USC Playbook Provides Ideas

Anyone who still thinks of the Big Ten Conference as three yards and a cloud of dust has not seen Purdue in the spread offense or Michigan State throwing 40 times a game.

Further confirmation that this is not your father’s Big Ten was offered by Michigan offensive coordinator Terry Malone at a news conference Tuesday.

With the Wolverines facing USC in the Rose Bowl on Thursday, Malone said that over the last few seasons, he has watched film of the Trojans for tips on fashioning his offense.

“Offensively, we took a lot of things in the way they attack teams,” he said. “USC has a tremendous ability to get the ball in the hands of guys who are open.”

Trojan defensive players noticed the similarities when they began studying film of Michigan games. The Wolverines do a lot of what USC calls “window dressing.”

“They shift their guys around, try to disguise plays with the same personnel,” linebacker Melvin Simmons said.

Michigan offensive lineman Tony Pape wasn’t aware that his team had incorporated some of USC’s ideas, but he wasn’t surprised.

“There is a lot of carry-over in football,” he said. “Beg, borrow and steal ... everything runs together.”

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Chris Perry was a no-show at the news conference but Michigan administrators said there was nothing amiss with the All-American tailback, that he was simply back at the hotel. In his absence, players and coaches from both teams talked about his role in Thursday’s game.

“They can run between the tackles because he’s tough and he’ll run you over,” USC defensive line coach Ed Orgeron said. “Being able to stop the run is a big focus.”

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Before the season, sophomore Steve Breaston wasn’t sure what impact, if any, he might have on his team.

Now he finds himself among Michigan’s leading receivers and, more important, among the nation’s top punt returners.

Breaston ranks ninth in the nation with a 14.1-yard average and set two school records by returning 44 punts for 619 yards.

On Thursday, he will face USC All-American Tom Malone, who averaged 49.2 yards a punt this season.

“It’s not just him,” Breaston said. “He gets the ball downfield and his coverage team does a good job of covering.”

The soft-spoken Breaston has a cerebral quality. He writes poetry and plays chess. But there isn’t anything complicated about how he hopes to counteract Malone’s long punts.

“It doesn’t really change much,” he said. “You’ve just got to get the ball and get upfield.”