Fast Start : It Could Refer to USC Against Houston or Keyshawn Johnson’s Season in General

On USC’s first play Saturday night at the Coliseum, quarterback Brad Otton looked at his teammates in the huddle and called a play that didn’t need to be called.

“Blue Iso--Eight Cowboy,” he said.

This surprised no one, least of all Keyshawn Johnson, to whom a touchdown pass was about to be thrown.

Early last week, the Trojans had decided they wanted to score on their first play and this was the one they had chosen. It was first and 10, at the USC 43.

It began with a fake handoff to tailback Leonard Green. To sell the fake, USC’s offensive linemen began run-blocking instead of dropping back to protect Otton.

Johnson, meanwhile, drew a bead on a 5-foot-10 cornerback.

The key was selling Houston’s safety on the run, and it worked. Cornerback Delmonico Montgomery began backing off to cover Johnson, and so did safety Thomas McGaughey . . . at first.

McGaughey stopped when he saw the fake handoff to Green, prepared to tackle him, then saw too late that Otton still had the ball and was looking downfield to Johnson.

Otton put a perfectly thrown soft pass into Johnson’s hands at the 15-yard line and Montgomery fell down trying to bat the ball away. Touchdown, USC.

Time of drive: Seven seconds.

Key word: Suddenness.

Suddenness is a frequently heard word around this 2-0 USC team. But until Otton-to-Johnson, it had been used mostly in a defensive context.

New defensive line coach Rod Marinelli has a wildlife video tape he uses to illustrate what he means by suddenness, or doing the unexpected.

In the video, a water buffalo drinks peacefully at a pond.

Unseen, a giant crocodile glides into the water, looking like a log. The crocodile surges out of the water with breathtaking speed and before the water buffalo can take even a backward step, the croc has him by the nose. Ouch.

Slowly, the predator drags the water buffalo’s head under the water and drowns the beast.

That was the Houston defense Saturday on that first play.

OK, nobody drowned and no reptiles were involved. But something bad happened to the Cougars, and it happened suddenly.

And Johnson, who caught seven more passes, gained 176 yards and scored another touchdown in a 45-10 victory, loved it. It was almost as much fun as the Cotton Bowl.

Tuesday, after two eight-catch games good for 300 yards, Johnson pronounced himself a bigger and better player than the wide receiver who dazzled even himself with his eight-catch, 222-yard, three-touchdown game in the 55-14 Cotton Bowl rout of Texas Tech last Jan. 2.

One thing hasn’t changed. Texas teams are still trying to cover the 6-4, 215-pound Johnson with 5-10 cornerbacks. And only one at a time too. On one catch against Houston, no one was within 10 yards of Johnson. And on another, the nearest defender was four yards away.

“I don’t know why I’m still getting single coverage, but I’ll take it,” Johnson said.

“I think these teams know if they double me, I still might get the catch or we’d go to some other pretty good receivers, like Larry Parker or Chris Miller.”

Johnson was a late bloomer last season. He burned up his thigh muscles in two-a-day practices in summer camp, had one catch in the opener against Washington, and didn’t play at all against Penn State the following Saturday.

Recalled Coach John Robinson, “Keyshawn missed all that early time, then went right into on-the-job training. By the end of the season, the impact he had on our team, the improvement he’d made . . . it was dramatic.”

He’s a player who simply loves the process of preparation, Robinson said.

“Keyshawn is just around [the football offices] all the time, watching film or talking football. He’s like Tony Boselli that way. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone told me he’s been sleeping on my [office] couch.”

Robinson indicated that the best is yet to come.

“Keyshawn reached a certain level of performance, but instead of staying there, he just took off,” he said.

Johnson credits added muscle for his quick start.

After an off-season of weight training and running up Manhattan Beach sand dunes, Johnson increased his bench press to 325 pounds and his confidence to unprecedented heights.

“I’m just stronger out there,” he said. “I have a feeling of having my legs under me all the time. You just feel more prepared, more confident in a game when you’re stronger. I’m a much better blocker now. I feel like on a block, if I’m on a guy, it’s over.”

Mike Sanford, who coaches USC’s wide receivers, gave Johnson an “average” grade for his eight-catch opener against San Jose State, and a B-minus against Houston.

“He ran much more precise routes [against Houston], and I liked the way he ran a couple of times after he caught the ball,” Sanford said.

“Keyshawn has a great first step upfield after he makes a catch, it’s a strong suit to his game. But his potential is so great. When I give him an ‘A’ for a game, people will really see what he can do.”

How about 400 yards?

“You give me 20 catches, I guarantee you, that’ll be 400 yards,” Johnson said.

Not likely, though, considering the depth of this receiving corps.

Robinson said Tuesday he was unhappy that Johnson’s counterpart, Parker, didn’t get a single catch Saturday. And the tight ends had four catches after only three the week before.

“We definitely need to get the tight ends more involved in the passing game, and that will happen,” Sanford said.

Meanwhile, Johnson has already scanned the Arizona roster for Saturday’s game in Tucson. Lots of 5-10 cornerbacks?

“Five-eight,” he said, and his grin said the rest.