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Make that a fútbol upset.
#14 USC took down #2 Portland, 2-1, in women's soccer on Sunday. One service had the Pilots ranked as high as #1 coming into the match, though they also lost, 2-1, at UCLA on Friday.
This was the Trojans' biggest victory since knocking off third-seeded Santa Clara in the opening round of the NCAA tournament last season, but Coach Ali Khosroshahin was quick to put the win in perspective. "It's early in the year still. [Portland] had some injuries on their side, and they're still trying to find themselves. It's a good win, but I don't want to put it up on a pedestal yet because we still have work to do. We shouldn't be really satisfied. There are some things that we did poorly today that we need to address in this next week of training."
Specifically, Khosroshahin said USC needed to get "better with our possession." From the stands, it was easy to agree with his assessment. The Women of Troy weren't checking to the ball on set plays in the second half, struggled to apply consistent pressure on Portland's defense, and gave up the ball on some sloppy passes.
On the bright side, Kristin Olsen had another solid performance in the net, making some clutch saves and falling just short of a sixth consecutive shutout. Alyssa Davila came off the bench for her fourth goal of the season, and Amy Rodriguez notched the seventh game-winner of her USC career.
The Women of Troy have nearly two weeks until their next game. Though there are no specific injuries on the team, Khosroshahin is glad to give his players an opportunity to overcome fatigue. "Our season is so condensed that it's nice to have a little bit of a break to give their legs a chance to recover."
The next match will be at home against Oregon on Oct. 12. Looking forward to league play, Khosroshahin repeated a familiar refrain in USC athletics. "We just want to take it one game at a time and hope to improve each day."
A crowd of 665 enjoyed what may be the best-kept secret of USC spectator sports. Athletes from other USC teams tend to come out (swimmers and football players were in attendance today) and enjoy the sunshine. The furthest seats at McAlister Field are a short throw-in from the touch line. The crowd is usually spirited, and players, referees and other fans are known to engage in good-natured heckling.
Unlike larger venues, rowdy spectators don't get drowned out. After one Portland booster futilely screamed at the referee for a card, a Trojan supporter turned around and yelled for everyone to hear, "It's not Mother's Day!"
Photo courtesy USC Athletics/Jeff Sipsey
Prior to Saturday's game in Seattle, I posed a few questions about the Trojans and said that they were probably "nitpicky." Apparently, they were more important than I thought. Though a win is a win (Rich Perelman and I are in total agreement on that one), USC barely escaped against Washington. At the end of the day, the Trojans survived thanks to amazing talent and depth on both sides of the ball. The defense was impressive, holding much-hyped QB Jake Locker to 90 yards passing and a team-high 50 yards rushing. But nobody is going to argue it wasn't closer than it should have been.
Here's a look at the same questions a couple days later.
- Can anybody make the BIG play? [On the ground.] This was the only question that USC half-answered. Chauncey Washington emerged with a big 53-yard rumble, mostly in open space. He showed great speed considering he's USC's power tailback. It's impossible to knock a guy who did that AND carried the team on his back by grinding for yards between the tackles. But -- and there's always a but -- I think I was more impressed by Stafon Johnson. He ran for more yards on fewer carries than Chauncey Washington and continued to show off his elusiveness that could break games wide open. His 45-yard run was the second longest of the game. I was hoping USC would give #13 more touches, especially in the third, but I was happy to see two backs gain over 100 yards in the same game. That hasn't happened since Thunder and Lightning.
- Can anybody make the BIG play? [In the air.] This is where USC fell short, literally. Once again, the longest reception of the game was made by the tight end (Fred Davis, 32 yards). USC couldn't stretch Washington vertically and Booty had a rough game despite passable passing stats. His timing was clearly off with his receivers, though word is he wasn't thrilled with the wet balls.
- Can USC turn around turnovers? Nope. USC coughed up the ball three times and it hurt. They did get two turnovers of their own, one of which (on special teams) may have been the biggest play of the game.
- Will the Trojans survive a game? Nope. More Trojans were lost in battle, and it REALLY hurt. Center Kris O'Dowd dislocated his right knee, and with original starter Matt Spanos still struggling with a triceps injury, this was terrible news for USC. On the same play O'Dowd went down, right tackle Chilo Rachal injured his right knee (sprain). The offensive line sputtered for a while and has a long road ahead. Shareece Wright suffered a hamstring injury and other players seemed to get dinged up.
- Can Greg Woidneck punt? Does it matter? Woidneck's 38.3-yard average wasn't great. His blocked punt at a critical time in the fourth quarter was bad. He wasn't the only kicker to struggle. David Buehler was 3/3 on PATs and hit two important field goals, but missed one that would have taken a lot of stress off of the Trojans.
