Road to 1991 Perfection: Kennedy Was a Big Fan of Beno, Not So Much USC

Lincoln Kennedy, who should run for political office with a lyrical and historical name such as his, encountered one group not far from home that would never earn his support, never get his vote.

The University of Southern California Trojans.

Coming out of San Diego as a coveted, oversized lineman, Kennedy took his USC recruiting trip and found himself turned off at every turn. He wanted to commit to Michigan at first and eventually signed on with Washington.

The Men of Troy? Never going to happen.

"I visited there and I know about the arrogance of USC," Kennedy said. "They had 48 recruits come in and they had 18 scholarships. Right then and there, I'm kind of set off. I'm coming from humble beginnings and I can't afford USC. Second off, it just felt impersonal."

Anything else?

"Every place I went had their little song and their little victory thing — it seemed so blah," he said. "It sounded like so Los Angeles and San Diego, where I came from. I didn't want to be part of it."

This is another in series of vignettes about the UW 1991 national championship team, supplementing the conversation for the pandemic-delayed season that begins soon. We're in week 9 in this throwback, which brought a showdown with USC in Los Angeles.

Every time he played against USC, Kennedy came properly motivated. He won three of his four meetings against the Trojans, among them a 14-3 decision in Los Angeles in 1991. He opened big holes and was so adept at this, he became a first-team All-American and and No. 1 draft pick.

Kennedy was one of the big reasons Husky tailback Beno Bryant, and a Los Angeles native, rushed for 158 yards on 26 carries and scored on touchdown runs of 55 and 7 yards.

"Beno was one of those backs I had tremendous respect for," he said. "It was just bad timing for him because he came after Greg Lewis, and, when Napoleon Kaufman got there, everyone was enthralled with Napoleon. The coaches loved Napoleon's speed. We had Napoleon Kaufman, Jay Barry and Beno, backs who could do everything. Beno had to share the spotlight, the reps."

Today, Kennedy is a single father of two and living in Phoenix. Always a huge man, he's dropped weight from 400-plus pounds to 375. He goes for walks and rides a stationary bike.

After a successful NFL career, he owns a couple of restaurants. He's a talk-show host on a FOX sports radio and a color commentator with Brent Musberger for the Las Vegas Raiders.

He's got plenty of things that inspire him these days. Yet he still hasn't forgot the things that turned him.

"USC was always a very passionate game for me growing up," Kennedy said. "I didn't like USC."

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