BRAGGING RITE : UCLA vs. USC / SATURDAY, AT ROSE BOWL : Wellman: Big Only in Talent

An avid golfer, USC flanker Gary Wellman plays frequently at North Ranch Country Club in Westlake Village, where UCLA Coach Terry Donahue lives in a home alongside the course.

A few times, Wellman has told friends, he has left calling cards for Donahue, chipping golf balls onto the coach’s yard.

Perhaps it is a reminder to Donahue not to forget or overlook Wellman, who was not heavily recruited by the Bruins out of Westlake High.

It seems doubtful, however, that Donahue wouldn’t remember the 5-foot-9, 175-pound senior, and not just because Wellman has developed into one of USC’s all-time leading receivers.

Wellman’s controversial catch in the right side of the end zone gave the Trojans their only touchdown in a 10-10 tie with UCLA last season at the Coliseum.

Wellman has been asked countless times whether he landed inbounds after diving to catch the pass from quarterback Todd Marinovich, but even he couldn’t say for sure at the time.

“I had no clue,” he said. “I was watching the ball. I couldn’t tell where I was on the field. All I could do was catch it. No matter whether I’m in or out, if I don’t catch the ball, it’s not going to be good.”

That type of concentration, not to mention sprinter’s speed, has served him well at USC.

Until last week, when he caught one pass for four yards in a 56-7 victory over Oregon State, Wellman had a realistic chance to challenge Erik Affholter’s school record of 68 receptions in one season. He still is on pace to break Jeff Simmons’ school record of 973 receiving yards in a season and become the Trojans’ first 1,000-yard receiver.

With three games to play, including the 60th renewal of the USC-UCLA series Saturday at the Rose Bowl, Wellman has 47 receptions for 796 yards and four touchdowns. He ranks third in the Pacific 10 Conference in receptions and second in receiving yardage.

Used mainly as a big-play threat in his first three seasons, Wellman has played a more versatile role this year, doubling as a deep threat--his average of 16.9 yards a catch is the best among the Pac-10’s top receivers--and as a possession receiver.

As a result, he has caught more passes, enabling him to move into eighth place on USC’s all-time receiving list, four receptions behind Lynn Swann. If Wellman maintains his average of 4.7 catches a game, he’ll move into the top five.

“He’s become more of an all-around, all-purpose receiver,” said Mike Sanford, a former USC quarterback who coaches the Trojans’ wide receivers.

In seasons past, Sanford said, USC saw Wellman--and Wellman saw himself--as little more than a deep threat, a sprinter who could beat his man down the field.

“What he did was pretty limited,” Sanford said.

Maybe so, but it wasn’t bad. Wellman caught 21 passes for 377 yards as a sophomore and 23 passes for 427 yards and six touchdowns last season, averaging more than 18 yards a reception both years.

When he arrived on campus 4 1/2 years ago, Wellman thought he might never catch a pass.

He was an All-Southern Section player at Westlake, where he was used as a halfback and wingback in a Delaware wing-T offense. As a senior, he ran for 890 yards, averaging almost eight yards a carry, caught 35 passes for 512 yards and scored 23 touchdowns.

He was also fifth in the 100 meters at the State track and field meet.

Still, because of his height, college recruiters weren’t sure what to make of him. Colorado recruited him as a defensive back, USC as a wide receiver. California wanted him as either. UCLA wanted him as neither. The Bruins mostly ignored him, he said.

Wellman chose USC after making trips to Berkeley and Colorado. He canceled a trip to Arizona, where his brother, Glenn, was a cornerback under Coach Larry Smith.

Once at USC, though, Wellman thought he might be in over his head.

“I saw all the talent that was here, and I didn’t think I’d ever play,” Wellman said. “I didn’t think I’d made a mistake, but I thought, ‘Maybe I’ll get to play on special teams a couple years down the road.’ ”

What he lacked in confidence, Wellman made up in speed. His high school coach, George Contreras, wasn’t surprised that Wellman made it big at USC.

“He was very short, very fast and pretty darn good,” Contreras said of Wellman’s career at Westlake. “He was a great high school football player. Obviously, he was a very explosive kid. His speed was just unbelievable.”

In the 100 final at the State meet, Contreras said, Wellman was the leader after 40 yards.

“His size was always the big question,” Contreras said. “But that speed makes up for a lot.”

At USC, Wellman learned the nuances of receiving from former teammates John Jackson, the Trojans’ all-time leading receiver, and Affholter, who was Wellman’s teammate on a youth soccer team.

Sanford said Wellman made his greatest improvement in his ability to catch the ball.

“He’s worked really hard on that,” Sanford said.

Wellman believed that he had no choice--if he wanted to play.

“Playing with John and Erik--those guys rarely dropped a pass,” Wellman said. “It was almost this thing with us--you just don’t drop a pass. It became completely unacceptable to drop a football. That’s the attitude everybody took, and I picked it up, too.”

That approach came in handy last season against Washington State, where Wellman’s catch in the back of the end zone with four seconds left gave the Trojans a two-point conversion and an improbable 18-17 victory.

And it may help him make it in the NFL, Sanford said. Pro scouts will like what they see, Sanford said, when they evaluate Wellman in the Senior Bowl on Jan. 19 at Mobile, Ala.

“He has too many things going for him,” Sanford said. “No. 1, he has great speed, which they’re looking for. No. 2, he’ll catch anything. No. 3, he’s a tough guy, which I think is appealing to the NFL people. He got knocked out (late in the Arizona game) and he came in two plays later (and caught a touchdown pass).”

He may be short, but Wellman keeps coming up big.

His catch at Pullman, Wash., last season was the highlight of his career, he said, but Donahue undoubtedly has a clearer recollection of his catch against UCLA.

After seeing the replays, does Wellman believe he was inbounds? Did the officials make the correct call?

“I guess I’d have called it a touchdown,” Wellman said, smiling. “Actually, Erik told me this: ‘When you’re talking to USC people, you say you were in. When you’re talking to UCLA people, you say you were out.’ ”