- Is USC's schedule the toughest? Let's see what the rankings are like, but it's safe to say Cal is #3 and Oregon might be as high as #5. Overall the Pac-10 acquitted themselves well, and Nebraska should move up, too. Notre Dame lost their fifth in a row, but there's no saving them, anyway.
- Will it rain? The weather wasn't as bad as it could have been, but bad enough to contribute to a very sloppy game. It's obvious USC prefers a nice, dry Coliseum.
Now, the biggest question is the mental game. Besides all the other errors, USC had 16 penalties for 161 yards. That's just terrible. Even though Rey Maualuga wasn't called for "disconcerting" this week, that word describes the entire game for the Trojans.
The Trojans had a bad day on the gridiron, but it could have been worse. They could have done what half of the top 10 teams in the country did on Saturday -- lose. Here's a quick look at what used to be the nation's finest, and what it means in the land of Troy.
- USC couldn't breathe easy until the final minute of the game. The entire contest was ugly: 16 penalties for 161 yards, 3 turnovers, 1 blocked punt, 1 missed field goal -- and that was just the Trojans. They did not play like the nation's #1 team, but it's OK. Nobody did.
- LSU won 34-9, but it took them a long time to pull away. Though they'll probably gain a smidge on USC in the polls, they didn't look like the best team in the nation, either. They trailed Tulane, 9-7, and held a feeble 10-9 lead at halftime.
- Oklahoma was the highest ranked team to crash, by a 27-24 margin in Colorado. They may have cleared the way for another Pac-10 team (Cal) to crack the top 3. If nothing else, Bob Stoops' career record fell to 90-20. Though still third in winning percentage on the list of top active coaches, he's now a little further behind Pete Carroll (69-12). But he didn't lose any ground to the coach at ...
- Florida, who, like the Sooners, fell on a last-second field goal. Auburn won, 20-17. Urban Meyer's career coaching record, though still second in active winning percentage, fell to 65-13. Pete Carroll has a little breathing room at the top.
- West Virginia fell to #18 South Florida on Friday. Though this game had no immediate impact on the Trojans, some pollsters (Kirk Herbstreit, for example) are talking about putting Oregon in this spot. That would mean three of their top five teams are from the Pac-10. Les Miles probably isn't too concerned since not enough voters will place the Ducks this high, but so much for SEC supremacy.
- Cal escaped with a victory in Oregon, making it clear who will be the Trojans' top challenger for their sixth straight Pac-10 crown.
- Texas fell to Kansas State. USC fans still bitter from a couple of years ago might be happy about that. What's more interesting is that Kansas State is such a major spoiler. Who can forget 2003 when they tripped up Oklahoma in the Big 12 championship game? Or 2002 when they were one of just two blemishes on USC's record? Now the Longhorns will limp into the Red River Shootout to face an equally embarrassed Sooner squad.
Instead of droning on about each team, let's just cut to the chase. The following teams from the AP Top 25 lost TO UNRANKED TEAMS: 3, 4, 7, 10, 13, 21, and 22. Numbers 5 and 11 were also beaten, but at least by decent competition. Number 9 escaped an unranked squad, but barely.
There'll be plenty to talk about in the polls on Monday.
There have been some murmurs about a new USC football facility for a couple weeks, and now there's some detail from the inside -- but no official pictures.
We noticed this sketch lying around Heritage Hall but won't be able to confirm until Monday whether it's the latest drawing. Based on the description on USCRipsIt.com, it seems like a good possibility.
A lot of people thought USC answered all the big questions after going to the air last week to take down the Cougars. There may not be many questions for this Trojan squad to answer at this early stage of the season, but there are some. These are nitpicky considering how embarrassingly good the team is, but still need to be asked ...
- Can anybody make the BIG play? Some people have started grumbling that Booty hasn't hit any deep bombs this year. Truth be told, nobody has busted out with any mind-numbing long play in the first three games. While there have been a few big, exciting gains, nobody has gone more than half the field in one down. The longest run of the year was a 50-yard rumble by Stanley Havili -- a fullback. The longest reception of the year was a 35-yard pickup by Fred Davis -- a tight end. The longest interception return was 24 yards by Kyle Moore -- a defensive end. Those are three positions you wouldn't expect to make the team's longest plays, especially considering the speed and talent USC has at their other positions. On special teams, Desmond Reed has a 44-yard punt return and a 14-yard punt return, both team highs. There haven't been any fumble recoveries run back to date. Will anybody make a Reggie Bush-style highlight?
