USC Coordinator Was Running Off at the Mouth

Before football season began, USC offensive coordinator Hue Jackson sat down for an interview with SC Trojan Talk, a sports publication sent to alumni and boosters.

Said Jackson: “You can beat people by passing the ball--but you can defeat people by running the ball, and that’s what we like to do at USC. . . . If you hit them in the mouth enough times, their jaw will drop. That’s going to be our motto.”

In its 0-2 start, USC has a net 56 yards rushing.

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Trivia time: If USC loses at California on Saturday, the Trojans will be 0-3. When did that last happen?

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Everywhere but L.A.: Donald J. Lonergan, a real estate developer who specializes in stadium and arena projects, told Amusement Business newsletter that America is experiencing an explosive growth of new arenas and stadiums.

Classic example: Greater Boise, Idaho, has three arenas, seating 5,000, 12,428 and 13,000.

Lonergan also points out:

* From owners’ viewpoints, many NBA and NHL arenas not even 10 years old already are economically obsolete.

* By 2000, the number of dual-purpose (football-baseball) stadiums will have dwindled from 11 to two.

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Irabu’s go-fer: Japanese pitcher Hideki Irabu continues to lose friends and offend people in the New York Yankee clubhouse, the Baltimore Sun’s Peter Schmuck reports:

“He angered teammates with his churlish behavior on the mound and now has offended some with his demeaning treatment of his interpreter, Kota Ishijima.

“Ishijima was hired by the Yankees in January to be the club’s director of Pacific Rim operations, but fell into the role of Irabu interpreter and has been reduced to running errands and taking abuse from the portly right-hander.”

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Welcome to New York: Hall of Fame Yankee pitcher Whitey Ford, when asked if he was ever nervous pitching for the Yankees:

“Never when I pitched . . . always when I had to ride the subway.”

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Oops: Sport Business magazine recently published an article about the WNBA’s successful marketing campaigns.

It ran an accompanying photo of a women’s game, with the caption: “WNBA . . . marketing magnet.”

One problem. The photo was of an ABL game, the WNBA’s rival.

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Trivia answer: In 1960, John McKay’s first season, when USC finished 4-6.

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And finally: Former Pittsburgh manager Chuck Tanner believes Pirate skipper Gene Lamont should be National League manager of the year.

“The three best managers in Pirates’ history are Danny Murtaugh, Chuck Tanner and Jim Leyland,” Tanner said. “None of us could have done the job Gene has done with this club this season.”