FOOTBALL

In Memoriam: Dave Levy

Dave Levy was one of the most influential figures in USC football. He died in November at age 91.

Although he was not a head coach at USC, if you ask any player during the years he coached (1960-75), they would mention him and not John McKay as the coach they loved and had fond memories of from their days as Trojans.

And they all agreed Levy should have replaced McKay as USC coach following the 1975 season.

Levy taught me more about the history of USC football than any other coach. He would meet me for lunch at McKay’s across the street from USC and tell great stories about the past. He even used to bring me scrapbooks that his mother made of newspaper articles during his time at USC.

Sometimes during the lunches, I would call a former All-American from the past that Levy coached and put him on the phone. They hadn’t talked in years but immediately restored the USC bond.

He told me two great stories about Bear Bryant in Los Angeles here and here.

He also told me this one: After USC lost to Notre Dame, 51-0, in 1966 at the Coliseum, McKay had little desire to go to the old Sheraton-Town House hotel on Wilshire Blvd., where he would go after home games to talk to boosters.

McKay stayed in the locker room for so long after the game that stadium staff informed him they were turning out the lights. When McKay and Levy walked up the tunnel, there were no fans around. Or even wives, who had cars.

Instead of trying to get a taxi or going back to USC, McKay and Levy walked to the Town House via Vermont Ave. because McKay did not want to face the boosters. That’s about 4.5 miles. By the time the pair got to the hotel, there were about 15 boosters left to hear McKay speak.

Levy told me he and McKay didn’t speak during the walk.

Levy brought his five national championship rings (four as a coach, one as administrator) to lunch with me one day so I took a picture.

One of the mysteries for a lot of ex-USC football players is why Dave Levy did not get hired to succeed John McKay.

Levy said he was never told why he didn’t get the job but he believed USC president John Hubbard wanted someone who was not as close to McKay.

“He had clashed with McKay and wanted someone with fewer ties,” Levy said.

Another factor: Hubbard and Robinson always played racquetball together at USC and that sealed the deal in the eyes of some athletic dept. employees.

  • Don Coryell lasted only one season with McKay at USC (1960) as an assistant coach. He left because he used to get frustrated with McKay’s constant changing of the game plan during the week.

“Coryell was misunderstood,” Levy said. “On TV, he always looked upset and had a scowl on his face but in the seven-and-a-half years I worked for him I never heard him say a harsh word to be assistant.”

When Levy decided to get back into coaching after being an administrator at USC, he joined Coryell’s San Diego Chargers staff during the Dan Fouts era.

43 thoughts on “In Memoriam: Dave Levy”

    1. Always loved Levy — he was a special man. But McKay was no dummy either, P.T. And the players feared/respected him the way players do with Saban today.
      btw, really thoughtful, heartfelt piece by Mister Scott Wolf.

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    2. I have repeated this story before, but it was Levy that I had to get clearance from to get a uniform and become a walk-on.
      Levy said 97% of walk-ons dont make it, and I retorted
      “Well, I am going to make that percentage come down to 94%, Coach,”
      and I got my uniform

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    1. Happy New Year, Pasadena!
      Looks like our year long, online feud [everybody against everybody —against all flags, as it were] is temporarily subject to a ceasefire —to which I am not an official signatory —but to which I will abide. We have Lawyer John to thank….
      #….IKnewHisEcumenicismWouldDoUsInSomeday!

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      6. Correct, P.T.!
        [Saint Elizabeth’s Grammar School for you wasn’t it]?
        #IfSo,IGotToBeatYouGuysInBasketball…
        #..ButIHadFutureBruinTerrySchofieldOnMyTeam
        #[IBoxedTerryTwice;6feet,TwoVs.5Feet10]

        Liked by 1 person

      8. Micheal
        No cease fire. Did Bluto have a cease fire? Then why should we? Neudmyder, dead man, Yamamoto, dead man, Ohtani, dead man, grabbbyy, dead man. Did the Germans bomb Pearl Harbor? Let’s go

        Liked by 1 person

      9. Yep, P. T., I’m pretty sure it was Altadena —I remember it was a long station wagon drive to get there! What gym did you guys play in? I remember it was pretty nice.
        [Even though Gabby has said some pretty un-wonderful things I say we move on —remember that great scene in Mel Gibson’s “Passion of the Christ” where Jesus says “If you only love those who are kind to you where is the treasure in that”]?
        #I’llProbablyHaveToEatMyAdviceSoon,Though,Right?

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      10. Miller Moss defensive player award goes to Solomon Tuliapupu. The guy loves the trojans and has faithfully waited his turn. I hope he makes it big next year.

