MCNOWN: 4 STRAIGHT OVER RIVAL?

Byline: Jon Wilner Daily News Staff Writer

Rodney Peete will play today in the Rose Bowl. The former USC quarterback will come dressed like Cade McNown, he will look like Cade McNown, and he will sling the ball left-handed, just like Cade McNown. But don't be fooled.

When USC and UCLA collide for the 68th time today with a winning streak, a losing streak and the Fiesta Bowl at stake, Peete's legacy will live within the redheaded quarterback wearing No. 18 in powder blue.

Their personas and performances have merged in memory as the years recede. One wore red, the other wears blue, but they are one in the same. Just as Peete killed the Bruins in 1985, '87 and '88, just as he overcame the measles, slayed Troy Aikman twice and kept the Bruins from two Rose Bowls, so has McNown, a senior, killed the Trojans.

He will be the X factor today as he was in 1995, with an improbable third-down run, and in 1996, with a fabulous fourth quarter, and in 1997, with an impossible third-and-17 pass that set up the winning touchdown.

USC has not solved McNown just as UCLA - with its future Hall of Fame quarterback and NFL-heavy roster - had no answer for Peete a decade ago. As a freshman, Peete accounted for both of USC's touchdowns in a 17-13 win. In his final two games, Peete completed 39 of 65 passes for 493 yards and three touchdowns. He beat the Bruins not only with his arm, but with his head and his legs.

``Rodney was a major, major factor in their wins,'' longtime UCLA assistant Bob Field said. ``I remember in 1987, we were ahead 10-0 and they were inside our 10 with about 10 seconds left in the half.

``He threw a pass that Eric Turner intercepted. (Turner) was 1-yard deep and just took off. Peete ran him down all the way at the (11). Saved a touchdown. That was a huge play in the game.''

McNown was reared in Hollister, a few miles south of San Jose, and spent his senior year in the Portland suburb of West Linn. He had no UCLA or USC blood and no allegiance when he arrived in Westwood in 1995. But it did not take long for him to learn the way of the land.

``From the moment I showed up, people talked about USC,'' he said. ``You get brainwashed. It's not an unhealthy thing. It's a fun rivalry. . . . It's a healthy hate.''

He did not grow up playing Pop Warner against future Trojans and he did not attend high school with them. That detachment may be his greatest asset: He brings fierce desire to the annual game, but it does not consume him. He does not worry about going home for the summer and catching hell from Trojans at the mall.

``There are three kinds of players in this game,'' UCLA center Shawn Stuart said. ``There are guys who get really nervous, guys who stay calm and guys who play for fun. Cade's never nervous. Everything about him is calm, and that's a big advantage when there's so much riding on the outcome and so many expectations.''

McNown's numbers against USC are not overwhelming: 59 percent completions, 700 yards, four touchdowns, three interceptions. But like Peete, his performance is defined by plays, not statistics, and one of his most memorable came not on the field but on the sideline - in the third quarter of the 1995 game, after he had thrown his second interception.

As offensive coordinator Bob Toledo berated him, McNown spotted then-coach Terry Donahue looming nearby. McNown, a freshman, became convinced Donahue was going to yank him from the game. He charged at Donahue and grabbed his coach by the head, each hand becoming a clamp over Donahue's ears.

``I CAN GET THIS DONE!'' McNown screamed.

Donahue, stunned, had no intention of changing quarterbacks.

``I CAN GET THIS DONE!'' McNown screamed again.

His face was bright red, his grip unrelenting, his green eyes wide and wild.

``I CAN GET THIS DONE!''

McNown cooled down, stayed in the game and later made the play that would define his career: two minutes left, UCLA clutching a 24-20 lead and facing third-and-13 from its own 29. A punt would give USC good field position and plenty of time.

Toledo called a quarterback keeper from the shotgun formation. McNown grabbed the snap, then charged around right end. He cut upfield, burst through All-American Willie McGinest's arm tackle as if he'd done it all his life, and weaved his way for 21 yards.

First down, UCLA. Game over.

``When Cade ran that quarterback keeper past McGinest,'' Donahue said, ``I said to myself, `Goodness, gracious, that's big time.' ''

McNown was at his best in the watershed 1996 game, calmly completing 16 of 25 passes for 259 yards in the second half and leading the Bruins to 17 points in the final six minutes of regulation. He threw for one touchdown and ran for two, but his best play was a fourth-down pass to tight end Mike Grieb that kept a last-minute touchdown drive alive.

``The thing about Cade I'm proud of is every game you get a great effort out of him,'' offensive coordinator Al Borges said. ``But the past three years, you've gotten his best effort in the USC game.''

Last year, McNown burned USC with his legs in the first half and his arm in the second. Tied 21-21 in the third quarter, McNown glared at third-and-17 from the UCLA 18. He eluded a tackler, then hit Danny Farmer for 36 yards. Later in the drive, he found Grieb for a 38-yard touchdown that became the winning score.

Three games, three plays and three victories.

Today, McNown attempts to become the first quarterback in city series history to win four.

``What it gets back to,'' Toledo said, ``is great players make great plays in big games.''

It's tough to com-Peete with that.

McNIFICENT

UCLA quarterback Cade McNown is 3-0 against USC. Here's a look at his statistics:

Year Comp. Att. Yds. TDs INTs

1995 8 17 131 0 2

1996 29 47 356 1 1

1997 15 24 213 3 0

KEYS TO WINNING FOR UCLA

1. No turnovers: The Trojans are No. 4 in the Pacific-10 in scoring (30 points per game) but ninth in yards (351.1). The discrepancy results from their defense, which has returned five interceptions for touchdowns.

2. Contain Morton and Soward: The Bruins must eliminate big plays by USC tailback Chad Morton and flanker R. Jay Soward - who has 441 receiving yards in two games against UCLA - and force the quick-striking Trojans to move in small pieces, not big chunks.

3. Ground game: UCLA has outrushed USC 1,300 yards to 813 during its seven-game winning streak and will try to do the same today.

4. Solid special teams: USC has blocked eight kicks this season, which translates into touchdowns and field position.

5) Pressure Palmer: UCLA must pressure Carson Palmer and force him to make hurried decisions. USC has allowed 30 sacks, ninth in the league.

- Jon Wilner

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos, 2 Boxes

PHOTO (1--Color) UCLA quarterback Cade McNown, above, has tormented USC as ex-Trojan Rodney Peete once dominated the Bruins.

Ben Margot/Associated Press

(2--Color) McNOWN

BOX: (1) McNIFICENT (see text)

(2) KEYS TO WINNING FOR UCLA (see text)