1976_USC_Trojans_football_team
1976 USC Trojans football team
American college football season
The 1976 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California (USC) in the 1976 NCAA Division I football season. In their first year under head coach John Robinson, the Trojans compiled an 11–1 record (7–0 against conference opponents), won the Pacific-8 Conference (Pac-8) championship, defeated Michigan in the 1977 Rose Bowl, and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 386 to 139.[1] The team was ranked #2 in both the final AP Poll and the final UPI Coaches Poll.
Quick Facts USC Trojans football, National champion (multiple selectors)Pac-8 championRose Bowl champion ...
| 1976 USC Trojans football | |
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National champion (multiple selectors) Pac-8 champion Rose Bowl champion | |
| Conference | Pacific-8 Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 2 |
| AP | No. 2 |
| Record | 11–1 (7–0 Pac-8) |
| Head coach |
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| Captain | Ricky Bell Vince Evans Eric Williams |
| Home stadium | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum |
Seasons | |
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More information Conf, Overall ...
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 2 USC $ | 7 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 11 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 15 UCLA | 6 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 2 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stanford | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| California | 3 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington | 3 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington State | 2 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oregon | 1 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oregon State | 1 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 10 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Quarterback Vince Evans led the team in passing, completing 95 of 177 passes for 1,440 yards with ten touchdowns and six interceptions. Ricky Bell led the team in rushing with 280 carries for 1,433 yards and 14 touchdowns. Shelton Diggs led the team in receiving with 37 catches for 655 yards and eight touchdowns.[2]
The team was named national champion by Berryman, Billingsley MOV, DeVold, Dunkel, Football Research, and Matthews, all NCAA-designated major selectors.[3]: 114
More information Date, Opponent ...
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
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| September 11 | Missouri* | No. 8 | L 25–46 | 49,535 | ||
| September 18 | at Oregon | W 53–0 | 40,600 | |||
| September 25 | at Purdue* | No. 19 | W 31–13 | 65,425 | ||
| October 2 | Iowa* | No. 13 |
| W 55–0 | 55,518 | |
| October 9 | at Washington State | No. 11 | W 23–14 | 37,268 | ||
| October 23 | Oregon State | No. 7 |
| W 56–0 | 53,216 | |
| October 30 | California | No. 4 |
| W 20–6 | 60,323 | |
| November 6 | at Stanford | No. 4 | W 48–24 | 76,500 | ||
| November 13 | Washington | No. 3 |
| W 20–3 | 49,264 | |
| November 20 | vs. No. 2 UCLA | No. 3 |
| ABC | W 24–14 | 90,519 |
| November 27 | No. 13 Notre Dame* | No. 3 |
| ABC | W 17–13 | 76,561 |
| January 1, 1977 | vs. No. 2 Michigan* | No. 3 | NBC | W 14–6 | 106,182 | |
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More information Players, Coaches ...
| 1976 USC Trojans football team roster | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Offense
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Defense
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Special teams
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Roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Missouri
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At Oregon
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At Purdue
More information Game information ...
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#19 USC Trojans (1–1) at Purdue Boilermakers (1–1)
Iowa
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At Washington State
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#11 USC Trojans (3–1) at Washington State Cougars (1–3)
at Kingdome, Seattle, Washington
- Date: October 9
- Game weather: Indoors (dome)
- Game attendance: 37,268
- [6]
Oregon State
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California
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At Stanford
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Washington
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Vs. UCLA
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Notre Dame
More information Game information ...
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#13 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (8–2) at #3 USC Trojans (9–1)
at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California
- Date: November 27
- Game attendance: 76,561
- TV: ABC
- Recap/Box
Ricky Bell was held to 75 yards on 21 carries but USC's passing game thrived with Vince Evans completing six of his 14 passes for 106 yards with Randy Simmrin hauling in six passes for 121 yards and Evans' touchdown pass.
Rose Bowl (vs Michigan)
| This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (January 2021) |
- "Southern California Yearly Results (1975-1979)". College Football Data Warehouse. David DeLassus. Archived from the original on July 22, 2015. Retrieved July 20, 2015.
- "1976 Southern California Trojans Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
- 2018 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records (PDF). Indianapolis: National Collegiate Athletic Association. August 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
- Eugene Register-Guard. 1976 Sep 26. Retrieved 2018-Sep-23.
- "U.S.C. Crushes Purdue 31-13; Bell 177 yards." New York Times. 1976 Sep 26. Retrieved 2021-Jan-05.
- "Bell runs for 346 as USC clips Cougars." Eugene Register-Guard. 1976 OCt 10. Retrieved 2018-Dec-29.
- "Trojans Trip Up Error-Prone Irish". Ocala Star-Banner. November 28, 1976. Retrieved November 22, 2014.
- Game program: USC vs. Washington State at Seattle – October 9, 1976