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  3. DAVE LEVY WAS MY DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR WHEN I PLAYED AT USC (1966-1970) HE WAS, BY FAR, THE BEST COACH ON JOHN MCKAY’S STAFF. I WAS THE DEFENSIVE CAPTAIN FOR THE 1968 AND 1969 SEASONS AND BACK THEN, ONLY THE CAPTAIN COULD GO TO THE SIDELINES AT TIMEOUTS, HE WAS FANTASTIC! HE WOULD BE A CALMING VOICE FOR ME AND TELL ME EXCTACTLY WAS TO SAY BACK AT THE DEFENSIVE HUDDLE. JOHN MCKAY WAS A NERVOUS WRECK ON THE SIDELINE AND I COULD NEVER GET A SENSIBLE RESPONSE FROM HIM. LEVY WOULD THEN STEP IN AND TELL ME EXACTLY WHAT TO SAY TO MY DEFENSIVE PLAYERS. IT WORKED.. WE WENT TO 4 STRAIGHT ROSE BOWLS, WON A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP IN 1967, LOST IN THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP IN1968.. MY RECORD AT USC WAS 29-2-2 !!
    I CALLED COACH LEVY EARLIER THIS YEAR TO SAY HI AND THANK HIM FOR HIS GREAT COACHING. HE REMEMBERED ME AND WE TALKED ABOUT PAST TROJAN GLORY.
    HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN THE NEXT HEAD COACH AFTER MCKAY WENT TO THR NFL!! RIP COACH LEVY!!
    BOB JENSEN #51 LB TEAM 1969 TEAM CO CAPTAIN

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      1. Thank you Michael..
        As a 17-20 year old, playing at such a high level of competition and expectations, I got to analyze each of my assistant coaches and, of course, Coach McKay. Most of the assistant coaches were excellent in their specific tasks. I say most, because my linebacker’s coach, was just average and played favorites, in my opinion. Phil Krueger came in from Utah State as their head coach. He became the Linebacker’s coach when I was a Sophomore LB.
        Let’s just say, we didn’t get along well. And after McKay moved on to the NFL, Krueger went with him to become the Tampa Bay General Manager! That should tell you about his lack of coaching of Linebackers!!
        Luckily, I came from a high school (Magnolia Anaheim,Ca) who have fantastic coaches who all excelled as college players. So I was coached up before I came to USC. At USC, they didn’t coach much, expecting you to be at a high level of talent, just a refinement of physical and mental techniques . I can’t say enough great things about John McKay. He made the ultimate decision to offer me a scholarship, which changed my life.
        I should write a book on my 4 years of football at USC. Also, I decided to become a Dentist while taking my undergraduate Business degree.
        So I went to USC Dental School for another 4years. Coach McKay was instrumental in getting me into the Dental School by his recommendations for me to the Dean of Admissions .
        I was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the second round, but once I was accepted by the Dental School, I decided to take that option!
        Cheers, Bob Jensen 1969 CoCaptain

        Liked by 1 person

      1. He did when talked to him. He had multiple things on his mind. Levy was just focused on telling me what exactly we needed to do defensively ..

        Liked by 1 person

      1. Thank you !
        I was a complete joy to have played for USC at that time.
        Coach McKay was the absolute administrator out on the field. He surrounded himself with outstanding athletes and assistant coaches.
        Off the field, he was a really nice man. But once he got on the practice or game field, he changed to being a absolute leader.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. I loved that story Dave Levy told of him and McKay after the 51-0 game because I was a little kid and can remember listening on the radio to the game in my friends back yard and feeling so bad about the Trojans losing. That story of McKay dreading having to talk to the alumni and walking 4 miles to the hotel really humanized him to me.

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      3. I was very very fortunate to have played for John McKay.. I was surrounded by many characters, some great,some good, and some very questionable !!

        Liked by 1 person

      4. What was your teammate Tim Rossovich like? I read an article about him in Sports Illustrated back then and he sounded very zany. Do you ever have reunions with the Wild Bunch teammates?

