COLLEGE FOOTBALL DAILY REPORT : USC : Robinson Hopes to Change Pattern

At his weekly press luncheon Tuesday, USC Coach John Robinson had a baseball question:

“How could the Giants lose, 12-1, to the Dodgers in their last game, in the biggest game of their lives?” he asked.

Robinson then asked this of his own team: “How could we play such an outstanding game against Washington State, then play so poorly against Arizona?”

Robinson was talking about team sports and psychology, asking more questions than providing answers.

“Part of the responsibility that goes with coaching is knowing the psychological makeup of your team. And if it’s unsatisfactory, you must change it.

“There’s a foundation for performance, a pattern of behavior. We seem to be in a pattern of playing well in the Coliseum, or against untalented teams, and not so well against good teams.

“You can take maybe four premises with this team. One, we don’t play well unless we’re angry at ourselves. Two, when we think we’re better than the other team, we play well. Three, we only play well in the Coliseum. Four, we don’t play well against someone we think is good. None of those is acceptable, and the solution starts with beating Oregon on Saturday.”