NFL draft - Keyshawn Johnson is one of the Special Six at USC

USC football has produced six players who have been taken as No. 1 picks in the NFL draft. With Caleb Williams (2024) taking off last season with the Chicago Bears, we can say it now: None of those six players were busts. One of them, Keyshawn Johnson, won a Super Bowl and achieved a very successful NFL career.

Keyshawn Johnson reinforces the crucial point that as much as fans and commentators criticize athletes with egos, it is actually healthy and necessary to have a strong ego. Human beings don't become high achievers without believing in themselves and being sure of their ability to do the job. Keyshawn Johnson is an athlete who backed up his talk and lived up to his own standards. Brash but brilliant, Keyshawn didn't write checks his mouth -- and body -- couldn't cash. There's a lot to admire in his story of success in the pros after a USC career in which he won Rose Bowl MVP honors and gave John Robinson one last Rose Bowl victory as the Trojans' head coach.

Keyshawn Johnson did well with the New York Jets, but he did even better with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, helping quarterback Brad Johnson and coach Jon Gruden win Super Bowl XXXVII over Jerry Rice and the Oakland Raiders in 2003 in San Diego. Keyshawn's college career blossomed in Southern California. He reached the pinnacle of pro football in Southern California as well, giving him a Super Bowl ring. He is the only one of the Special Six No. 1 USC draft picks to win the Vince Lombardi Trophy.