American college football season
The 1978 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California in the 1978 NCAA Division I-A football season . Following the season, the Trojans were crowned national champions according to the Coaches Poll . While Alabama claimed the AP Poll title because it had defeated top-ranked Penn State in the Sugar Bowl , the Trojans felt they deserved the title since they had defeated Alabama and Notre Dame during the regular season, and then Michigan in the Rose Bowl .[1] Both USC and Alabama ended their seasons with a single loss.
This would be the last national championship won by the Trojans until 2003 .
Schedule
Date Opponent Rank Site Result Attendance Source September 09 Texas Tech No. 9 W 17–950,321
September 16 at Oregon No. 8 W 37–1031,000
September 23 at No. 1 Alabama * No. 7 W 24–1477,313 [2]
September 29 Michigan State * No. 3 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA W 30–965,319
October 14 at Arizona State No. 2 L 7–2070,138
October 21 Oregon State No. 7 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA W 38–753,734
October 28 California No. 6 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA W 42–1756,954
November 4 at Stanford No. 6 W 13–784,084
November 11 No. 19 Washington No. 5 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA W 28–1054,071
November 18 at No. 14 UCLA No. 5 W 17–1090,387
November 25 No. 8 Notre Dame * No. 3 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA (rivalry ) W 27–2584,256
December 2 at Hawaii * No. 3 W 21–548,767
January 1, 1979 vs. No. 5 Michigan * No. 3 W 17–10105,629 [3] [4]
*Non-conference game HomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
Personnel
1978 USC Trojans football team roster
Players
Coaches
Offense
Defense
Special teams
Pos.
#
Name
Class
K
Frank Jordan
P
Marty King
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
Injured
Redshirt
Game summaries
Notre Dame
1
2 3 4 Total
Notre Dame
3
0 3 19
25
• USC
6
11 7 3
27
Scoring summary 1 USC Williams 50-yard pass from McDonald (kick failed) USC 6–0
1 ND Unis 47-yard field goal USC 6–3
2 USC Garcia 35-yard pass from McDonald (McDonald to Hunter pass) USC 14–3
2 USC Jordan 39-yard field goal USC 17–3
3 ND Unis 26-yard field goal USC 17–6
3 7:38 USC White 1-yard run (Jordan kick) USC 24–6
4 12:26 ND Haines 57-yard pass from Montana (pass failed) USC 24–12
4 3:01 ND Buchanan 1-yard run (Unis kick) USC 24–19
4 0:46 ND Holohan 2-yard pass from Montana (pass failed) ND 25–24
4 0:02 USC Jordan 37-yard field goal USC 27–25
[5]
Rose Bowl
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
MICH – Gregg Willner 36-yard field goal. USC 7–3. Drive:
USC – Charles White 3-yard run (Frank Jordan kick). USC 14–3. Drive:
USC – Frank Jordan 35-yard field goal. USC 17–3. Drive:
Third quarter
MICH – R. Smith 44-yard pass from Rick Leach (Gregg Willner kick). USC 17–10. Drive:
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
MICH – Roosevelt Smith – 4 receptions, 58 yards, TD
USC – Dan Garcia – 1 reception, 12 yards
1978 Trojans in the NFL
All 22 starters played in the NFL.[6]
Awards and honors
Charles White: Heisman trophy, Maxwell Award, Walter Camp Award, UPI Player of the Year
References
^ "USC Claims Title". The Evening Sun . Baltimore, Maryland . January 2, 1979. p. C7. Retrieved May 13, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
^ "USC has No. 1 'Bama on the run, 24–14". Los Angeles Times . September 24, 1978. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com .
^ Mal Florence (January 2, 1979). "USC Wins Rose Bowl but the Replay's a Tie: White Scores (or Did He?) as Trojans Beat Michigan, 17-10". Los Angeles Times . pp. III-1, III-10 – via Newspapers.com .
^ Tom Henderson (January 2, 1979). "Phantom TD helps Southern Cal -- Michigan's Roses wilt again, 17-10". Detroit Free Press . pp. 1D, 5D – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Trojans' Late Field Goal Stymies Irish Comeback." Palm Beach Post. 1978 Nov 26.
^ Sikahema, Vai (March 25, 2011). "Vai's View: What's in a name? Bobby Salazar knows". Deseret News . Retrieved February 13, 2019 .
Venues Bowls & rivalries Culture & lore People Seasons National championship seasons in bold
1936–1949 1950s 1960s
1960 : Minnesota (AP, Coaches, NFF ) / Ole Miss (FWAA)
1961 : Alabama (AP, Coaches, NFF) / Ohio State (FWAA)
1962 : USC
1963 : Texas
1964 : Alabama (AP, Coaches) / Arkansas (FWAA) / Notre Dame (NFF)
1965 : Alabama (AP, FWAA) / Michigan State (Coaches, FWAA, NFF)
1966 : Notre Dame (AP, Coaches, FWAA, NFF) / Michigan State (NFF)
1967 : USC
1968 : Ohio State
1969 : Texas
1970s 1980–1991
Pacific Coast AAWU Pacific-8 Pacific-10 Pac-12 National championships in bold