1976 GAME RATES AS ONE OF GREATEST : SECOND-RANKED UCLA, NO. 3 USC MET IN MEMORABLE SERIES SHOWDOWN.Byline: Jon Wilner Daily News Staff Writer After it was over, after he had grabbed the fumble, raced into the end zone and sparked his USC Trojans
UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX in 1976 - only then did Trojans safety Dennis Thurman Dennis Thurman (born April 13, 1956 in Los Angeles, California) is a retired American football cornerback in the NFL. Professional career Thurman played for the Dallas Cowboys between 1978 and 1985 and in 1986 played for the St. Louis Cardinals. consider the strange significance of it all. ``It was really weird, because the same thing happened to me in the '74 UCLA game,'' said Thurman, now the USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. secondary coach. ``One fumble was in the second quarter, one in the fourth. They happened two years apart. It was like deja vu See DjVu. . I thought, `Why did this happen to me?' ``I grew up in Santa Monica Santa Monica (săn`tə mŏn`ĭkə), city (1990 pop. 86,905), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on Santa Monica Bay; inc. 1886. Tourism and retailing are important, and the city has motion-picture, biotechnology, and software industries. , and for me it came down to USC or UCLA. I've always wondered if I'd have gone to UCLA, would it have happened in reverse? Would I have scored for UCLA? And the thing is, the ball somehow came right to me in the air. If it had hit the ground, I wouldn't have been able to return it.'' Thurman's fumble return, 20 years ago today, is the lasting image of one of the most significant USC-UCLA games ever. While UCLA's Bob Toledo Bob Toledo (born March 4, 1946, in San Jose, California) is an American football coach, recently hired as head coach at Tulane University. He is best-known as the thirteenth head coach at UCLA. makes his city series head-coaching debut on Saturday at the Rose Bowl, his first USC-UCLA experience came in the 1976 game, as Thurman's secondary coach. But there's more: Toledo's predecessor, Terry Donahue Terry Donahue (born June 24, 1944 in Los Angeles, California) is a former college football coach and NFL general manager, and a current football analyst. Player Terry graduated from Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, California. Donahue played defensive line at UCLA. , made his city series debut in the 1976 game, as did Toledo's former boss and current counterpart, USC's John Robinson Several notable individuals have been named John Robinson: Politicians
``I don't remember much about it,'' Toledo said. ``I knew it was big, but I didn't realize how big until I got on that sideline.'' Based strictly on the rankings - UCLA was No. 2; USC was No. 3 - it was the most important cross-town showdown of the past 30 years and the only time in history that both teams have been ranked in the top three nationally at time of kickoff. UCLA had opened the season, and Donahue's career, with an upset victory at No. 3 Arizona State. The Bruins stumbled only once, a 10-10 tie at Ohio State in early October, and pummelled Pacific-8 opposition throughout the season. USC's opener - a stunning loss at Missouri - also established a season-long tone: Robinson said his players ``turned mean'' after the defeat. Combined with typical Troy talent, they, too, crushed everyone in sight. The Bruins entered the game averaging 37.1 points per game. USC averaged 36.8. USC had Ricky Bell There are several people named Ricky Bell:
Powell had a collegiate performance at the University of Southern California that got him elected into the College Football and Thurman. UCLA had Wendell Tyler Wendell Avery Tyler (born May 20, 1955 in Shreveport, Louisiana), was a former professional American football player who was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the 3rd round of the 1977 NFL Draft. A 5'10", 205 lbs. , Oscar Edwards and Jerry Robinson. UCLA's quarterback was Jeff Dankworth. USC's was Vince Evans - the same Vince Evans whose 14 straight incompletions in the '75 game prompted Sports Illustrated to write: ``Evans couldn't throw a football into the bottom of the Grand Canyon if he was standing on the edge.'' But on the same day as Thurman's fumble, Evans would get his revenge. ``Before I (became head coach), I saw a bumper sticker that said, `Save USC football. Shoot Vince Evans,' '' Robinson said. ``The other day I saw one that