SPEEDY SOWARD SPRINTS TO SPOTLIGHT.

Byline: Eric Noland Daily News Staff Writer

Throughout his first dozen games at USC, he was considered fairly one-dimensional, perhaps bearing an unwelcome label in the rough-and-tumble sport of football: track guy.

R. Jay Soward was the deep threat, with no one really expecting him to deviate from the shortest distance between two points.

The sophomore wide receiver has begun to broaden his game lately, however, and for the Trojans, this development accelerated at a fortuitous time Saturday night.

With USC facing the ignominy of an upset loss to Nevada-Las Vegas at the Coliseum, Soward produced two long-range touchdown pass receptions in the fourth quarter to provide the spark in the Trojans' 35-21 victory.

``(Quarterback) John Fox is getting to be smart: He's looking for that guy,'' a wrung-out coach John Robinson said when it was over.

Soward turned a midrange seam pattern into the 44-yard touchdown that tied the game at 21-21 with 12 minutes left, then put the game away by pulling in a 78-yard bomb about midway through the final quarter.

He finished with five catches for 167 yards and two touchdowns, and mixed among the game-breakers an impressive array of catches on hooks and hitches and out patterns.

``I'm learning to go play by play instead of trying to make the big play every time,'' said Soward, who credits assistant coach Mike Wilson, the former San Francisco 49ers receiver, for his dramatic progress. ``I'm working on being a possession receiver.''

Last year, Robinson said a few days ago, Soward was ``kind of a loose cannon. Running around. `Throw me a deep one!' ''

Soward caught 18 passes in limited duty as a true freshman last season - but he averaged an astounding 28.2 yards per catch. He rolled up 260 yards on only six catches in the UCLA game.

``It's like trying to tame a wild mustang,'' Robinson said. ``I have no idea what that means. He doesn't always know what he's doing, but he's so gifted.''

Soward, a slightly built sophomore from Rialto with booster rockets for legs, certainly demonstrated a great deal of polish at his position in this game. And the Trojans, with the words ``Memphis State'' catching in their constricted throats, were deeply grateful.

On the tying TD catch, Soward started up the left sideline, curled into the middle of the field to catch John Fox's pass at about the UNLV 25-yard line, then seemed to surprise the UNLV defense by retracing his steps to the sideline, then turning the corner.

``I saw the DB (defensive back) was right on my back,'' Soward said, ``and used my speed to get to the outside.

It was no contest thereafter, as the Runnin' Rebels chased in vain after the guy who ran a 10.34-second 100 meters as state finalist in high school.

On the subsequent touchdown, which put USC in the lead to stay at 28-21, Soward ran the same pattern on the other side of the field but broke upfield, he said, when Mike Bastianelli drew the free safety out of the middle. Soward sprinted into the clear and hauled in Fox's heave.

``He's a great athlete,'' Fox said. ``Amazing speed. Amazing quickness. He sets up the other guys, too.

``Any of our receivers could have made those same catches.'' Fox caught himself and added, ``But I'm not sure (about the run) after the catch.''

Soward obviously is learning that by refining his efforts on the shorter passes, he can increase his opportunities to turn them into big ones.