The 1954 USC Trojans football team represented the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8. ...

(USC) in the

1954 college football season The 1954 college football season saw three teams finish unbeaten and untied, with Ohio State Buckeyes and the UCLA Bruins sharing the national championship as the No. 1 picks of the AP Poll and the UPI Poll, respectively. Although the winners o ...

. In their fourth year under head coach

Jess Hill Jesse Terrill Hill (January 20, 1907 – August 31, 1993) was an American athlete, coach, and college athletics administrator who was best known for his tenure as a coach and athletic director at the University of Southern California (USC). His c ...

, the Trojans compiled an 8–4 record (6–1 against conference opponents), finished in second place in the

Pacific Coast Conference The Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) was a college athletic conference in the United States which existed from 1915 to 1959. Though the Pac-12 Conference claims the PCC's history as part of its own, with eight of the ten PCC members (including a ...

, lost to

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

in the

1955 Rose Bowl The 1955 Rose Bowl was the 41st edition of the college football bowl game, played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, on Saturday, January 1. The top-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes of the Big Ten Conference defeated the USC Trojans ...

, and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 258 to 159. Jim Contratto led the team in passing with 32 of 79 passes completed for 702 yards, five touchdowns and five interceptions.

Jon Arnett Jon Dwane "Jaguar Jon" Arnett (April 20, 1935 – January 16, 2021) was an American professional football player. He was a first-team All-American out of USC and Manual Arts High School. Arnett died on January 16, 2021, from heart failure in ...

led the team in rushing with 96 carries for 601 yards and seven touchdowns. Lindon Crow was the leading receiver with seven catches for 274 yards and three touchdowns. Three Trojans received first-team honors from the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. n ...

on the 1954 All-Pacific Coast Conference football team: back Lindon Crow; tackle Ed Fouch; guard

Jim Salsbury Jim Salsbury (August 8, 1932 – March 29, 2002) was a guard in the National Football League. He was drafted in the second round of the 1955 NFL Draft and played two seasons with the team. Later he played two seasons with the Green Bay Packers ...

Schedule

Game summaries

UCLA

Players

, sophomore tailback (#26), earned second-team All-Coast honors from the UP * Al Barry, senior right guard * George Belotti, tackle * Bing Bordier, right end * Ron Brown * Ron Calabria, wingback * Leon Clarke, left end, second-team All-Coast honors from coaches * Frank Clayton, left halfback * Jim Contratto, quarterback * Lindon Crow, second-team All-Coast (co-captain) * Aramis Dandoy, tailback, won All-Coast honors from INS * Mario DaRe, tackle * Jim Decker, fullback * Gordon Duvall, fullback * Dirk Eldredge, center * Dick Enright, right guard * Orlando Ferrante, guard, first-team All-Coast honors from coaches, second-string All-Coast honors from INS * Ed Fouch, right tackle, first-team All-Coast (co-captain) * George Galli, guard * Marv Goux, linebacker, led the team in defensive statistics * Chuck Greenwood, right end * Chuck Griffith, right end * Frank Hall, back * Roger Hooks quarterback * Bob Isaacson, guard * Chuck Leimbach, end * Don McFarland, end * Ernie Merk, back * John Miller, guard * Frank Pavich, guard and tackle * Vern Sampson, center * Irwin Spector, guard, Brooklyn, New York * Joe Tisdale, fullback * Sam Tsagalakis, placekicker

Coaching staff and other personnel

* Head coach:

* Assistant coaches:

Mel Hein Melvin Jack Hein (August 22, 1909 – January 31, 1992), sometimes known as "Old Indestructible", was an American football player and coach. In the era of one-platoon football, he played as a center (then a position on both offense and defense) ...

(line coach - centers and tackles), Don Clark (line coach - guards and defensive patterns), Bill Fisk (ends),

George Ceithaml George Frank Ceithaml ( ; February 10, 1921 – May 24, 2012) was an American football quarterback and coach. He was the starting quarterback for Fritz Crisler's University of Michigan football teams in 1941 and 1942. Crisler later called C ...

(backfield coach), Nick Pappas (defensive backs),

Jess Mortensen Jesse Philo Mortensen (April 16, 1907 in Thatcher, Arizona – February 19, 1962) was an NCAA champion track athlete and coach. Mortensen is one of only three men to win Division I Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championship team titles as bo ...

(freshman coach) * Yell kings: Don Ward, Jerry Stolp, Phil Reilly, Shep Aparicio, Bob Mandel * Manager: Peter Couden1955 "El Rodeo", page 186.

References

{{USC Trojans football navbox USC USC Trojans football seasons

USC Trojans football The USC Trojans football program represents University of Southern California in the sport of American football. The Trojans compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Ath ...