Bid to Play USC Leaves Aztecs Seeing Double : College football: Adding Trojans to the schedule gives San Diego State two games in one day. The Aztecs are looking to make some changes.

SAN DIEGO —  For five years now, Fred Miller, San Diego State athletic director, has been telling people the Aztec football program can be a powerhouse.

But playing two schools in one day? This is ridiculous.

Mike Garrett, USC associate athletic director and a one-time Heisman Trophy winner, said Thursday that the on-again, off-again Trojan-Aztec football game is on again--tentatively set for Sept. 12, 1992.

Glen Tuckett, BYU athletic director, said Thursday that, as far as he knew, the 1992 BYU-SDSU game still was set for Sept. 12, 1992.

Said Garrett on USC-SDSU: “I’m looking at it as a closed deal even though the contracts have not yet been signed. It seems all parties are in line. We just need to finalize it.”

Said Tuckett on BYU-SDSU: “If there’s going to be three of us playing, we’ll take on (SDSU) in the first half.”

Yes, but wouldn’t it be better to get the Aztecs in the second half?

“As long as we double up on them,” Tuckett said.

The 1992 USC-SDSU game was first proposed by the Greater San Diego Sports Assn. last November. It involved a dizzying bit of schedule shuffling by Miller for that year--he switched the BYU game from Sept. 12 to Nov. 21 and moved the Hawaii game Sept. 19 from San Diego to Honolulu.

BYU and Hawaii both agreed, and things appeared set.

Last week it was learned that USC canceled the deal because the Coliseum, USC’s home field, would not be undergoing renovation until at least 1993, allowing the Trojans to schedule another home game in 1992 instead of traveling to San Diego.

Then, this week, USC, apparently worried about its open date in 1992, renewed talks with the Aztecs, sending the GSDSA scrambling to see if it had enough time to put together ticket and corporate sponsorship plans to ensure the game’s financial success.

That also sent Miller scrambling, because he had sent letters to BYU and Hawaii notifying the schools the original 1992 schedule would remain in place.

Now, USC will not be getting as big a financial guarantee as before--although he wouldn’t discuss figures, Garrett acknowledged that the GSDSA’s current offer is less than its original offer--and a new round of schedule shuffling apparently will take place.

Garrett said the USC-SDSU “deal seems pretty solid now,” but added it may be moved to Sept. 5, 1992, if Miller has trouble moving BYU. Of course, that would involve moving the SDSU-Cal State Fullerton game, which is set for Sept. 5, 1992. Stan Sheriff, Hawaii athletic director, said his school has offered to play Cal State Fullerton Sept. 5, which would allow SDSU to schedule USC then. Sheriff said he declined a couple of other switches Miller proposed.

“That’s as far as we’ll bend,” Sheriff said. “We’re not going to tinker with our schedule.”

Garrett’s preference is to keep USC-SDSU on Sept. 12. That way, he said, people would travel to San Diego and fill hotel rooms for Labor Day weekend--Sept. 7--and then again for the USC-SDSU game Sept. 12.

“That makes better business sense for San Diego,” Garrett said.

Miller could not be reached for comment Thursday. John Reid, executive director of the GSDSA, said it was premature to comment.

Meanwhile, in Provo, Utah, Tuckett says he is still willing to help if the Aztecs need it.

“We always try to be accommodating,” Tuckett said. “I’m sure we can come up with a solution. Whatever (Miller) wants to do, it’s no problem. If we’re going to make something go, we’ve got to cooperate.

“The climate in intercollegiate sports today . . . conferences are formed and unformed, you know changes are going to happen. There’s no sense in getting mad--you have to get glad again. Getting USC at home, that’s a significant thing to do.”

And a significant amount of work. The confusion isn’t expected to be cleared up until next week--stay tuned.

Said Tuckett: “I don’t know what’s going on.”

Said Sheriff: “I have no idea what the solution is going to be.”