USC Legend Carson Palmer Lands High School Head Coaching Job

Santa Margarita is no small high school in the middle of nowhere though. It competes in the prestigious Trinity League along with a number of other high schools that have churned out top college and even NFL prospects with some regularity.

But the Eagles have plenty of their own prestige. Santa Margarita has a slew of famous alumni who have gone on to do great things in sports and beyond, including NBA champion Klay Thompson, U.S. soccer gold medalist Amy Rodriguez, Olympic swimmer Katie McLaughlin and former FSU quarterback Chris Rix.

Palmer himself was a legend at Santa Margarita Catholic and parlayed his phenomenal success there into five remarkable years at USC. But his best by far was his 2002 season under Pete Carroll. 

In 2002, Palmer led the Trojans to an 11-2 record, culminating in their Orange Bowl win over Iowa and what was effectively the restoration of the USC football program. Palmer won the Heisman Trophy that year and went on to go No. 1 overall to the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2003 NFL Draft.

Palmer's NFL career had plenty of peaks and valleys. After an underwhelming first two seasons, he led the Bengals to their first playoff appearance in over a decade in 2005, making the Pro Bowl in 2005 and 2006. But injuries and inconsistency on the field led to the team letting him go after seven seasons and he played the 2011 and 2012 seasons with the Oakland Raiders before finishing his career with the Arizona Cardinals.