Johnnie Morton

Former USC and NFL wide receiver Johnnie Morton was eating at a Corona del Mar health food restaurant three months ago when he struck up a conversation with another avid follower of mixed martial arts. "I'm a huge fan of it," Morton said. "I know more about MMA guys than I do NFL players. I know everything about most guys: their stats, who they lost to, who they won against. I've watched it since the UFC [Ultimate Fighting Championship] first came out."

Although he was denied a urine sample for drug testing by former football player Johnnie Morton following Morton's mixed martial arts debut Saturday night at the Coliseum, Armando Garcia, executive director of the California State Athletic Commission, plans to run tests on Morton using a sample supplied on Friday. That sample was for steroid testing. "We will be using that [sample] now to also test for drugs of abuse," said Garcia. Results are expected in about a week.

Former USC and NFL wide receiver Johnnie Morton tested positive for elevated levels of the steroid epitestosterone before suffering a June 2 knockout loss in his mixed martial arts fighting debut at the Coliseum, the California State Athletic Commission announced Wednesday. Armando Garcia, executive director of the commission, said because Morton refused a post-fight drug test and has since failed to explain his actions, he is subject to a permanent revocation of his fighting license.

The mission had been clear. Todd Marinovich and the USC offense had to go 77 yards to counter the latest blow delivered by UCLA--a one-yard touchdown plunge by fullback Kevin Smith that had given the Bruins a 42-38 lead with 1:19 left in 1990, in the highest-scoring game in the cross-town rivalry. USC now was on UCLA's 23-yard line with 26 seconds left. Marinovich and wide receiver Johnnie Morton had one big play left.

Chad Morton is small, a little bit fragile . . . and very, very fast. USC gave him the ball for the first time this season on a pitch in the first quarter Saturday. Morton headed around the right end, and he was off. Sixty-nine yards later, he was hauled down at Stanford's 11-yard line by the last man who had a prayer, cornerback Frank Primus. "It's amazing what speed does," USC Coach John Robinson said.

What has the Morton family meant to USC football? Let us count the yards. Johnnie Morton--the Detroit Lion receiver best remembered for catching the winning touchdown pass from Todd Marinovich with 16 seconds left in the Trojans' last victory over UCLA in 1990--is USC's all-time leading receiver in yards with 3,201.

Chad Morton, USC's kick returner, took four snaps at tailback in practice as Coach John Robinson moved to shore up his team's thin ranks at running back. Starting tailback Delon Washington's one-game suspension was extended to three games by the NCAA, a decision USC is appealing. Shawn Walters, accused of taking money from an agent, will not be eligible until the season's fourth game, against Houston.

All hail the Trojan Mouse. On a day when USC dumped Oregon State, 46-17, redshirt freshman Chad Morton zoomed 73 yards on a cutback sweep in the third quarter to give USC a 20-10 lead and put some life into a restless Coliseum crowd of 48,069.

Even though it surprised no one on the USC football team or anyone who watched the team's Rose Bowl practices last December, there was an electrical charge generated when the tiniest Trojan took command of the USC-Oregon State game Saturday. It's difficult to define a football play more exciting than the sight of a fast, little guy making slow, big guys look silly. A guy like Chad Akio Morton.

Wide receiver Johnnie Morton, a disappointment as a rookie last season, is now a leading candidate to replace Mel Gray as the Lions' kick return specialist. Gray, who returned three kickoffs for touchdowns last season, signed a $2 million contract with the Houston Oilers, leaving Detroit scrambling to find a worthy replacement. Morton, the Lions' first-round draft pick from USC, caught only three passes last year but showed promise as a kick returner.