Traveler 8 being groomed in Hemet

She's calm, obedient, smart and even at 5 years old, she's majestic.

In other words, she has the ideal qualities to fill some very big horse shoes.

Her registered name is Betica, but this Andalusian filly is waiting in the wings on a Hemet ranch for her debut as Traveler, one of the most celebrated college mascots.

Trainer Diane Dodd is grooming this sweet-natured purebred to be Traveler 8, the white horse that performs at all USC home football games with a Trojan warrior astride.

The school is so serious about its good-luck symbol, the name Traveler is a registered trademark. Many fans swear that the animal's noble presence affects the outcome of games.

"I have high hopes for her," said Dodd, 48, who gives lessons, rehabilitates abused horses and works with show champions. During her 20 years in the business, she's trained one of singer Sheryl Crow's horses to become a winning trick horse.

Obviously, the reign of Traveler 8 won't be under the leadership of Pete Carroll, USC's head coach who resigned this week to become head coach of the Seattle Seahawks.

There's no way to predict when the equine heiress apparent will be ready to set hoof in the Los Angeles Coliseum, said her owner, Nadine Tilley, who keeps 28 horses at the Hemet ranch on Los Rancherias Road.

After all, the horse's gray coat must whiten, which could take years. And she must outgrow her skittishness and mature a bit. "We'll just know when she's ready," Tilley, 62, said. "Young horses can be silly and flighty and have short attention spans."

Then there's the matter of the incumbent. An active 18-year-old Andalusian gelding, owned and trained by Joanne Asman in Burbank, Traveler 7 won't be put out to pasture anytime soon, Tilley said. After all, horses can live into their 30s.

It's not merely chance or coincidence that several of the 28 horses she's raising are poised to become future Travelers. Her husband, William Tilley, 70, an accountant and USC alumnus, endowed his alma mater with $2 million four years ago to maintain the mascot in perpetuity, his wife said.

The tradition started when school officials persuaded a man named Richard Saukko, who rode his white horse in the 1961 Rose Parade, to appear at the Coliseum during USC games.

Ever since, whenever the Trojans score, the band plays "Conquest" and Traveler gallops around the arena. The breed of horse has changed over the decades, but the required color has remained white.

As part of Traveler 8's education, Dodd must expose and desensitize her to honking cars, screaming fans, aggressive children, barking dogs, blaring music and covered arenas. "I take her out of her comfort zone," Dodd said. That means street riding and lots of horse shows.

Dodd works with Betica in Hemet and at her Moreno Valley training center on Locust Avenue. She's also trying to transform another of Tilley's horses into a Traveler. This one's a 7-year-old Andalusian gelding, registered as DiMaggio, whom Dodd calls Joe.

She said it will take awhile before he's ready for prime time as Traveler.

"He can be nippy," she said.

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