1997 USC Trojans football team The 1997 University of Southern California Trojans football team ( variously " Trojans " or " USC " ) represented the University of Southern California during the college football season of 1997 , finishing with a 6 – 5 record and tied for fifth place in the Pacific - 10 Conference with a 4 – 4 conference record ; despite a qualifying record , the Trojans were not invited to a bowl game . The team was coached by John Robinson , in his second stint as head coach of the Trojans , and played their home games at the Los Angeles Coliseum . Before the season . USC entered the preseason with 75 players from its 1996 squad that went a disappointing 6 – 6 ; it returned starters at 14 positions , eight on offense and six on defense along with both the punter and placekicker . The Trojans had a top 10 - ranked recruiting class with 18 high school players and two transfer players from junior college programs ; 16 of the 20 incoming players were All - Americans at previous levels . The Trojan running game , led by Delon Washington , hoped to improve a ground game that was ranked 90th in the nation ; considered very disappointing at a school that had been known as " Tailback U " . USC brought in Hue Jackson as the new Offensive Coordinator ; Jackson had previously served as offensive coordinator for California under Steve Mariucci , who had been hired to coach the NFL ' s San Francisco 49ers . Game notes . Florida State . USC opened its season hosting the # 5 - ranked Florida State University Seminoles of the Atlantic Coast Conference , under long - time coach Bobby Bowden , in the first ever game between the two programs . The Seminoles entered the game as a dominant force in college football , having finished in the top four of the final poll for 10 consecutive years behind teams famous for their speed and depth ; the previous season the Seminoles went 11 – 1 . The Trojans entered the with a new quarterback , sophomore John Fox , after the graduation of veteran quarterback Brad Otten . The # 23 - ranked Trojans were a departure from Florida State ' s recent trend of season - opening opponents , which tended towards low - ranked teams in games played either at their home field or on a neutral field . The Trojans hoped to reestablish their running game , which had been anemic the previous season ; however the Seminoles had allowed an average of only 59 yards rushing in 1996 . The Seminoles defeated the Trojans , 14 – 7 , in a competitive , defense - oriented game . Florida State scored first : After recovering a fumble by USC Delon Washington at the USC 36 , the Seminoles scored on a two - yard quarterback sneak with 2 : 10 left in the first quarter . The Trojans were able to respond in the second quarter , tying the score , 7 – 7 , with 13 : 42 left in the half . The pivotal moment in the game came on a 97 - yard Seminoles drive in the fourth quarter that resulted in the go - ahead score with 10 : 40 left in the game . The drive was almost stopped when cornerback Brian Kelly dropped a near - interception about 11 yards from Florida State ' s end zone . USC had two more drives , with the second reaching the Florida State 26 yard line before turning the ball over on downs . USC was pleased with the performance of Fox , who in his first start completed 18 of 32 passes for 159 yards with one interception that came on a fourth - down play . However the running game did not produce , totaling 25 yards with starting tailback Washington going for only 16 yards in 18 carries . The defense performed well , led by sophomore linebacker Chris Claiborne who had eight tackles , including two sacks . USC held the Seminoles to 89 yards rushing . Kelly broke up four passes , made five tackles and had an interception that was wiped out by an offside penalty against USC . Neither team did very well on third - down conversions ; USC was 4 of 17 , Florida State went 4 of 14 . Despite losing the game , the Trojans ' performance was seen as a positive sign that the team was approaching the season with a drive not present until the very end of the previous season . USC remained ranked # 23 . Florida State would go on to a 11 – 1 record , winning the ACC conference and ending the season ranked # 3 in the AP Poll . Washington State . Opening Pac - 10 Conference play , the USC hosted the Washington State Cougars under coach Mike Price . The Cougars arrived after a bye week ; they defeated UCLA in their opening game , led by junior quarterback Ryan Leaf who passed for 381 yards and three touchdowns in a 37 – 34 victory . USC entered the game favored by a touchdown , and with a 10 game winning streak against Washington State , since 1986 , and a home winning streak stretching back to 1957 . The game was framed as the Trojans opportunity to set the tone of their season : They didn ' t drop in the polls after a close loss to highly ranked Florida State ; a win against Cougars would help them start