School: USC Year: Senior Hometown: Shreveport, LA Date of Birth: 1/3/85 Height: 6024 Weight: 210 Bench Press: n/a Vertical Jump: 22.5" 40 T: 4.82 Projection: Fourth Round
Class: 2008 Big Board
Pros: Among the most cerebral of the signal callers in the class of 2008, which is why he was able to enroll early at USC. In terms of being able to run West Coast offense, Booty is as NFL ready as quarterback coming out this season. Seems to have a good understanding of coverages and how to read defenses, both pre and post snap. A fairly accurate passer, who puts a nice touch on his passes, making his ball a very catchable one. Booty has a quick release. He's a tough player who has played through pain during his career.
Cons: There have been more injuries than you’d like to see. Booty broke his wrist in 2003, causing him to miss the final two games of the season. In 2004 he suffered a bruised elbow in his throwing arm and sat out as a medical red-shirt. A broken middle finger kept him out of action as a senior. Couples with his lack of ideal size and bulk, one has to wonder about Booty’s durability both short term, and more so long term. Booty’s high completion percentage is thought to be a product of the Pete Carroll system and he lacks the necessary zip on his passes. Has not shown much as a passer downt he field. He is not very mobile and needs to do a better job of making quicker decisions.
Factoid: Booty is believed to be the first player ever to leave high school a whole year early to play college football.
X-Factor: Booty came out of Evangel Christian Academy as a much ballyhooed recruit who garnered national attention when he was among the first schoolboys to leave high school early for college. It is the same school that produced his big brother Josh, as well as Brock Berlin. How did they pan out? Coming to USC certainly did not slow down the hype machine, especially since many have been programmed to view the Trojan quarterback as a future star, like his predecessors Carlson Palmer and Matt Leinart. How much of Booty’s vast potential is real and how much is hype? Circumstance and environment have benefited Booty up until, and he could be exposed at the next level.
Overall: Booty answered the challenge of replacing Matt Leinart last season, leading the team to a Rose Bowl victory over Michigan and with a strong finish to the end of his junior season, the expectations were high heading into his senior year. With Heisman hopes and talk of a National Championship, Booty and the Trojans had a somewhat disappointing season. Since the opening game, no one has lost as much ground as this Man of Troy. Having already dropped out of the first round, Booty could completely fall out of day.
Medical Examiner:
10/9/07—Hand: Broke middle finger on right hand, missed one game
03/01/06 – Back: Herniated disk that required surgery, missed all but first practice of spring ball.
09/01/04 – Elbow: Suffered bruised elbow in fall camp, redshirted.
11/22/03 – Wrist: Broke left wrist against UCLA, missed two games.
Highlights of Accomplishments:
• Athlon Sports 1st Team All-American
• Sporting News 1st Team All-American
• Lindy's 1st Team All-PAC Ten
• Phil Steel's 2nd Team All-American
• 2006 All-Pac-10 first team
• 2006 USC team captain.
Bloodlines: Father played quarterback at Arkansas, Louisiana Tech & Mississippi State. Brother Josh played quarterback at LSU & for Cleveland Browns after five-year career with the Florida Marlins.
High School: Booty succeeded his brother Josh and former Miami quarterback Brock Berlin In 2001 and 2002 he led Evangel Christian Academy to state-championship game victories.
Personal: Hails from the same hometown as Terry Bradshaw and Tommy Maddox. Was roommates with then-USC center Ryan Kalil (Panthers) during the 2006 season.
Major: Sociology
Quote of Note: "My dad was fired as our quarterbacks coach, so I felt like it was time for me to move on...I felt like I was standing up for my dad and for what I want...I don't want people to think I did this just to do it. I had every intention of finishing my high school career until this came up with my dad. If I had stayed there, I would have been unhappy. It would have been a tough time. I realize that high school is so much fun and such a big part of your life to leave it with one year left. I never planned on doing this. It just came about. I had a decision to make and I felt like I made the right one."
--John David Booty On Why He Skipped His Senior Year of High School
Murphy’s View: Booty has one of the most high-pressure positions in college football. He proved a solid replacement to Matt Leinart. He throws a very accurate, catchable ball, but does not wow you with any one portion of his game. A good, but not great athlete, surrounded by USC's unreal talent level. Booty is still not the most vocal of leaders and might not crave the spotlight.
Mogollon’s View: Booty looks the part, but he just has not been that great during his time at USC. The numbers are solid, but the Men of Troy have taken a step back under his watch. They did not lose games to UCLA with a BCS Championship game appearance on the line or get upset by huge underdogs like Stanford since Pete Carroll has taken over, until Booty took over that is. When factoring his lingering injury issues, don’t be surprised to see Booty’s stock continue slip. A backup quarterback, who could be out of the league before you know it.
Only Subscribers
can access all the insider information from the Big Board Player Information pages.
Click below to sign up
and access the entire NFL Draft Bible network!
