COLLEGE FOOTBALL DAILY REPORT : USC : Sermons’ Running Impresses Robinson

Coach John Robinson expressed delight Monday at the running of freshman tailback Rodney Sermons against Oregon State, predicting that the best is yet to come.

Sermons, pressed into service at Corvallis when starter Shawn Walters awakened with flu Saturday, gained 74 yards in 23 carries with a touchdown, a long gain of 12 yards and no fumbles. He also scored on a 31-yard screen pass from quarterback Brad Otton.

“He was very efficient and made some clutch plays, and he will run a lot better too,” Robinson said. “Sermons hits the hole very fast and has great acceleration. We haven’t seen that yet to the degree we will.”

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Oregon State’s freshman quarterback, Tim Alexander, was sidelined for the season Saturday on a drive in which the Beavers seemed ready to catch the Trojans.

Alexander, a speedster who ran a wishbone high school offense in Florida, had turned down offers from Nebraska and Oklahoma to attend Oregon State. Saturday was his first action of the season, replacing injured Don Shanklin.

With USC leading by what would be the final score, 27-19, Alexander accounted for 46 yards in a 66-yard fourth-quarter drive, 31 on a run to the USC 14, where his season ended. He suffered a broken collarbone.

Rahim Muhammad came in for Alexander, but fumbled the ball away three plays later at USC’s seven.

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Stanford, USC’s opponent Saturday in Palo Alto, is 1-3-1, but the Cardinal leads the Pac-10 in total offense and quarterback Steve Stenstrom and USC’s Rob Johnson, high school teammates at El Toro, are 1-2 in total offense, 300 yards per game for Stenstrom, 209 for Johnson. Stenstrom, with one more game played and 72 more attempts, has completed 67% of his passes, Johnson 68%. . . . Wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson has come on with a rush, with 12 receptions for 231 yards the last two games. . . . USC’s John Stonehouse leads the conference in punting, averaging 42.8 yards.