FOOTBALL

Try To Avoid All-Time Lists

I’m not big on all-time rankings. But I have to mention these rankings.

I’m sure everyone is thrilled USC has the top six spots.

But I have a problem. Ricky Bell is not No. 13. In fact, he should be above Mike Garrett and Anthony Davis. You can even argue he is in the top 4. I’ve talked to players and coaches from the 1960’s-70’s who think Bell could be in the top 4.

I’m not a UCLA historian but I think someone else should be in there too besides Deshaun Foster. Or Cal tailback Chuck Muncie? Or Stanford’s Darrin Nelson? Or Washington’s Hugh McElhenny? Or USC’s Jon Arnett?

Like I said, I don’t like lists. Like this.

68 thoughts on “Try To Avoid All-Time Lists”

  1. I’d take Anthony Davis in a heartbeat over Reggie Bush. Bush was greedy, glory hog; Davis was a Trojan.

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      1. First LJ, Reggie Bush in the same sentence with Gale Sayers is ludicrous. The only way Bush gets in the NFL HOF is to buy a ticket. Bush never improved at the next level.

        Second LJ, remind me what is Bush’s signature CFB game. We all know AD’s signature game.

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  2. I would place McCaffrey up higher, but it is hard to compare speeders such as Bush and him with blugeoners like Bell and Lendale.

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  3. i dont like lists but i will krittuhsize this one evin tho i dont like lists but heer r my chainjiz to the list to maik it beter but i dont like list,smdh

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  5. The list really is bad. First. Where is Morley Drury. ?? He remains The Noblest Trojan Of Them All The best Bruin I ever saw was Paul Cameron. You can’t really name one best Trojan runner but at the top of my list would be OJ. Morley. Charles Anthony. Ricky. Marcus. Reggie. Very close behind would be Mike. Jon Clarence. Sam and CR. Sorry if I’ve left anyone out.

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    2. OJ best combination of size, speed, and power. Bush most “talented”. White lot of heart and my personal favorite. Ricky Bell was a beast. Love the rest.

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      1. Bush reminded me of Tony Dorsett (NFL HOF). Marcus Allen is a NFL HOF guy. White was great at USC, but not a long NFL career. Garrett has surprising career NFL rushing/receiving totals.

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      4. Charles. I was at that 1967 game. I was 39 years old then. Man am I living on borrowed time or what ?? Haha. But its been a good ride bro.

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      5. Tirebiter my dad was born 1927, served in the Pacific, and died relatively young in 1985. He loved football and would’ve loved it that I have a USC degree.

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      9. Hi Charles. I’ve moved three times in the last two years. Currently live in Sun Valley Calif. Been in the L A area all my life. My dad and yours were so much alike. Big SC fans. Died young etc. my dad died at only 56 years old He died of a stroke in 1960.

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      1. George, fantastic power (and speed) is right. Great post, I didn’t see yours when I posted mine. Sam changed the game. Most of the others on this list didn’t.

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  8. When a reporter asked John McKay to compare OJ and Anthony Davis. His answer was OJ is 6’2 and 210 and runs the 100 in 9.4, Davis is 5’10 and 185 and doesn’t run the 100 in 9.4. I have the Juice number one and Marcus number two.

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  9. I know this is a PAC 12 or 10 or 8 discussion but Marshawn should be higher. Also, LaMichael James should not be ahead of Christian McCaffrey but maybe I need to look at the stats.

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    2. Thank you FY.

      Beastmode was more powerful than any on that list.
      Muncie took it to SC in the 75 game. SC WAS #3 and CAL came in @#7. Both left the Memorial Stadium by taking the other’s ranking

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  11. Where the hell is Owns???????????????????????????????????
    UCLA has one player in the top 25 in this all time great running back list, and that’s a gift as Deshawn Foster was a little better than average. This is why no one attends the games including you Mr. Owns, and the real reason UCLA has a mediocre football program- yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

    Even though we all appreciate the attention and laughter you give all the Trojans on the USC site it’s the real reason we all call and know UCLA as “Midget U”!!

