Addition of Webster Will Give USC a Foursome at Tailback

So far this football season, there has been something for everybody in the USC backfield, especially at tailback. The Trojan Heisman Trophy candidate is out of position this season--he is a quarterback instead of the usual tailback--but the land of former winners Garrett, Simpson, White and Allen still is the land of opportunity.

When the Trojans play Oklahoma a week from Saturday, a new feature in the tailback model will be displayed on the grass field of the Coliseum, where for maybe the first time, the Trojans will have four on the floor.

This is going to be a major math problem for Coach Larry Smith: Four tailbacks, one ball. He will have to subtract three because only one will carry, at least at a time.

Against Oklahoma, Smith said Tuesday, it’s probably going to be Aaron Emanuel, who started at tailback Saturday for the first time since 1986, gained 121 yards in 17 carries and scored twice in a 24-20 victory at Stanford.

Even so, someone is gaining on Emanuel. It’s Steven Webster, the Pacific 10 Conference’s leading rusher a year ago when he had a sound left knee. He tore ligaments in it late in the season against UCLA and hasn’t played since, but Smith said Webster is finally ready to go again.

That makes for a crowd in the backfield. Emanuel, Ricky Ervins and Scott Lockwood are already there at tailback, and now Webster is, too. All of them are going to play some, Smith said, until one tailback proves the position should be his by himself.

“If somebody emerges and says, ‘Hey, it’s me,’ by gaining 120 or 150 yards a game, I wouldn’t hesitate to make him No. 1,” Smith said. “Right now, it’s a good healthy situation. It looks like Emanuel and (fullback) Leroy Holt are the two starters, but I can’t say for sure. Both played well enough (at Stanford) that they didn’t demote themselves.”

As for Emanuel, he is getting a second chance to run the football after sitting out last year, when he did indeed demote himself. Emanuel received probation after he was charged in an off-campus incident in May, 1987, and was found guilty of striking a USC woman athlete.

Emanuel was one of the nation’s most widely recruited high school running backs in 1984, but when he came back this season from his suspension, Smith had him listed as third-string fullback and fourth-string tailback. In two games, though, Emanuel has scored four touchdowns and the USC coaching staff named him the most valuable offensive player against Stanford.

“I really have to thank Coach (Clarence) Shelmon for what’s happened so far,” Emanuel said of the assistant in charge of the running backs. “He gave me confidence I didn’t even have myself when I came back. I’m still learning. I’m just glad I’ve gotten off to a fast start. It was real important for me and for the team to get off quick and have positive things happen.”

Emanuel stands 6 feet 2 inches and weighs 225 pounds, which makes him the biggest of the four USC tailbacks. He’s big enough, in fact, to play some fullback when Holt is out of the lineup. Smith said that each of the tailbacks brings his own unique style to the running attack. He seemed particularly pleased to have Webster available finally.

“Webster . . . there’s something he has that nobody else has. He gets to the line quicker than anyone we have,” Smith said. “He doesn’t pack the physical strength Aaron Emanuel does, he doesn’t have the little jolting moves that Ervins has and he isn’t the slasher that Lockwood is, but he’s definitely ready to play. I think you’ll definitely see him play against OU.”

The Trojans have a bye this week and that gives them longer than usual to prepare for the Sooners, who will play Arizona at Norman Saturday. That means the USC defense has more time to worry about stopping the wishbone, and the tailbacks have a few extra days to think about the hard-hitting Sooner defense.

“It’s a physical game, whether it’s OU or not,” Emanuel said. “From our standpoint, everyone tees off on us anyway. They all want a piece of us. We’re not going to overlook OU and make them any more than we should. We already know they’re great.

“But to be honest, I do think about it--OU is a physical team. So I do think about those guys coming in hard on me,” Emanuel said.

Perhaps he should. Smith said there is no comparison between Oklahoma and Boston College and Stanford.

“Bigger, stronger and faster,” Smith said.

Bigger, stronger and faster than USC?

“Oh, yeah, in every department,” Smith said.

Trojan Notes

For what it’s worth, USC is 21-7-1 after bye weeks. The Trojans’ record against Oklahoma is 3-2-1. . . . Wrapping up the Stanford game, Coach Larry Smith said USC didn’t execute very well. He counted 17 missed tackles as well as 15 missed offensive assignments, primarily among the backs, wide receivers and tight ends. “We were lucky to get out of there with our shirts,” said Smith, who missed no cliche by adding: “We came out of it alive” and “We dodged the bullet.”

Safety Cleveland Colter (ankle), safety Mark Carrier (pinched nerve), defensive tackle Tim Ryan (ankle) and guard Brent Parkinson (knee) are all expected to play against Oklahoma, Smith said. Parkinson will not start, but could play half the game, Smith said. . . . Smith hinted that it would be wise to expect USC to throw against the Sooners. “I wouldn’t say we would just line up and run the ball at them.” he said.

How to defend against the wishbone? Smith said he isn’t sure, but he does know that USC must stop the first option, the fullback dive, which he said UCLA failed to do in 1986 when Oklahoma won, 38-3. . . . Smith celebrated his 49th birthday Monday. His wife, Cheryl, put 49 candles on his cake. “There was no way I could get them in one puff,” he said.