As Toppled Bruins Know All Too Well . . . : When No. 1 Falls, the Dominoes Drop Into Place : Smith Takes It All in Stride as Trojans Step Up
As expected, USC moved up from third place to second in the wire-service poll rankings Monday behind top-ranked Notre Dame.
With UCLA, previously the top-ranked team, losing to Washington State, 34-30, Saturday at the Rose Bowl, it was almost automatic that the Trojans and the Irish would climb one notch--and they did.
However, USC Coach Larry Smith said Monday in essence that itâs still business as usual for his team despite its improved national stature.
âIt hasnât changed our thinking one bit,â Smith said. âI keep saying this, but rankings are only until the next week, just like youâre only as good as how you played the last game and the next game.
âWeâre not concerned either way about rankings, weâre not disappointed and weâre not running around all jubilant because we moved up a notch. Thatâs where we are, so, hey, letâs focus on the next game and not farther.â
In both the Associated Press and United Press International polls, the top four are Notre Dame, USC, Miami and West Virginia.
Smith, who votes in the UPI poll, wouldnât disclose his ballot.
Asked whether he believed that his Trojans (7-0) should be ranked ahead of Notre Dame (8-0), Smith said:
âIâm not even worried about that. I know we play the team in front (Notre Dame on Nov. 26) and another team (UCLA on Nov. 19) that should be up there, too, so it will be decided on the field anyway.
âSo my sitting around worrying, or stewing about it, or being concerned about it wonât help one way or another, and Iâm not anyway. We just have to keep ourselves in a position that it (a final top ranking) will all come about.â
The ranking is USCâs highest since it was placed No. 2 on Nov. 4, 1981.
Since the inception of the AP poll in 1936, Notre Dame has won 7 national championships, more than any other school in the country. USC claims five national championships by the wire-service polls, the last in 1978. Other methods of selection honored the Trojans as the nationâs No. 1 team in 1928, 1931 and 1932.
USC has Pacific 10 games remaining with California here Saturday and at Arizona State Nov. 12, before the season-ending games with UCLA and Notre Dame.
Smith was asked if he would prefer that the Bruins were still ahead of the Trojans in the rankings as a motivational tool.
âI donât think at this stage it makes any difference where anybody is,â he said. âWeâre both going to try to beat each otherâs brains out anyway. Itâs an intense rivalry. Both teams could be 0-10 or 10-0 and it doesnât make any difference as to whoâs where.â
As for added pressure that a No. 2 ranking might have on USC, Smith added:
âI donât think it keeps any more pressure on us. As for keeping the players focused, thatâs my job. I hope weâre a mature and intelligent enough football team to realize weâre going to play a team Saturday in Cal that has plenty of firepower to beat us, or anybody else in the conference both on offense and defense.
Smith said it isnât necessary to remind his team that Washington State, a 21-point underdog, upset UCLA.
âThey read the papers and have watched television and listened to radio. I donât think I have to bring it up,â he said. âI know theyâre looking at it (UCLAâs loss) and saying, âI donât want that to happen to us.â
âThereâs a little fear motivation of the bear chasing you in the woods and, in this case, the bear is the bear. Itâs the Cal Bear.â
Trojan Notes
USC Athletic Director Mike McGee, a former football coach, said the only ranking to consider seriously is the final one. âIf you get too involved in rankings before the last one, it could come back and bite you,â he said. . . . Three area sportswriters participated in the Associated Press poll: Steve Grimley of the Orange County Register, Doug Spoon of the San Gabriel Valley Tribune and Ed Zieralski of the San Diego Tribune. All three voted for Notre Dame in the top spot with USC second. Grimley said he has had Notre Dame top-ranked since it beat Miami Oct. 15. . . . USC wide receiver Erik Affholter said the Trojans are in a good situation in the sense that they have the opportunity to play the No. 1 team as well as meeting a prestigious team such as UCLA. âWe control our own destiny,â he said. . . . Notre Dame most likely will come into the USC game top-ranked because it will be substantially favored to beat Rice and Penn State.
Go beyond the scoreboard
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