Hackett Has Berkeley Roots

Strawberry Canyon isn’t unfamiliar territory for Paul Hackett.

Although it will be his first game in California’s Memorial Stadium as USC’s coach, Hackett attended his first college football games there as a high school student in the 1960s when his father, David, was a professor of biochemistry at Berkeley.

“I’d go sit and watch the games with him,” Hackett said. “I can remember the fans would go stand outside the coaches’ room and say, ‘We want Willsey, we want Ray!’ until he would come out and say something.”

After playing football at UC Davis, Hackett was an assistant coach at Cal from 1972 to ’75.

“The biggest game of the year was always SC,” he said. “We beat SC in ‘75--the day before they came up, it was announced [Coach John] McKay was going to Tampa Bay.”

The next season, Hackett became a USC assistant under John Robinson, and USC went 4-1 against Cal during his five years on the staff.

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Cal Coach Tom Holmoe went out of his way to praise USC quarterback Mike Van Raaphorst, the former starter who took over after Carson Palmer’s injury and last week passed for a school-record 415 yards.

“I’m very happy for Van Raaphorst. He’s a guy that came in and got unseated by Palmer, but when they came back to him, he responded,” Holmoe said. “That’s something every coach likes to see. As an opposing coach, I’m proud of him, especially to see him play as well as he’s played.”

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Offensive lineman Faaesea Mailo, who doubles as USC’s fullback in goal-line situations, did not make the trip because of a deep leg bruise. Chad Pierson, a backup fullback, will replace him in the goal-line offense. . . . Freshman Marcell Allmond will start at flanker in place of R. Jay Soward, who is expected to play but practiced only lightly during the week because of a strained hamstring. . . . Cal’s leading rusher, Joe Igber (separated shoulder) and leading receiver, Mike Ainsworth (hamstring) are hampered because of injuries, but might play.