Hackett in Line for a Bad Start?

Paul Hackett steps into USC history when he coaches his first game today against Purdue in the Pigskin Classic at the Coliseum--and he hopes he can break the mold.

No USC coach has won his debut since Jesse Hill in 1951.

Not Don Clark, not John McKay. Not John Robinson--either time.

Not Ted Tollner, not Larry Smith.

Coaches who went on to win national championships couldn’t win their first game.

So, Paul Hackett, are you sure you’re ready to rock ‘n’ roll?

“In 1951, Jess Hill, I was 4 years old,” Hackett said, so flabbergasted he could only laugh and wave over his wife, Elizabeth, to tell her the ominous statistic. “First games are tough. You just don’t know,” he said.

Hackett increased the degree of difficulty last spring when he suspended star receiver R. Jay Soward, deciding to hold him out of the opener for academic shortcomings even though Soward is eligible to play.

It certainly set an example, but Hackett had best hope it isn’t an example of how to sabotage your debut. In two seasons at USC, Soward has scored a touchdown roughly every six times he has touched the ball.

Against Purdue, a little offensive explosiveness would be an advantage.

USC is favored by slightly more than a touchdown, but the Boilermakers have a wide-open offense along the lines of Washington State’s that helped Purdue to a surprising 9-3 record last season.

The problem for Purdue is that last year’s quarterback and leading receiver are gone, and talented but inexperienced new quarterback Drew Brees is a sophomore making his first start.

USC is sending out its own new quarterback, sophomore Mike Van Raaphorst, who overtook John Fox for the starting job late in the Trojans’ 6-5 season last year but started only two games before an ankle injury knocked him out.

Van Raaphorst’s backup is promising true freshman Carson Palmer. Should USC have to turn to anyone else, Hackett’s choice will be between hobbled freshman Jason Thomas and Fox, now a tight end, or the other former quarterback, Quincy Woods, now a receiver.

But back to that record. Here’s the history, right down the line.

In Clark’s first game in 1957, Oregon State, ranked 13th, beat No. 19 USC, 20-0.

In 1960, the Beavers shut out the Trojans again, upsetting No. 6 USC, 14-0, in McKay’s first game.

Robinson was next, in 1976, when Missouri upset No. 8 USC, 46-25.

“I was in the middle of the one in ‘76,” said Hackett, an assistant to Robinson at the time. “Boy, was that a sobering experience.

“We were 14-point favorites. And all of a sudden we got our doors blown off. We were snapping the ball over the punter’s head.”

It was an awful start, but it started an awesome run. Robinson’s team won 15 in a row, including the Rose Bowl game against Michigan, before Alabama beat the Trojans in the fifth game of the 1977 season.

On to Tollner, whose No. 9 Trojans were tied by No. 18 Florida, 19-19, in 1983.

And to Smith, whose No. 19 Trojans, lost to No. 17 Michigan State, 27-13, in 1987.

And finally to Robinson, whose second stint began in 1993 with a 31-9 loss by No. 19 USC to No. 20 North Carolina at Anaheim Stadium--in a game then known as the Disneyland Pigskin Classic.

This year’s Pigskin Classic, with both teams uncertain of their young offenses, could turn on the performances of the defenses.

Purdue has eight starters back from a defense that gave up a lot of yards but only about 22 points a game.

The strength is the front seven, led by ends Rosevelt Colvin and Chike Okeafor, whose speed might be a problem for USC’s inexperienced line. Right guard Travis Claridge is the only returning starter on the USC offensive line, and both tackles are very green. Brent McCaffrey, a sophomore, appeared in two games last season, and Matt Welch is a junior college transfer.

But Purdue isn’t sure what to expect, with a new coach at USC--and one who will call the plays himself, at that.

“With Hackett coming from the [Kansas City] Chiefs as their offensive coordinator, we’re guessing they’ll utilize some of the Chiefs’ offense,” Purdue Coach Joe Tiller said. “I find it hard to believe, with USC’s stable of running backs, that they’re not going to run the football. I can’t imagine a USC team that doesn’t pull the guards and run the sweep.”

Hackett calls his offense a modified version of the West Coast offense, and although USC will line up in the I formation at times, the Trojans will use multiple sets--including some with tailbacks Chad Morton and Malaefou MacKenzie on the field at the same time, with one as a flanker.

Until the offense settles in, USC’s defense will need to take charge.

“I think we definitely have to carry the load for a couple of games,” junior linebacker Chris Claiborne said. “We have to allow our quarterback and our line to build confidence.”

Purdue’s one-back offense isn’t completely foreign to USC, which faced a similar attack early last season in a 28-21 loss to Washington State.

“We played a pretty good game, but we ended up giving up 28 points because of one coverage breakdown,” Claiborne said. “Big plays, we’ve got to cut down on those.”

Cornerback Daylon McCutcheon, back for his final season, agreed.

“It’s just concentration,” he said. “We can’t have any loafers. If one guy loafs, it can turn a whole play around. But if you sprint back after someone makes a catch and strip the ball, not a lot of people are going to remember the catch.

“[Purdue] kind of reminds me of Washington State because they have formations with four or five wides. One difference is that they don’t have Ryan Leaf throwing the ball.

“Their quarterback hasn’t started before, and he’ll probably be a little jittery. We’re going to mix things up and try to get him to throw the ball to us.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Today’s Game:

USC vs. Purdue

11:30 a.m. at Coliseum TV: Ch. 7

Radio: XTRA (690)