USC Can't Compete With Pro Teams, President Says

April 3, 1960: The president of USC says his athletic program can't compete with the Rams and Dodgers. And in an era of declining attendance for Southern California college teams while the pros were thriving, Dr. Norman Topping said college football needed some help from the pros to survive. "Pro football has some obligation toward building up college football. It's their only farm system," Topping told The Times' Mal Florence in the first of a series of stories on college presidents. "The professional football teams will kill off college football through radio and TV as professional baseball has done to the minor leagues." Topping also noted that the pros and colleges have different objectives. "The pros are a business venture," he said. "College football is a recreation, a rallying point for students and alumni alike." -- Keith Thursby