rising in the polls ; a loss would likely undo any good will left over in voters . The Cougars defeated the Trojans , 28 – 21 ; it was the first time the Cougars had ever defeated UCLA and USC in the same season , and the first time they had won in the Coliseum in 40 years . Washington State had a strong first half , leading 21 – 6 at the end of the second quarter ; the Trojans only touchdown had the extra - point blocked . John Fox fumbled a snap that led to Washington State ' s third touchdown . R . Jay Soward returned the second half kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown , spurring a USC rally . Early in the fourth quarter , the Trojans used a halfback pass for a touchdown , then went on to make a two - point conversion to tie the score , 21 – 21 , with 12 : 44 remaining in the game . The USC defense held the Cougars for most of the second half ; but Washington State finally moved ahead late in the fourth quarter , when Leaf connected with a receiver for a 51 - yard touchdown with 4 : 18 left in the game . Fox did not show the same level of poise as his start against Florida State ; he completed 23 of 42 passes for 229 yards . Leaf completed 21 of 40 passes for 355 yards and three touchdowns , though he was intercepted twice by Brian Kelly . The Trojans running game continued to be a non - factor , totaling 31 yards at approximately one yard per carry . The concern started to focus on the offensive line , as Delon Washington rushed for 20 yards in eight carries ; and given an opportunity , freshman Malaefou MacKenzie managed only 14 yards in 11 carries . USC had 10 penalties for 92 yards , often placing the offense in long second down situations . Although the Cougars entered the game unranked , they would go on to have an excellent season , finishing 10 – 2 , sharing the Pac - 10 title and playing in the Rose Bowl for only the third time in school history . Leaf would go on to have a strong year , throwing for a school - record 3 , 968 yards and 34 touchdowns , being named a first team All - American and finishing third in the voting for the Heisman Trophy . The Trojans fell out of the rankings ; the loss marked the fifth time in 104 years of football that USC opened a season 0 - 2 , prior to the season the only Trojan teams that began a season with two defeats were those of 1896 , 1902 , 1957 and 1960 . California . The Trojans played their first Pac - 10 road game of the season , visiting the California Golden Bears , under first - year coach Tom Holmoe , at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley , California . The Golden Bears had defeated the Trojans the previous season , and hoped to make it a second year in a row for the first time since 1958 . The Trojans defense made seven sacks and forced Cal to punt eight times in a 27 - 17 victory . The Trojans surged to a 24 - point halftime lead , but were held scoreless in the second as California tried to close the gap . R . Jay Soward caught two touchdown passes of 33 and 65 yards from John Fox ; LaVale Woods rushed for 129 yards and two touchdowns . California receiver Bobby Shaw , who entered the game leading the nation , finished with five catches for 98 yards and one touchdown . The Trojans continued to have problems on special teams ; kicker Adam Abrams missed a 34 - yard field - goal attempt and an extra point , and allowed a blocked punt against punter Jim Wren . Trojans offensive coordinator Hue Jackson , who had served in the same role for the Golden Bears the previous season , called plays from the field instead of the press box at head coach Robinson ' s request . USC entered the game ranked 112th among 112 Division I - A schools in net rushing yards . The offensive line reacted by inscribing the number " 112 " on their wrist bands before the game . The team made progress , gaining 123 yards in net rushing . The game allowed them to rise to 109th in rushing offense . On defense , USC held California to 31 rushing yards and ranked fifth nationally in rushing defense , giving up 54 . 3 yards a game . The Trojans ' victory ensured they would not go 0 - 3 for the first time since 1960 . UNLV . Next hosted UNLV of the Western Athletic Conference , under head coach Jeff Horton . The Trojans entered the game as 25 - point favorites against the Rebels . Running back LaVale Woods sprained his left ankle on the second possession , placing the running game back on freshman Malaefou MacKenzie and senior Delon Washington , who had been Woods had replaced for the previous game against California . MacKenzie ran for 104 yards in 19 carries and two touchdowns . The kicking game improved , with Adam Abrams making the Trojans ' first field goals of the season from 27 and 37 yards before the end of the first half . Cornerback Daylon McCutcheon was used successfully on offensive plays , taking advantage of his overall athletic abilities . The victory was coach John Robinson ' s 100th college victory .