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    1. My friend Owns weighed in the subject of USC’s Anthony Davis vs. USC’s Reggie Bush.
      #He’sTooWiseToCommentOnTheDearthOfBruinsOnTheList…

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  12. Marcus was so dominating in every game he played at TB but I never saw OJ so I would leave them 1-2 almost interchangeable.

    Deshaun owned us – he should be higher. Also no Gaston Green or Sharmon Shah? Bruins got robbed.

    Nap Kaufman should be way higher – kid was unstoppable.

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    1. Is it considered “owning” us if Deshaun was kept out of the 2001 USC game entirely [as a result of violating NCAA and Pac 12 “gift” rules]?
      Did USC blank UCLA as a result?
      #TalkAboutLettingYourTeamDown…

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      1. MG my money is on a little tw*t Clownster ratted Deshaun out. The bozos hate competition.

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      1. When you wake up from the Owns-dream, Michael, let me know what this dude is really about.

        I will always claim that he is a May 5 Pinata that loves to be whacked around by SC posters.

        Some posters like the attention, pro or con, and others crave it!

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      2. Michael, when you consume nothing but prunes and water, it leads one to make remarks like “Pasadena, you horse’s ass – the pac 12 would be just fine without USC! Just replace succ with some nameless school and no one would know the difference.”

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      3. 67—
        Fox Sports’ programmers & advertisers would know the difference. So would ESPN’s. So would ABC’s. Even the Pac 12 Network would feel the difference [although they don’t have far to fall —their subscribership matches UCLA’s Rose Bowl numbers —roughly 23,000 per game]….

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  14. Damn LJ, I don’t twist your arm to respond to my posts. You have my permission to ignore my posts, I pretty much ignore yours. I mean Bush and Sayers in the same sentence! What a bozo joke.

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  16. Reggie Bush had a great line that opened huge holes for him. He was a great open field runner but not a complete running back. He did not know how to run inside the tackles or get short yardage. Frankly, I thought Maurice Jones of UCLA who played against him was a more complete back and proved it in the NFL.

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  17. OWNS- MAKES SOME VERY GOOD STATEMENTS ON THIS SITE. HOWEVER, THE STATS AND LOSING RECORDS AT UCLA ARE THE REASON MANY BRUINS DID NOT MAKE THE PAC 12 ALL TIME RUNNING BACK LIST. I really doubt many Bruins make the Top 25 list at any position- maybe Jackie Robinson,QB Gary Beban, and LB Jerry Robinson the rest did not perform, nor play on a winning team that was even close to winning a national title yet alone a conference championship.

    Pretty sad football program over in Westwood for the size of the university. This is why we call it Midget U all Bruins think big but perform little this is why they are so dependent on state money for support, and still after all this years have to rent a stadium to make it look like they are a major program.

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  18. No Wendell Tyler. No Frank Gifford. It’s not hard to see how these men alone helped one school finally compete at an elite championship level and another made his school must see entertainment. They were both that dominating in their era. Recency bias.

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  19. Wendall Tyler dominant? Good player not SC material though would have played behind AD, Rod McNeil, Allen Carter, Ricki Bell, Michael Hayes, Dwight Ford etc. Wendall, also fumbled too much so Mckay would have had a nice seat for him on the bench. Most of the good Bruin players from the past, and present suffer in the post season award category because the program rarely wins a conference championship, and competes for national championship.

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    1. Rod McNeil and Allen Carter would have been 1,000 yard rushers, competitive for All-American honors, at any other program. USC was so stacked in the backfield then that those guys never had many opportunities.

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  20. I do agree with OWNS- AD was a better athlete than Bush- Bush was faster but AD was the better football player, and definitely a 1st pick in baseball if he choose to pursue that. AD made a big mistake not pursuing a career in baseball he had Hall of Fame talent- speed, power, great throwing arm, amazing base stealing talent, and was a switch hitter who hit for average also. . People also forget that AD was also had a great leg for kicking, and as a soph he was our kicker on the kickoff team.

    AD was physical and tough, and could carry the team on his back in the 4th qtr. Mckay, would have made Bush a WR or flanker because he could not take the punishment of 30 or more carries a game.

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      1. …But you might want to see 67″s All Bush vs. UCLA video —amazing performance…not sure anybody tops what he did in that game.

