They’re Back in the Running at USC : Football: McFadden and Fields will spend the final week of camp trying to win the starting job at tailback.

Nearly three decades have passed since an athlete from Roosevelt High in East Los Angeles, Mike Garrett, began the USC tradition of Heisman Trophy-grade tailbacks.

And another how-time-flies statistic: Not one of the players currently fighting for that hallowed job was even born when O.J. Simpson last played for the Trojans. In fact, the two leaders for the position, Dwight McFadden and Scott Fields, were grade-schoolers when Marcus Allen won the fourth and most recent USC Heisman, in 1981.

When the Trojans, who open their season on Aug. 29 at Anaheim Stadium against North Carolina, began preseason training at UC Irvine last week, McFadden was the clear favorite to start, with Fields his backup.

Nothing changed after Saturday’s scrimmage, but Fields seems to have narrowed the gap. McFadden, a starter in two games last season, has a fight on his hands.

With one week of camp left, the rivalry is the subject they are talking about because tailback is a glamour position again.

John Robinson, in his first season back as coach, has made it clear that his team is returning to old-fashioned USC football, meaning strong, swift running backs who can carry the ball 20 to 25 times a game.

Here’s a look at the tailback situation:

DWIGHT McFADDEN--A 6-foot, 190-pound sophomore from Lawton, Okla., he played mainly behind 1992 starter Estrus Crayton. McFadden averaged more than five yards a carry in three of 10 appearances last season, but never had more than 19 carries in a game. His most productive showing was 95 yards in 19 carries against Arizona State. In the opener at San Diego State, he gained 74 yards--all in the second half.

SCOTT FIELDS--A 6-3, 210-pound sophomore from Ontario, he was one of four first-year freshmen to play last season, on special teams and at strong safety. He played in only one game at safety, the season-ending loss to Fresno State in the Freedom Bowl. After an all-star prep career at La Puente Bishop Amat High, he was recruited as a running back but requested the switch to defensive back when it became apparent he wouldn’t play on offense.

OTHERS--Freshman LaVale Woods was having a good training camp until he sprained an ankle last week. Two other freshmen, David Dotson and Shawn Walters, are decidedly behind McFadden and Fields on the depth chart.

Senior Deon Strother, a starter at tailback in five games two seasons ago, was moved to fullback last spring.

Robinson likens Fields’ early development and style to Marcus Allen’s.

“He’s a slasher, like Marcus was, and he has the same problem Marcus had early on, of running through a hole with his upper body but not his legs,” Robinson said.

“McFadden is more of a breakaway runner, a speed guy--faster than Fields, but not by a lot. He’s also more of a come-at-you runner than Fields.”

Saturday, Fields gained ground on McFadden, most observers thought. Fields carried more than McFadden, and at one point had six carries in a row.

“I was trying to see how tired I could get him, to see how tough he was when he was tired,” Robinson said.

Both McFadden and Fields made good runs, but Fields had the longest--a 35-yard dash with a pitch from quarterback Rob Johnson.

After the scrimmage, Robinson seemed to hedge a bit on naming his first-string tailback.

“McFadden’s still the No. 1 guy, but I’d say Scott has now put himself in a position to challenge Dwight,” he said.

Said McFadden: “I want to run the ball. When Coach Robinson told us in the spring that the tailback would run the ball 20 or 25 times a game, I really got pumped up.”

Robinson’s running backs have won either NCAA or NFL rushing titles six times, and he said he wants a USC tailback to lead the Pacific 10 Conference in rushing.

And he also told the tailbacks--and all of his prospective starters--that no one’s status is cemented.

“I’m hoping I can get it,” Fields said. “Coach said nothing is set, everyone has to prove himself. Dwight and I are friends, but we both want to start. The thing about Coach Robinson is, you don’t have to read between the lines when he talks to you. When he says the tailback will get the ball often enough to lead the league in rushing, that’s what he means.”

Fields said his year on defense made him a better running back.

“I know a lot more about how defenses work than I did a year ago,” he said. “I’ll be able to pick up on slants and stunts more quickly.”