It is now decades later, and not a day goes by that someone doesn't
come up to
Anthony Davis and mention his days as an Irish-killer. In fact, sometimes
all they
have to say is two words - "Notre Dame" - and it's understood.
Trojans love him.
The Fighting Irish hate him.
But for Davis, who became legendary for single-handedly crushing Notre
Dame,
scoring 11 touchdowns against them in his career en route to two national
titles,
Irish could someday run in the family.
If you know USC football, then you know Davis.
You know Davis rushed for 3,928 yards in his career - third in all-time
rushing
for the Trojans behind Heisman winners Charles White and Marcus Allen.
You might remember he was one of the greatest kickoff return men in
college football history,
averaging almost 35 yards per kickoff and returning six for touchdowns.
You know him as the player who Notre Dame so feared and hated that Irish
students
burned him in effigy and taped pictures of him on the walkways of the
campus in 1973
so they could trample his face.
Davis, who has done some acting in television and film, also continues
to be a
spokesperson for Nike - he maintains he is the first USC athlete to
wear Nike.
"They used to kick Nike off campus when I was in school," Davis recalled.
Nike had reason to keep an eye on Davis - especially during two special
games against
Notre Dame that, to this day, remain as two of the greatest individual
performances in
Trojan football history.
In 1972, Davis ran for an astonishing six touchdowns in a 45-23 win
against Notre Dame
that led USC to a Rose Bowl win versus Ohio State and a national title.
But it was the 1974 game that most people remember-but not just because
Davis rushed for four touchdowns. It was how the team did it.
Notre Dame, then No. 2 in the country, jumped out to 24-0 first-half
lead in front of a stunned
Coliseum crowd. Davis scored a seemingly insignificant touchdown to
close it to 24-6 at the half,
but all hope seemed lost.
That was until Davis got his hands on the ball, taking the opening kickoff
of the second half 102
yards for a touchdown that electrified the team and a frenzied crowd.
Davis' touchdown opened
the floodgates as USC ran its lead to 55-24 in less than 17 minutes.
Davis scored twice more
in the third quarter in what is considered one of the greatest - and
most improbable - comebacks
in college football history.
"We turned into madmen," was Davis' famous quote after the touchdown
barrage against
Notre Dame. Madmen indeed, but it was Notre Dame that was driven mad
as Irish fans
watched USC win the Rose Bowl, 18-17, against Ohio State to capture
its second
national title in three years.
The game made Davis a legend - and a figure of hatred for Notre Dame
fans.
After the game, Davis, who was the last to leave the Coliseum-bruised
and
battered-encountered firsthand just how much Notre Dame fans hated
him.
"I come outside and I notice these people in dark clothes,
and this woman comes out of the shadows and has a crucifix and
she says,
"No one does that against Notre Dame. You must be the devil,'" Davis
said.
"I just looked and stared at this woman. She kept mumbling and talking
as I was walking
and she says, "That'll never happen again. Thank goodness you're leaving
this place.'"
Davis did leave, and no one has since inflicted what he did on Notre Dame.
He was there this year when Notre Dame had its own 1972-like 21-point
comeback against
USC in the unearthly rain earlier this year. And he was there when
USC finally beat UCLA
for the first time in nine years.
For Davis, it's the spirit of those two big games he misses most about
his playing days at USC.
And while last week marked the 25th anniversary of the "Comeback,"
it's an everyday topic for Davis.
"A day hasn't gone by in 25 years people don't talk to me about that
game," he said.
"That's what is amazing to me - this (year) is the anniversary, but
I get it all the time."
Because of that day, the Notre Dame Club of Los Angeles put him on trial
in 1997 for
"high crimes and misdemeanors against the Irish."
ha ha