Hackett Wants to Keep His Staff Intact

With the first season at USC just about complete for Paul Hackett and his assistants, Hackett emphasized he is hoping for continuity on his staff.

“It’s natural in our profession there will be changes. What I hope is the changes will be kept to a real minimum over the first two or three years when you’re establishing a foundation for the program,” he said, acknowledging that losing coaches who have a chance to move up is natural.

At Pittsburgh, Hackett lost two assistants after the first season and four to the NFL after the second.

USC avoided possibly losing defensive coordinator Bill Young to Hawaii when June Jones was named coach of the Rainbows.

“The progress Hue Jackson and I have made on the headset, Larry Petroff and I on the sideline with substitutions, Ed Orgeron. . . . To be relearning people again, I think really sets you back,” Hackett said.

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Butkus Award winners were excused from practice Saturday. Chris Claiborne was granted the day off and told he could stay in Orlando to enjoy some of the activities he didn’t have time for Friday, when he was honored as the nation’s best college linebacker.

“We all knew how good he was,” safety Rashard Cook said. “It was a matter of others seeing it. I think it helped that some of our big games were on national TV, like Florida State and Notre Dame.”

Hackett said he had wondered briefly how winning might affect Claiborne’s decision about whether to leave early for the NFL, but decided Claiborne seems to think independently of the hubbub around him.

Claiborne said last week exactly how much effect winning or not winning the Butkus would have:

“None.”

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Receiver R. Jay Soward returned to practice without difficulty after tweaking his ankle last week. . . . USC, which meets Texas Christian in the Sun Bowl on Dec. 31, won’t practice again until Friday and Saturday because of final exams. “I’m counting on our resiliency,” said Hackett, who said the Trojans were “not sharp” after their recent break. . . . Offensive tackle Matt Welch has been cleared to resume practicing when USC returns to the field after undergoing tests to try to identify the cause of a rapid heartbeat the day of the Notre Dame game. “Everything came out normal. Maybe it was just adrenaline,” Welch said. . . . Center Matt McShane injured a knee in practice but is expected to be ready when practice resumes.