1987 USC Trojans football team

1987 USC Trojans football
Pac-10 co-champion
Rose Bowl, L 17–20 vs. Michigan State
ConferencePacific-10 Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 17
APNo. 18
Record8–4 (7–1 Pac-10)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorChuck Stobart (1st season)
Captains
Home stadiumLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum
1987 Pacific-10 Conference football standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 9 UCLA + 7 – 1 – 0 10 – 2 – 0
No. 18 + 7 – 1 – 0 8 – 4 – 0
Washington 4 – 3 – 1 7 – 4 – 1
No. 20 Arizona State 3 – 3 – 1 7 – 4 – 1
Oregon 4 – 4 – 0 6 – 5 – 0
Stanford 4 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Arizona 2 – 3 – 3 4 – 4 – 3
California 2 – 3 – 2 3 – 6 – 2
Washington State 1 – 5 – 1 3 – 7 – 1
Oregon State 0 – 7 – 0 2 – 9 – 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1987 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California (USC) in the 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their first year under head coach Larry Smith, the Trojans compiled an 8–4 record (7–1 against conference opponents), won the Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10) championship, and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 321 to 229.[1]

The Trojans lost their inaugural game of Larry Smith's tenure to Michigan State in the first night game ever played at Spartan Stadium. USC secured a Rose Bowl berth by tying UCLA for the Pacific-10 championship and winning the head-to-head match. They faced Michigan State again and lost 20–17.

Quarterback Rodney Peete led the team in passing, completing 197 of 332 passes for 2,709 yards with 21 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Steven Webster led the team in rushing with 239 carries for 1,109 yards and six touchdowns. Erik Affholter led the team in receiving yards with 44 catches for 640 yards and four touchdowns.[2]

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 75:00 p.m.at No. 17 Michigan State*No. 19
ABCL 13–2777,922[3]
September 1912:30 p.m.No. 19 Boston College*
ABCW 23–1746,205[4]
September 261:00 p.m.at California
W 31–1462,000[5]
October 36:30 p.m.Oregon State
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA
W 48–1447,979[6]
October 101:00 p.m.at Oregon
L 27–3439,587[7]
October 1712:30 p.m.at Washington
ABCW 37–2371,678[8]
October 2412:30 p.m.at No. 10 Notre Dame*
CBSL 15–2659,075[9]
October 311:30 p.m.Washington State
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA
W 42–724,834[10]
November 712:30 p.m.Stanford
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA (rivalry)
ABCW 39–2458,922[11]
November 141:30 p.m.Arizona
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA
W 12–1051,428[12]
November 2112:30 p.m.No. 5 UCLA
ABCW 17–1392,516[13]
January 1, 19882:00 p.m.vs. No. 8 Michigan State*No. 16
NBCL 17–20103,847[14]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Rankings

Further information: 1987 NCAA Division I-A football rankings

Game summaries

Arizona

1 2 3 4 Total
Arizona 7 0 3 0 10
USC 3 3 0 6 12

[15]

UCLA

No. 5 UCLA at USC
Team 1 234Total
No. 5 Bruins 7 330 13
• Trojans 0 0314 17
Scoring summary
1UCLAGaston Green 6-yard run (Alfredo Velasco kick)UCLA 7-0
2UCLAAlfredo Velasco 32-yard field goalUCLA 10-0
2UCLAAlfredo Velasco 38-yard field goalUCLA 13-0
3USCQuin Rodriguez 26-yard field goalUCLA 13-3
414:09USCRandy Tanner 6-yard pass from Rodney Peete (Quin Rodriguez kick)UCLA 13-10
47:59USCErik Affholter 33-yard pass from Rodney Peete (Quin Rodriguez kick)USC 17-13
See also: 1987 UCLA Bruins football team and Victory Bell (UCLA–USC)

USC clinched berth in the Rose Bowl with the win.[16]

Roster

1987 USC Trojans football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
WR 42 Erik Affholter Jr
WR 88 Gene Arrington Jr
RB Aaron Emanuel So
RB 34 Ricky Ervins Fr
TE 86 Scott Galbraith So
TE 17 Paul Green Jr
OT John Guerrero  Jr
RB 39 Leroy Holt So
QB 4 Pat O'Hara Fr
C 63 Brad Leggett So
RB 40 Scott Lockwood Fr
QB 16 Rodney Peete Jr
G 75 Mark Tucker Fr
WR 83 Gary Wellman Fr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
S 7 Mark Carrier Fr
CB 2 Chris Hale Jr
DT 93 Pat Harlow Fr
DT 90 Dan Owens So
LB 35 Scott Ross Fr
DT 99 Tim Ryan So
LB 55 Junior Seau Fr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
K 11 Quin Rodriguez Fr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
  • John Matsko
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured
  • Redshirt

References

  1. ^ "Southern California Yearly Results (1985-1989)". College Football Data Warehouse. David DeLassus. Archived from the original on July 22, 2015. Retrieved July 20, 2015.
  2. ^ "1987 Southern California Trojans Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  3. ^ Jack Ebling (September 8, 1987). "Celebrate: MSU whips Southern Cal, 27-13". Lansing State Journal. pp. 1C, 4C – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "USC ends Boston College streak". The Camarillo Daily News. September 20, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "For Peete's sake! Bears no match for Trojans". Ventura County Star. September 27, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Beavers blasted by USC". The Columbian. October 4, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Oregon shows USC who real contender is, 34–27". The San Bernardino County Sun. October 11, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Trojans go to the tailback". The Enterprise. October 18, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Notre Dame runs past USC in 26–15 win". Daily World. October 25, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Webster stars as Trojans drown Cougars". Sunday News Chronicle. November 1, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Trojans, Peete pass by Cardinal in role reversal". Honolulu Star-Bulletin & Advertiser. November 8, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Rodriquez' field goals boost Southern Cal". The State. November 15, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Trojans heist Bruins' bouquet". Ventura County Star. November 22, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ Mal Florence (January 2, 1988). "A Simple Snap and a Wave End Big Ten Jinx: Michigan State Beats USC and Pac-10, 20-17". Los Angeles Times. pp. 1, 7 (part III) – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ Gainesville Sun. 1987 November 15. Retrieved 2019-January-06.
  16. ^ "Southern Cal takes roses from UCLA." Gainesville Sun. 1987 November 22.
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