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  21. There is no way I would put Christian MacCaffrey #9. That’s insane. I think MacCaffrey should have won the Heisman once and maybe twice.

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  22. As a former USC middle Linebacker, one who loved to Hit and Tackle anybody carrying the ball, I would rank my Teammate OJ as #1. I got to tackle him many times in the 1967 and 1968 seasons. Both in Spring practices and at the Coliseum in the Spring Games. OJ was slippery and had world class sprinter speed. He could fake you out in a heartbeat and never give you a clean shot at him. He was the move impressive and difficult back I ever tackled, Bar None!!
    #2 would be another Heisman Trophy winner, Marcus Allen. He was a very impressive man up close! Tall and had a very big presence about. His body of work speaks for itself!
    #3 would be Reggie Bush. I got to see him, up close, many times from the sidelines. He was a true, above USC standard Running back. He dished out the punishment to any would be tacklers. I was very impressed with his running style..
    I would also put on this list, my 1969 teammate, Clarence Davis. He ran for 1400 years in the 1969 season.
    All USC running backs listed certainly earned the right to be there. Their on field performances were outstanding.
    In retrospect, I never really had any opponent RB’s standout when I played. Obviously, they were good and earned the right to start for their team. In the 1968 season, Orgeon Staes huge running back, Bill “Earthquake” Enyart, was extremely hard to tackle. He ran for over 300 yards the week before our game. You think you made a good tackle on him, then look over to the sidelines, and the chains would move 5-6 yards at a time. This game was for the PAC-8 championship and the right to go to the Rose Bowl. The first half was very close, but Coach McKay made some great Halftime adjustments, and we did great in the second half..

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  23. As a former USC linebacker, and one who loved to tackle and put the “hit”on running backs, I rank OJ #1 and Reggie Bush #2 or 3 with Marcus Allen right there. I tackled OJ many times in spring 67,68 games and practices. He was very slippery and never gave to a large piece of him to tackle. I never tackled Marcus, but I’ve seen him up close and he was very impressive, both in size and in stature and his body of work speaks for itself. I saw Reggie Bush, up close, from the sidelines, at many USC games, and he was a very very hard runner and delivered the blow to any would be tacklers. Also, I would put my 1969 team’s RB Clarence Davis on the list.
    He ran for 1400 yards in our undefeated 1969 season!
    I really never had any issues or was impressed with any opponent RB’s in my four years at SC. All of our USC RB’s gave us more trouble in practice than the actual Game day RB’s.
    Bob Jensen #51 1969 Co-Captain

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    1. As a former USC linebacker, and one who loved to tackle and put the “hit”on running backs(in my dreams), I would rate Reggie Bush #1

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      1. Cannot go wrong with that pick.

        Of course, we are talking college, not pro. I mentioned Gale Sayers and Bush in the same breath, but that was the college-version Bush and the professional-Sayers.

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  24. I agree 100% with former USC linebacker Bob Jensen. OJ was in a league of his own because of his size, moves and speed. Probably right up there with Jim Brown, Walter Peyton in the top 3-4 of all time.

    No comments please on his personal life after football we are talking about great USC athletes here, and he was at the top. We all know the wrong choices he made after football.

    No one has mentioned Sam Cunningham- he probably would have won the Heisman if given the opportunity to play tailback rather than fullback. He too had it all-size, speed, jumping ability, and moves. Essentially Sam was Rick Bell with more power and speed. However, Sam never complained he remained a fullback, and blocked rather than carry the ball for the good of the team. We all saw what he did to Alabama when given the chance to play tailback as a soph. imagine what he would have done playing all 3 years at tailback rather than fullback.

    RIP -Sam ………you will never be forgotten especially in the great city of Santa Barbara where it all started along with your brothers-AC, Bruce, and Randall.

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    1. Sam was a Freshman RB against our varsity defense. He was a great talent and down field
      Runner.
      Very difficult to tackle also..
      He got better each week going up against our 1969 “Wild Bunch” defense.
      He, like every freshman football player, me included, had to pay the physical price every day at practice. The varsity players were much older and looked like NFL players!

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