Former USC Coaches Rate Raveling

Although George Raveling has been unsuccessful at USC, his two immediate predecessors both had success there.

Bob Boyd, coach from 1967-79, compiled a 216-131 record. The Trojans went to the National Collegiate Athletic Assn. tournament in Boyd’s final season.

Boyd is surprised that Raveling has floundered at USC.

“I’ll tell you this with as much honesty as I want to be quoted with,” said Boyd, now coaching at Riverside City College. “I’m surprised in George’s time that the winning and losing has been what it is. I thought we would do better.”

Stan Morrison, Boyd’s successor, compiled a 103-95 record in seven seasons. USC went to the NCAA playoffs twice and tied for a Pacific 10 Conference title in 1985.

Morrison, now athletic director at UC Santa Barbara, thinks Raveling is doing a good job.

“He works hard at it,” Morrison said. “He’s just been unlucky.”

Morrison said that USC’s biggest obstacle is the lack of an on-campus arena. USC plays at the Sports Arena, a public facility the Trojans share with the Clippers of the National Basketball Assn.

“The Sports Arena might as well be 20 miles away,” Morrison said. “When schools recruit against USC, they bring that up as negative recruiting.”

Boyd took the blame for failing to push for an on-campus arena.

“I made a mistake in the early 1970s when we had it going and were ranked No. 1 in both polls. I could have gone to Dr. (Norman) Topping (then USC president) and said, ‘We need a gym on campus,’ and we would have gotten it.”