Leinart — the 2004 Heisman winner — made the surprising decision to return in 2005.

"It wasn't difficult," Booty insists. "The competitor in me wanted to be out there playing, but it was clear why I wasn't."

It got murkier, though, last spring. Booty seemed ready to finally become the starter, only to pull up lame after the first day of practice with a herniated disk that required surgery. With Booty out, heralded freshman Mark Sanchez — who in the words of USC coach Pete Carroll has the strongest arm of any Trojans quarterback since Palmer — made his case for the starting job. Some wondered if Booty's chance had already passed.

Carroll gave what seemed a lukewarm endorsement of Booty heading into fall camp, saying he was the starter because he had experience. All those USC routs gave him ample mop-up duty, and he entered 2006 having thrown 56 passes.

But Booty's back troubles vanished with the surgery, and the expected battle to succeed Leinart never really developed. Booty took hold of the job early, then cemented it when he led USC to a 50-14 win in the opener at Arkansas, throwing for three touchdowns and 261 yards.

And while a USC offense also missing Reggie Bush and LenDale White has struggled at times since, scoring 28, 20 and 28 points in wins over Nebraska, Arizona and Washington State, Carroll termed Booty's play this week "beautiful," and said the rest of the newcomers on offense need to catch up to Booty.

"I don't know that we could have expected him to play any better than he's doing," Carroll says of Booty, who is second in the Pac-10 in passing efficiency (966 passing yards, 10 touchdowns, two interceptions, completing 67 percent of his passes).

"He hasn't been flustered for a moment. His poise has been awesome. His execution, his accuracy, his decision-making are great."

Says Booty: "I still think there's a lot of room for me to get comfortable and confident with the game speed and things like that. But, yeah, I'm very happy with the way things are going right now."

Washington defensive coordinator Kent Baer called Booty "the best quarterback we've seen so far [this season]." Considering USC also has the "best group of receivers" UW has seen, according to Baer, the Huskies are anticipating their secondary may get tested more than it has all season.

Few who knew Booty's lineage were surprised he was prepared when his time finally came. His father, Johnny, played quarterback at Arkansas, Louisiana Tech and Mississippi State before entering coaching. Older brother Josh played quarterback at Louisiana State and later had a brief run with the Seahawks. Another brother, Abram, was a college receiver.

The bigger question, which Booty appears to be answering, was whether he might wilt under the scrutiny of following two Heisman Trophy winners.

"I just try to be myself and bring what I think I can bring to the table and not worry about what the guys have done before me," Booty said. "I can't get caught up in all of that. It was fun to be a part of [the past three years] but at the same time, I've got to do my own deal and keep trying to win games."

Bob Condotta: 206-515-5699 or bcondotta@seattletimes.com