Pro Career a Field of Broken Dreams for White

Very few football players had a career as successful, or star-crossed, as Charles White.

White was a superstar running back at San Fernando High in the mid-1970s, teaming with Kenny Moore, Raymond Williams and the late Kevin Williams to form the greatest backfield in San Fernando Valley history.

The Tigers won consecutive City Section titles in 1974 and 1975, and Moore, White and Kevin Williams were named City Players of the Year. More than just a football star, White set a national high school record in the 330-yard low hurdles in 1976.

White moved on to USC, where in 1979 he won the Heisman Trophy--awarded the top player in the nation--and helped the Trojans to three Rose Bowl victories.

White was a first-round pick of the Cleveland Browns in the 1980 National Football League draft but he had problems adjusting to the pro game.

After gaining only 621 yards his first two seasons, he admitted to a cocaine and alcohol problem in 1982. After his revelation, the Browns established a revolutionary confidential drug program to help players with chemical dependency problems.

White was never successful in Cleveland, breaking an ankle in a preseason game in 1983 and was finally released in 1985.

His former coach at USC, John Robinson--who had moved on to the Los Angeles Rams--gave White a second chance at the NFL.

But his troubles weren’t over.

In August 1987, when he was supposed to be in training camp, White was arrested by police in Orange County on a misdemeanor charge of being under the influence of a controlled substance after appearing incoherent and waving a trash can lid on a street corner.

White responded by leading the NFL in rushing in 1987. But in 1988, White was suspended for violating the league’s substance-abuse policy and he retired after the season.

White returned to USC and eventually to Robinson. He earned his degree in 1993, and was hired by Robinson, who had returned to coach the Trojans. White was named USC’s running backs coach, a position he’s held the past four years.