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      1. OJ was a very good teammate.
        He came in from San Francisco City College as a jC transfer, being a Junior in the Fall.
        I was a Freshman in the Spring of 1967. I was the Captain of our undefeated Freshman football team of 1966, trying to make the Varsity.
        There was one opening for a linebacker, with about 14 candidates.
        At that time, Spring Practice was brutal. 4 weeks of full contact with 4 taped scrimmages.
        I remember the first few days, everyone was pointing out OJ, and I never heard if him.
        He was only allowed to practice that first week of Spring. I had a great tackle on him for a loss on a swing pass. I was knew that tackle helped me beat out the other 13 linebackers for that coveted last spot.
        After that first week, Mckay told OJ to go run track. He had seen enough and didn’t want to risk any injury to his newly acquired Superstar.
        OJ then concentrated on the USC track team. He had world class speed. He, Earl McCulloch, Lennox Miller and a super fast white guy, proceeded to set the 4×100 yd world record. OJ had something like 9.2 or 9.3 speed and he didn’t even run the anchor leg! That was done by Lennox Miller, who was from Jamaica.
        Back then, OJ was a great teammate. He was somewhat quiet, not boastful, but comfortable and confident in his
        God given abilities. He was married, which was unusual at the time, and happy.
        Later, He had two children, and unfortunately, one died of drowning.
        He got divorced, moved to Hollywood and changed for the worst. The rest in history.

        Liked by 1 person

  4. Hubbard was a boring braggart – I think Woody Allen based ‘Zelig’ on him. I had to do an interview with him as a transfer student – held in that sterile totem Waite Phillips Hall.

    After the brief queries it morphed into his ‘….who and what I know…’ His friendship with Robinson is what I’d expect – one giant back end of a horse rolling around with another. Heard him referred to has ‘Sherrif John’ – he sure looked like one.

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  5. Everything that Scott said about Levy and McKay smacks of the truth. And then Bob Jensen confirmed that Levy was the right man for the job. Unfortunately, I don’t think that it is particularly unusual that the best person for the job gets passed over. What would be USC’s football legacy if Levy was head coach for 15 years instead of guys like Tollner, Smith, and Hackett. And the best person was passed over because the President liked playing racquetball with the other guy and really didn’t like that you were friendly with McKay. Makes you want to puke. Wonder if Folt makes hiring decisions based on who you hang with and what you do in your spare time.

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    1. Well said! Dave Levy was the right coach for USC after Mckay left.
      I never knew the politics behind him not being moved up to the Head Coaching Spot, but was the class act of the assistant coaches and certainly the smartest!!

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  6. I have heard over the years that Levy’s Jewish religion made some SC power brokers at the time nervous. Someone told me (and don’t know if it’s true) that Robinson in campaigning to get the job would raise the issue by saying “do you think SC is ready for a Jewish coach.

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    1. Thar wouldn’t surprise me at all (Robinson’s veiled sarcasm playing to the ‘in situ’ LACC mindset that controlled the school esp someone like Hubbard). His bailing out in 1981 for the Ram job was the reason Garrett loathed him and finally fired him after that extension that Robindon thought made him bullet proof. Robinson also worked back channels to be at the front of the line when it was obvious Larry Smith was about to get sacked. Doug Krikorisn gave him the nickname ‘Jolly John’. Robinson was a condescending clown with the recruits too….never liked him.

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    2. Robinson was not there when I played . I believed he was with an NFL team, when the call came for him at USC.
      In talking to other teammate’s who played for Robinson, they had somewhat kind words for him.

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  7. Hey blog members, I want to bring your attention to what I uncovered on the blog tonight. I will try to explain so everyone can understand.

    Some of you may have noticed most of the “usernames” appear in black letters and a few appear in red letters. Here’s the difference, the red color is a live link that when clicked on takes you to a web page that’s unique to that username.

    It may appear as an example of a WordPress page or could be the actual site that you own and pay for, where you can edit information about yourself or your site so readers know where you are coming from. You can create as many pages like this one or sub-pages as you like and manage all of your content inside of WordPress.

    The following was a post made under the blog enter:” In Memoriam: Dave Levy”

    gabby
    JANUARY 1, 2024 AT 3:22 AM
    (the reply contained an embedded video from YouTube of a white Rhino defecating)

    Here’s the issue, when you click on the username it takes you to “Inside USC”. The person who posted the video is the owner of “Inside USC” which we all know is Scott Wolf. He does a write-up in memory of this person then basically shits on him. This action is despicable and disgusting.

    What are your thoughts?

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  8. Gabby,

    Ur theory doesn’t prove a thing. I have spoken to Scooter at SC badketball games and I have asked him if he kicks people off for what they write and he says no, he lets them be. I will say simeine else is doing it and not Scooter

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      1. If he had this for SC,it would be great…he had it for Dave ’cause as he states Dave paid attention to him in a way he liked

        Liked by 1 person

      2. I think he has it for “un-official” parts of USC…. and for the greats of the past…. like Arnett….

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