Trojans Forget to Duck Against Substitute Quarterback

To hear Oregon tell it, quarterback Tony Graziani was an upset artist waiting to happen, not some scrub-faced, substitute sophomore making his first collegiate start.

After all, Duck Coach Rich Brooks would offer later, the kid had turned in a “sensational performance running things in spring practice.”

USC was supposed to be a tad tougher than spring practice.

Yet, this Graziani traipsed around the Coliseum on Saturday as if it was April in Eugene, zigzagging past Trojan pylons in guiding the Ducks to a 22-7 victory.

Graziani was not rocky, as might have been expected. He obviously held no regard for history, ignoring that Oregon had not defeated USC at the Coliseum since Oct. 9, 1971.

Graziani knew less about the legend of Harvey Winn, who came off the bench that day in place of the injured Dan Fouts to lead the Ducks to an upset over the Trojans.

Brooks related the story to the team on Monday, when the coach announced Graziani was starting in place of injured senior Danny O’Neil.

“He said we were going to have to make history repeat itself,” Graziani said of Brooks’ history lesson.

To a Duck, no one seemed shocked that Graziani could step in and one-two punch the nation’s 19th-ranked team at home.

“He isn’t fazed by too much,” Brooks said. “He’s kind of loosey-goosey. He didn’t get uptight. It didn’t bother him. If it did, he sure didn’t show it.”

Graziani, a left-hander from Modesto, completed 16 of 31 passes for 287 yards and a touchdown. He rushed for 33 yards in four carries and ran the team like a seasoned veteran.

“I’ve been preparing for this, really, all my life,” he said. “I wanted to step up and do the best I could.”

He calmly came out slinging and built a 16-7 halftime lead. His mistakes--two third-quarter interceptions--did not seem to rankle him.

“You can’t ask for more,” said Oregon receiver Cristin McLemore, who caught a 19-yard scoring pass from Graziani. “He walked with confidence. Even after he made those mistakes, those picks, he left it on the field. On the sideline he’d look at me and say, ‘Am I OK?’ and I’d say ‘You’re fine, you’re doing fine.’

“Today, it was ‘How Tony goes is how we go.’ He did it for us. I hope he remembers this for the rest of his life.”

There’s a good chance of that. Before Saturday, Graziani had thrown 24 passes in four games in relief of O’Neil, who will end up owning most of Oregon’s career passing marks.

Graziani, a third-year sophomore, played like a fifth-year senior. More than his numbers, he kept the Ducks’ offense on the field in the second half and essentially ran out the clock on the Trojans.

Typical of his day were two fourth-quarter moments:

On third and seven from his 32, he scrambled 17 yards around left end to keep the drive alive. Later in the series, on second down at the USC 46, he dumped a screen pass to tailback Dino Philyaw, who ran 38 yards to the 16, setting up an insurance field goal with 6:28 remaining.

“We’ve all had confidence in him since he’s been here,” said Philyaw, who rushed for 123 yards in 27 carries. “Me and Tony, we ran the second team in spring. All Tony needed to do was to get in and show people he can play.”

Patrick Johnson, who had three catches for 50 yards, also had no doubt Graziani was the man for the job.

“We knew he could do it,” Johnson said. “At practice, it’s just like Danny, not like a substitute. He’s good, man, he’s good.”

O’Neil, sidelined because of an infected finger on his throwing hand, is expected to return in two weeks, at which time Graziani will dutifully return to the bench and wait until next year.

“I wish the best for Danny,” Graziani said. “I hope he recovers.”

The Trojans might not. Any designs they had on ransacking a young quarterback were dashed early.

Graziani was not easily rattled. His stomach, to his surprise, was not tied in knots before the game.

“It wasn’t like I was scared, or nervous,” he said. “Just some jitters. I had a good night’s sleep, not a great night’s sleep.”

Graziani might sleep through the alarm this morning.

“Coming into the Coliseum, against a ranked team, what more can you ask for?”