# 1975 USC Trojans football team

The 1975 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California (USC) in the Pacific-8 Conference during the 1975 NCAA Division I football season. In their 15th year under head coach John McKay, the Trojans compiled an 8–4 record (3–4 in Pac-8, fifth), and outscored their opponents 247 to 140. The team was ranked #17 in the final AP Poll and #19 in the final UPI Coaches Poll.
Quarterback Vince Evans led the team in passing, completing 35 of 112 passes for 695 yards with three touchdowns and nine interceptions. Ricky Bell led the team in rushing with 385 carries for 1,957 yards and 13 touchdowns. Randy Simmrin led the team in receiving with 26 catches for 478 yards and one touchdown.
Opening with seven wins, the Trojans lost all four conference games in November, and were invited to the Liberty Bowl.

## Schedule

| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 12 | Duke* | No. 4 | Los Angeles Memorial ColiseumLos Angeles, CA | | W 35–7 | 56,727 |
| September 19 | Oregon State | No. 4 | Los Angeles Memorial ColiseumLos Angeles, CA | | W 24–7 | 50,165 |
| September 27 | Purdue* | No. 3 | Los Angeles Memorial ColiseumLos Angeles, CA | | W 19–6 | 56,170 |
| October 4 | at Iowa* | No. 3 | Kinnick StadiumIowa City, IA | | W 27–16 | 54,600 |
| October 11 | Washington State | No. 3 | Los Angeles Memorial ColiseumLos Angeles, CA | | W 28–10 | 47,468 |
| October 18 | Oregon | No. 3 | Los Angeles Memorial ColiseumLos Angeles, CA | | W 17–3 | 50,542 |
| October 25 | at No. 14 Notre Dame* | No. 3 | Notre Dame StadiumNotre Dame, IN (rivalry) | ABC | W 24–17 | 59,075 |
| November 1 | at California | No. 4 | California Memorial StadiumBerkeley, CA | ABC | L 14–28 | 58,871 |
| November 8 | Stanford | No. 9 | Los Angeles Memorial ColiseumLos Angeles, CA (rivalry) | | L 10–13 | 68,249 |
| November 15 | at Washington | No. 13 | Husky StadiumSeattle, WA | | L 7–8 | 53,700 |
| November 28 | No. 14 UCLA | | Los Angeles Memorial ColiseumLos Angeles, CA (Victory Bell) | ABC | L 22–25 | 80,927 |
| December 22 | vs. No. 6 Texas A&M* | | Liberty Bowl Memorial StadiumMemphis, TN (Liberty Bowl) | ABC | W 20–0 | 52,129 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the game ||||||||

## Game summaries
### Duke

* Ricky Bell 34 rushes, 256 yards

### Purdue

* Ricky Bell 89 rush yards

### At Iowa

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • USC | 0 | 7 | 17 | 3 | 27 |
| Iowa | 10 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 16 |

### Washington State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Washington St | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| • USC | 0 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
Ricky Bell 38 Rush, 217 Yds

### At Notre Dame

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • USC | 0 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 24 |
| Notre Dame | 6 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 17 |

## 1975 team players in the NFL

The following players were drafted into professional football following the season.
| Player | Position | Round | Pick | Franchise |
| Danny Reece | Defensive back | 3 | 69 | Cincinnati Bengals |
| Joe Davis | Tackle | 8 | 211 | New York Jets |
| Mel Jackson | Guard | 12 | 328 | Green Bay Packers |
| Doug Hogan | Defensive back | 16 | 454 | Oakland Raiders |

## In Popular Culture

Scenes from the November 8 game against Stanford are featured in a 1976 episode of the television series Emergency! entitled “The Game.”