had crossed out Vince Evans and put my name there.'' It was 80 degrees at kickoff, with a slight haze and negligible wind. There were 90,519 in the Coliseum stands, with UCLA in its home blue and USC in its home cardinal. A win or tie would have sent the Bruins (9-0-1) to the Rose Bowl. USC (8-1) needed a victory to reach Pasadena. Both teams considered the national title at stake, since a loss by No. 1 Pittsburgh would have elevated the winner to the top spot. ``The atmosphere was as electric as any I've ever played in,'' said Thurman, who won a national title at USC in '74 and spent eight seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. ``If you didn't feel it, you weren't alive. That game had everything. It was the type of thing where if you had a death in the family For the Batman graphic novel/storyline, see . A Death in the Family is an autobiographical novel by author James Agee, set in LaFollette, Tennessee. He began writing it in 1948, but it was not quite complete when he died in 1955. , it would have been hard to miss that game.'' Despite the high-powered offenses - UCLA used a veer; USC's power-I was in glory - the defenses dominated from the opening kickoff. Finally, four minutes into the second quarter and with tension mounting, Dankworth botched botch tr.v. botched, botch·ing, botch·es 1. To ruin through clumsiness. 2. To make or perform clumsily; bungle. 3. To repair or mend clumsily. n. 1. a handoff to Theotis Brown on a dive into the line. Dankworth had been hit hard on the previous play and, still wobbly, delivered the ball lower than usual. ``It was a poor exchange,'' Brown said after the game. ``I never got it tucked away, and like he seemed to be all afternoon, Dennis was at the right place at the right time.'' The Trojans were in ``cover 2'' defense, in which Thurman was positioned 10 yards from the line of scrimmage line of scrimmage n. pl. lines of scrimmage Football Either of two imaginary lines extending across the field parallel to the goal line at the ends of the ball as it rests prior to being snapped and at which each team lines up for . He recalls Brown gaining a few yards before someone grabbed his right arm, causing the ball to squirt loose. ``It all happened so fast,'' Thurman said. ``But I remember the tension left our sideline after the touchdown. It was like we all took a look at the scoreboard and said, `OK, let's play.' It gave us a margin for error and put more pressure on them.'' So did the USC defense. The Bruins did not enter USC territory in the second or third quarters. Averaging 361 yards rushing a game coming in, UCLA gained just 140 against the Trojans. But USC did not grab control until the fourth quarter, when Bell scored from the 1 and Evans, fittingly, secured victory with a 36-yard quarterback draw. ``He ran through the whole team like it was a movie,'' Robinson said. ``Then he ran up the tunnel, and when he came back I remember hugging him. He was reviled by everybody and he had a great season.'' For Thurman, the fumble recovery remains one of his greatest moments. ``The play I get asked about the most is The Catch (Joe Montana to Dwight Clark), because I was on the other sideline and that whole drive was epic,'' he said. ``But after that, it's The Fumble.'' The rookies John Robinson and Terry Donahue made their city series debuts in 1976. Bob Toledo makes his today. The Daily News Online The Big Game: USC vs. UCLA Win tickets to Saturday's game by entering our online Parody Fight Song contest. Deadline is noon Friday. Join the interactive debate over who's better, Trojans or Bruins, on the USC vs. UCLA message board. Get complete coverage of both teams' preparations for the game on our online Sports Page. The Daily News Online is part of America Online's Digital City Los Angeles. Go to AOL (A division of Time Warner, Inc., New York, NY, www.aol.com) The world's largest online information service with access to the Internet, e-mail, chat rooms and a variety of databases and services. keyword: Daily News. CAPTION(S): 5 Photos, 2 Boxes Photo: (1) DONAHUE (2) ROBINSON (3) TOLEDO (4) Trojans quarterback Vince Evans got his revenge in USC's 1976 victory. (5) Ricky Bell, center, scored on a 1-yard run in the fourth quarter to help USC to victory in the memorable 1976 cross-town game. USC Sports Information Box: (1) THE ROOKIES (see text) (2) DAILY NEWS ONLINE (see text) |
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