1977 USC Trojans football
ConferencePacific-8 Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 12
APNo. 13
Record8–4 (5–2 Pac-8)
Head coach
Captains
Home stadiumLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Seasons
← 1976
1978 →
1977 Pacific-8 Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 10 Washington $   6 – 1     8 – 4  
No. 15 Stanford   5 – 2     9 – 3  
No. 13 USC   5 – 2     8 – 4  
California   3 – 4     7 – 4  
Washington State   3 – 4     6 – 5  
Oregon   1 – 6     2 – 9  
Oregon State   0 – 7     2 – 9  
UCLA †   0 – 2     0 – 4  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • † – UCLA forfeited 7 wins (5 conference wins) due to ineligible players.
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1977 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California (USC) in the 1977 NCAA Division I football season. In their second year under head coach John Robinson, the Trojans compiled a 8–4 record (5–2 against conference opponents), finished in a tie for second place in the Pacific-8 Conference (Pac-8), and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 357 to 212.[1] The team was ranked #12 in the final UPI Coaches Poll and #13 in the final AP Poll.

Quarterback Rob Hertel led the team in passing, completing 132 of 245 passes for 2,145 yards with 19 touchdowns and 18 interceptions. Charles White led the team in rushing with 285 carries for 1,478 yards and seven touchdowns. Randy Simmrin led the team in receiving with 41 catches for 840 yards and five touchdowns.[2]

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 10at Missouri*No. 4
W 27–1065,298
September 17at Oregon StateNo. 2
W 17–1031,143
September 24TCU*No. 2
W 51–054,620
September 30Washington StateNo. 2
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA
W 41–761,809
October 8No. 7 Alabama*No. 1
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA
ABCL 20–2163,140[3]
October 15OregondaggerNo. 6
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA
W 33–1551,120
October 22at No. 11 Notre Dame*No. 5
ABCL 19–4959,075
October 29at CaliforniaNo. 10
L 14–1776,780
November 5StanfordNo. 16
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA (rivalry)
W 49–065,101
November 12at WashingtonNo. 14
L 10–2859,501
November 25No. 17 UCLA
ABCW 29–2786,168
December 31vs. No. 17 Texas A&M*No. 20
MizlouW 47–2852,842
  • *Non-conference game
  • daggerHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1977 USC Trojans football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
OL Gary Bethel
OL Brad Budde
TE Dan Burns
RB 21 Lynn Cain Jr
RB Rod Connors
RB Dwight Ford
TE 86 William Gay Sr
QB 6 Rob Hertel Sr
G 66 Pat Howell Jr
QB Paul McDonald
OL Anthony Munoz
OT 74 John Schuhmacher Sr
TE 89 Joe Shipp Sr
WR Randy Simmrin
WR Howard Studdard
WR 24 Calvin Sweeney Jr
FB 36 Mosi Tatupu Sr
OT 68 Keith Van Horne So
RB 12 Charles White So
WR 8 Kevin Williams So
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
DB 47 Larry Braziel Jr
LB 58 Mario Celotto Sr
LB 85 Garry Cobb Jr
DB Willie Crawford
DT 92 Rich Dimler Jr
CB 40 Jeff Fisher Fr
LB 50 Ed Gutierrez
DB Carter Hartwig
LB 56 Dennis Johnson So
DT 96 Myron Lapka So
S 42 Ronnie Lott Fr
LB 60 Clay Matthews Sr
LB 58 Mike McDonald Sr
LB 57 Larry McGrew So
DB 33 Ricky Odom Sr
LB 81 Eric Scoggins Fr
DB 49 Dennis Smith Fr
DL Ty Sperling
DB 7 Dennis Thurman Sr
DL Walt Underwood
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
K Frank Jordan
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

Game summaries

UCLA

1 234Total
• USC 0 1793 29
UCLA 10 0710 27
Scoring summary
1UCLACarrol 52-yard field goalUCLA 3–0
1UCLABrown 1-yard run (Carrol kick)UCLA 10–0
2USCJordan 25-yard field goalUCLA 10–3
2USCGay 20-yard pass from Hertel (kick failed)UCLA 10–9
2USCWilliams 40-yard pass from Hertel (Gay pass from Hertel)USC 16–10
39:57USCWilliams 27-yard pass from Hertel (kick failed)USC 23–10
3USCJordan 36-yard field goalUSC 26–10
3UCLAOwens 32-yard pass from Bashore (Carrol kick)USC 26–17
4UCLACarrol 20-yard field goalUSC 26–20
42:51UCLAPederson 2-yard pass from Bashore (Carrol kick)UCLA 27–26
4:02USCJordan 38-yard field goalUSC 29–27

[4]

References

  1. ^ "Southern California Yearly Results (1975-1979)". College Football Data Warehouse. David DeLassus. Archived from the original on July 22, 2015. Retrieved July 20, 2015.
  2. ^ "1977 Southern California Trojans Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  3. ^ "Alabama hangs on to upset Trojans". The Register. October 9, 1977. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Eugene Register-Guard. November 26, 1977
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