COLLEGE FOOTBALL DAILY REPORT : USC : Dropped Passes Are Nothing New

USC finally played a game the way it has been practicing, and paid for it with a 22-7 loss Saturday against Oregon.

Dating from the Trojans’ August training camp and through most practices since, visitors have noted Trojan receivers dropping more passes than was the case a year ago. Of course, a year ago USC still had Johnnie Morton.

Trojan receivers dropped six of Rob Johnson’s passes Saturday, Ken Grace muffing two of them. Add to that nine quarterback sacks, and the Trojans wound up with 60 minus yards in 15 passing downs.

Johnson, after four games, has been sacked 22 times for a loss of 151 yards.

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X-rays of Johnson’s right ankle, sprained Saturday night, were negative, Coach John Robinson said. “It’s a high ankle sprain but it’s not bad,” he said. “We’ll probably hold him out of practice (today) and just have him jog.”

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Oregon State, USC’s opponent Saturday at Corvallis, Ore., is 1-3, but played well in a 30-10 loss at unbeaten Arizona last Saturday. And Coach Jerry Pettibone’s option ground game is again atop the Pac-10, with an average of 272.5 yards rushing. USC is last, at 118.8 yards a game.