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CARSON PALMER ON:
Being coached by offensive coordinator Norm Chow: "I really didn't know much about coach Chow until the first day he got here. When I saw his bio, I was like, 'Wow!' I had no idea. I thought, 'I can't wait to work with this guy.'"…He has no ego. And he's old-school. When I say he's old-school, I mean he dresses old-school, too! His shorts are up over his belly button and his shirt is tucked into his shorts."
Coach Chow's offense: "We are running a lot of routes that are completely different now. I had never thrown a comeback or a hook-and-go off a five-step drop before. Coach Chow wants to throw it all game. And I love that…The key to it is taking what the defense gives you. That's what coach Chow tells me. I had been greedy, trying to throw the long ball when there's a guy 5 or 6 yards in front of me who's open. He told me I just have to be more patient."
His hype: "A lot of that stuff about me is false-the Golden Boy, Gold Arm, all that crap. It's just the media talking. I think I know who I am. I really don't pay attention to what all those other people are saying…I haven't done anything yet. I haven't won any big games. I don't even think I've played well…You just have to block it out and not worry about it too much. There are a lot of people on magazine covers, so it really doesn't mean a whole lot. What matters is who's on the magazine covers at the end of the season…I guess that's one of the things about playing quarteback. The quarterback gets most of the recognition."
His struggles in 2000: "The 2000 season was a huge learning experience. It made me grow up a lot more as a quarterback…I was shocked when I would look at the stats and see all those interceptions…It was all new to me. My first couple of years, I hadn't been behind in a game…A couple times, I tried to make plays when there was nothing there. I'd get frustrated and try to make a play…It got me almost every time…When you're a quarterback, you're either the bum or the hero. And in 2000 I was the bum all year…I tried as hard as I could to block it out. I was throwing a lot of interceptions and people were saying a lot of things. You have to just keep plugging away. You can't let the outside world affect your game. You can't hold back anything. You can't play a different game."
Returning from his 1999 injury: "Playing football is like riding a bike. You never really forget…I felt clumsy at times with my footwork and sitting in the pocket. And I had to get used to having defensive linemen flying at me again…I felt like a rookie, clumsy and goofy. I hadn't felt like that in a long time…The entire time I was out I was itchy. The hardest part was watching games, especially the losses. I realized that if I kept thinking about it, it would always put me in a bad mood. I thought about it for a while, but it's time to move on…It made me think I couldn't take football for granted. You really can't take anything for granted. I used to come to practice and go through the motions. I don't do that anymore. I look forward to practices. I enjoy every rep, every snap that I get. Before, I wouldn't go as hard as I could. Now I try to be perfect every chance I get…Sitting on the sidelines all that time made me understand that you have to use every day in practice to get better...I never thought I'd ever say this, but I really don't want to see practice end…I even enjoy the wind sprints now…It might have been the best thing to happen to me. It taught me a lot about myself and about this game…By sitting out all that time, when I had football taken away from me, I learned something. I learned that football means everything to me. I learned I missed every practice, every drill. I missed hurting from working my hardest…I've learned so much. Everybody said when it happened that it would make me a better person, and it's true…I am never going to complain again about practice or work or anything. I think I've grown up a lot…When I got hurt, it gave me a new perspective. I take every snap like it's my last."
His 1999 injury: "I was so excited about the 1999 season. I had worked hard and I couldn't wait to see what would happen. Then, in one instant, it was gone…One second changed my life…I see the hit all the time. It's going to be with me always. I'm going to replay the hit when I work out or run. It's real good motivation…Next time I'll run out of bounds…I couldn't believe what happened…I lost 15 or 20 pounds. I watched my right shoulder atrophy. I saw the muscle disappear. I couldn't do anything and I wasn't hungry and that first day (early February) I was able to throw the ball again, I felt so weak."
His 1998 performance: "I never expected to be starting. I just hoped to contribute...Not a lot of people do start at quarterback as a freshman. I'm thankful I got the chance...My goal was to come in and play. I didn't want to redshirt. I didn't think I would start. The playbook was so overwhelming. I didn't think I would get it down in one year…I didn't know what to expect. I was kind of overwhelmed by everything. I was hoping I'd make the travel team, or maybe redshirt. I didn't know what was going on. I was probably guessing on 20 percent of the plays…Everything was going a million miles an hour, trying to learn the offense and stuff."
His on-field composure: "I just don't have a bad temper. I'm pretty easygoing about everything...I'm just concentrating on the plays and what's going on, so I don't get that nervous. I'd always been the youngest guy on the team ever since fifth grade because I weighed more than everybody else, and I had to go up to the higher division. So maybe that's where it comes from."
Improving: "I still have a long, long, long way to go. I've learned a ton, but there's twice as many things I need to learn in the next couple of years...It's not technique as much as it is mental. You've got to know what the defense is doing. I think that's where I've come along the most, reading coverages, picking out where the corners aren't as good as the opposite ones, and deciding where to go with the ball...You can always get quicker and faster, work harder on your dropback, accuracy on your deep ball. But the main thing is to get those footsteps down…Now, I'm smarter, quicker and read defenses better. From my freshman year, everything has improved. There's no comparison."
Choosing USC: "It probably started when I was in the ninth grade and some of my friends' parents would take us to USC football games. I just fell in love with everything about their football games and the tradition. I always imagined myself running out of the Coliseum tunnel toward the field."
His future: "I'm not setting myself up for the NFL. I'm not trying to do anything special to go to the NFL, but if it happens, it happens. If that's where God wants me to go, it's going to happen. But I also want to work in business, maybe work in health insurance."
His bi-coastal family during his prep years (his father took a job in Connecticut prior to his junior year in high school, while the rest of the family stayed in California so he could continue at Santa Margarita): "I felt real guilty because I was putting them through this for me. My dad only got to see his family one-and-a-half days a week. But it kept me aligned, kept me focused, because I knew all the sacrifices my family was going through."
His cooking ability: "I don't cook anything unless I can pop it into the microwave. I don't even have pots or pans. Mostly, I eat at a catering truck by my place!"
