USC's 1977 NFL draft class was large, historic, and clearly special
USC's 1976 team finished No. 2 in the country and then watched 14 Trojans get picked in the 1977 NFL draft. Many strong pros emerged from that class
In recent years, we have seen LSU, Georgia, and Ohio State produce all-time-great NFL draft classes. In the more distant past, USC football did that sort of thing. The 1977 NFL draft class is one such example, as we noted several years ago: "(Ricky) Bell was taken in the first round with two USC teammates, Marvin Powell by the New York Jets and Gary Jeter by the New York Giants.
Both Powell and Jeter played a full decade in the NFL, with Jeter playing 12 years. Powell, though, had the better career, making six Pro Bowl teams and three All-Pro honors. "USC's only second-round pick from the 1977 draft, Dave Lewis, made the 1980 NFC Pro Bowl team.
Most of the other draft picks didn't pan out, but much as Pat Haden -- taken outside the top 150 in the 1975 draft -- had a reasonably productive NFL career, another USC quarterback, Vince Evans, played above his draft position. Evans was taken at No. 140 in the 1977 draft.
He parlayed that mid-level draft selection into a pro career which lasted nearly 20 years, in the NFL and the USFL. Evans finally retired in 1995 with the Raiders in the first year of their return to Oakland from Los Angeles. "Eric Williams was picked No.