1954 USC Trojans football team
American college football season
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The 1954 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California (USC) in the Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) during the 1954 college football season. In their fourth year under head coach Jess Hill, the Trojans compiled an 8–4 record (6–1 in PCC, second), lost to Ohio State in the Rose Bowl, and outscored their opponents 258 to 159.
| 1954 USC Trojans football | |
|---|---|
Rose Bowl, L 7–20 vs. Ohio State | |
| Conference | Pacific Coast Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 11 |
| AP | No. 17 |
| Record | 8–4 (6–1 PCC) |
| Head coach |
|
| Home stadium | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 2 UCLA $ | 6 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 0 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 17 USC ^ | 6 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oregon | 5 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| California | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington State | 3 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stanford | 2 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Idaho | 1 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington | 1 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oregon State | 1 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 1 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Jim Contratto led USC in passing with 32 of 79 passes completed for 702 yards, five touchdowns and five interceptions. Jon Arnett led the team in rushing with 96 carries for 601 yards and seven touchdowns. Lindon Crow was the leading receiver with seven catches for 274 yards and three touchdowns.[1]
Three Trojans received first-team honors from the Associated Press on the All-Coast team: back Lindon Crow; tackle Ed Fouch; guard Jim Salsbury.
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 17 | Washington State | No. 17 | W 39–0 | 37,645 | [2] | |
| September 24 | Pittsburgh* | No. 15 |
| W 27–7 | 50,253 | [3][4][5] |
| October 2 | at Northwestern* | No. 9 | W 12–7 | 30,725 | [6] | |
| October 8 | TCU* | No. 9 |
| L 7–20 | 52,705 | [7] |
| October 16 | at Oregon | W 24–14 | 22,766 | [8] | ||
| October 23 | California | No. 17 |
| W 29–27 | 66,342 | [9] |
| October 30 | Oregon State | No. 13 |
| W 30–0 | 30,065 | [10] |
| November 6 | at Stanford | No. 10 | W 21–7 | 38,000 | [11] | |
| November 13 | Washington | No. 8 |
| W 41–0 | 36,108 | [12] |
| November 20 | No. 2 UCLA | No. 7 |
| L 0–34 | 102,548 | [13] |
| November 27 | at No. 4 Notre Dame* | No. 17 | L 17–23 | 56,438 | [14] | |
| January 1, 1955 | vs. No. 1 Ohio State* | No. 17 | L 7–20 | 89,191 | [15] | |
Game summaries
UCLA
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UCLA | 7 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 34 |
| USC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Players
- Jon Arnett, sophomore tailback (#26), earned second-team All-Coast honors from the UP
- Al Barry, senior right guard
- George Belotti, tackle
- Bing Bordier, right end
- Ron Brown
- Ron Calabria, wingback
- Leon Clarke, left end, second-team All-Coast honors from coaches
- Frank Clayton, left halfback
- Jim Contratto, quarterback
- Lindon Crow, second-team All-Coast (co-captain)
- Aramis Dandoy, tailback, won All-Coast honors from INS
- Mario DaRe, tackle
- Jim Decker, fullback
- Gordon Duvall, fullback
- Dirk Eldredge, center
- Dick Enright, right guard
- Orlando Ferrante, guard, first-team All-Coast honors from coaches, second-string All-Coast honors from INS
- Ed Fouch, right tackle, first-team All-Coast (co-captain)
- George Galli, guard
- Marv Goux, linebacker, led the team in defensive statistics
- Chuck Greenwood, right end
- Chuck Griffith, right end
- Frank Hall, back
- Roger Hooks quarterback
- Bob Isaacson, guard
- Chuck Leimbach, end
- Don McFarland, end
- Ernie Merk, back
- John Miller, guard
- Frank Pavich, guard and tackle
- Vern Sampson, center
- Irwin Spector, guard, Brooklyn, New York
- Joe Tisdale, fullback
- Sam Tsagalakis, placekicker
Coaching staff and other personnel
- Head coach: Jess Hill[17]
- Assistant coaches: Mel Hein (line coach - centers and tackles), Don Clark (line coach - guards and defensive patterns), Bill Fisk (ends), George Ceithaml (backfield coach), Nick Pappas (defensive backs), Jess Mortensen (freshman coach)[18]
- Yell kings: Don Ward, Jerry Stolp, Phil Reilly, Shep Aparicio, Bob Mandel[19]
- Manager: Peter Couden[20]