Hopkins Is USC’s Old Man in Secondary : Trojans: Veteran status comes in one start for player who wanted to be another Marcus Allen.

The most seasoned player in USC’s inexperienced secondary is a converted tailback who, upon arriving in Los Angeles three years ago, hoped to emerge as the next Marcus Allen.

Marcus Hopkins came from the same school that produced the former Heisman Trophy winner, running for 1,261 yards as a senior at Lincoln High in San Diego.

At USC, he ran for two.

A knee injury cut short his freshman season after he had only four carries, and the next spring he was moved to flanker. Early in his sophomore season, he was moved to defensive back.

As a senior, he is the Trojans’ No. 1 strong safety and leader of a defensive backfield that has been rebuilt almost from scratch since last January.

Bobby April, who coaches the Trojans’ secondary, wishes he could have had Hopkins sooner.

“If I was the only guy deciding, I can tell you where he would have been playing,” April said. “But I’m not saying it was a mistake to have him on offense because he was a hell of a running back.

“I still think that if he had stayed at tailback, and this was his fourth year, he’d be a great tailback.”

At one time, the other Trojan coaches thought so, too.

In his first game at USC, Hopkins was called upon before fellow freshmen Ricky Ervins and Scott Lockwood. But in a nationally televised 27-13 loss to Michigan State in Coach Larry Smith’s Trojan debut, Hopkins lost a fumble.

The next week, he fell to the bottom of the depth chart. He carried the ball only twice more before injuring his left knee.

He spent the next two seasons as a reserve safety. Used mainly on special teams as a sophomore, Hopkins played extensively last season in relief of Cleveland Colter, an All-American two years ago.

Hopkins has started only one game at USC, but that’s one more than all of the Trojans’ other defensive backs, and it’s no reason to think that he won’t make a major impact as a senior, April said.

“I’ll go way out on a limb--because he hasn’t really shown what he can do, but the guy could end up being another first-round draft pick,” April said.

Said Chris Allen, the Trojans’ defensive coordinator: “He’s as good as anybody we’ve ever had at that position. He was every bit as good as Colter last year.”

The 6-foot, 200-pound Hopkins doesn’t disagree.

“I’m a total package,” he said when asked to describe himself as a defender. “I can hit you, if that’s what you need. But I’m fast and quick enough to cover many Pac-10 receivers. I’m aggressive. Sometimes, I think I’m too aggressive. That’s something I need to work on.”

Orphaned early in life, Hopkins and his older brother, Marshall, were raised by their grandparents, Roy and Gladys Whetstone.

As a youngster, he lived across the street from Lincoln High, where he spent many afternoons and most of his Friday nights.

“Instead of going to a party, you’d go to the Lincoln football game,” he said. “And I really got caught up in it. Lincoln was dominant. When Marcus was there, nobody could touch them.”

Hopkins’ reference was to Allen, but it could have been to himself.

After leading Lincoln to the San Diego Section 2-A championship as a senior, Hopkins made recruiting trips to USC, UCLA, Washington, Arizona State and Illinois.

Why did he choose USC?

“Tailback,” he said. “USC and Marcus Allen. I was going to play off that. Same high school, basically the same position.”

Hopkins, though, doesn’t regret his move to the secondary.

“I like the pressure,” he said. “We’re the last means of defense. We always play with our backs to the wall. If we don’t do the job, it’s a touchdown. And that pressure--I love it, man.

“I love knowing that if I don’t get it done, it’s not going to get done. I like all aspects of it. I like covering receivers and I love to hit. And being a defensive back, you have momentum. I’m back 10 yards and if I see the play correctly, I can come with all I have. There’s nothing like it.”

Not surprisingly, Hopkins said he relishes his role as the leader of the secondary and feels “totally responsible” for its success or failure this season.

“I feel, if it’s going to be, it’s up to me,” he said. “Not totally up to me, but it’s up to me to make something happen. If something’s going wrong in the secondary, it’s up to me to come up with a big play.”

Unlike many observers who believe that the Trojans may be vulnerable in the secondary because of their inexperience, Hopkins foresees few problems.

“The only difference between our secondary and Trojan secondaries of the past is game experience,” he said. “I think (in terms of) athletic ability, we match up pretty well with any of the Trojan secondaries of the past.”

“Everyone doubts us, but it’s (because of) our youth, not our ability. I certainly hope it’s that, because if they doubt our ability, they’re sadly mistaken and they’ll be in for a shock.”

Hopkins was shocked when USC officials told him that their petition to grant him an extra year of eligibility was denied by the Pacific 10 Conference because he played in more than the allowable number of games as a freshman.

Although listed as a junior in the Trojans’ media guide, Hopkins will use up his eligibility this season.

“I wish they would have told me sooner,” he said. “What I was going to do in two years, I’ve got to do in one.”

That may be time enough.

“I feel bad that he’s going into his senior year and he hasn’t achieved what he has the ability to (achieve),” April said. “And yet I’m really happy for him because we can anticipate some greatness out of him this year.”