- Can USC turn around turnovers? About a month ago, Art from Trojan Football Analysis taught us about the significance of turnovers. So far, USC hasn't given him many more data points -- and the ones he has aren't pretty. With just four takeaways (3 interceptions, 1 fumble) to six giveaways (4 interceptions, 2 fumbles), the team is on pace for its first negative turnover margin in the Pete Carroll era. His teams have been legendary thanks to a +1.5 per game margin in his first five years. Last season, his sixth, it was a mere +0.3. This year, it's an ugly -0.7.
- Will the Trojans survive a game? Without injury, that is. It's a good thing this team is so deep, because their training room is stocked with more talent than many other teams have in their entire locker rooms. Football is a grinding, physical sport. But how many teams could lose four starters in their first three games and barely blink?
- Can Greg Woidneck punt? Does it matter? Nobody can fault this guy for wasting opportunities -- he's barely had any. He didn't get to take the field against Washington State and is averaging just two kicks per game. With a respectable 41.7-yard average, long of 51, and 33% inside the 20, he may be on pace for a decent season. A few years ago, lack of opportunity made Tom Malone ineligible for NCAA record books -- and derailed his faux Heisman campaign.
- Is USC's schedule the toughest? People are starting to rethink the SEC hype. Here's another fact for your next debate with a Southerner: Only five NCAA Division 1-A schools have never scheduled a lower-tier patsy since the divisions were established. Those schools are USC, Washington, UCLA, Notre Dame and Michigan State.
- Will it rain? OK, maybe there aren't many questions! The answer to this one is yes. And USC is 20-21-2 all-time on rainy days. Things should even up this weekend.
... Men's Vogue, that is. This month's special American Visionaries issue salutes the Trojans football coach as one of 13 leaders who "are reshaping our world and the way we think." The magazine hit newsstands today and will be available for about a month.
The magazine will also add some website commentary about USC's chances this season. Look for Brian Curtis' insights in the next day or two.
Photograph courtesy of John Huba for Men's Vogue
I didn't get a chance to ask snapper Will Collins why he was juggling a soccer ball after practice on Tuesday, but hey ... football is football. Except when it's fútbol.
I guess snappers are important if you want to kick a field ¡gooooooooooooooooooooollllllll!
Trivia: The announcer who invented the famous soccer cry is USC alumnus Andrés Cantor. He majored in Journalism.
Back to Collins. From his official USC bio: Some people are rocket scientists. In my case, I'm a long snapper...If you're a good snapper, no one knows you. If you're a bad snapper, everyone knows you. Personally, I'd prefer to remain anonymous...If they announced my name at a game, I think I'd laugh. Either that or I'd start shaking...The brief time I get in the game, I'm seeing the action upside down and between my legs.
No need to adjust your TV on Saturday.
When USC ventures into Washington, the Huskies will be wearing throwback uniforms to honor their 1960 national championship team. Along with lace-up pants, decal-less helmets, and gray facemasks (usually purple), the most noticeable change will be blue jerseys.
Even though purple and gold have been the school's colors since the late 1800s, uniforms were blue up until 1972. The first game in their true colors was against the Pacific Tigers and a little-known safety named Pete Carroll.
According to Washington Sports Communication Director (and USC alum) Jeff Bechthold, they used the so-called Northwest Purple "mainly due to the fact that purple just wasn't available from the makers of athletic apparel, or what they could find wasn't good (as in, it faded quickly, the colors ran, etc.)."
Washington's letterman jackets are still dark blue, and the rowing team still regularly uses the old color.
Jerseys used on Saturday are being auctioned off on the Huskies' website. Unfortunately for Washington, they will not be able to use a throwback team against the #1 ranked Trojans.
It must be a good weekend for Uni Watch blogger (and ESPN contributor) Paul Lukas. Another purple and gold team, the LSU Tigers, will be tinkering with their threads on Saturday. Iowa State also just announced a new scheme which looks strikingly similar to USC's. Then again, maybe USC is looking like that other team from Iowa.
Photo courtesy Univ. of Washington. From left to right: Don McKeta, Chuck Allen (both all-conference players in 1959 and 1960) and Coach Tyrone Willingham.
Unless you've been living in a cave, you've probably seen Oklahoma State Coach Mike Gundy go off on a local columnist (video above) for this article in the Daily Oklahoman. USC coach Pete Carroll saw the video, and even joked around with the media by mimicking Gundy and waving around a newspaper before starting his regular Tuesday press conference. Later on, I asked him for his take on everything.
Had you been in a similar situation [to Gundy], what do you think you would have done?
It depends. I don't know the circumstances. I'd have to read the article that he was referring to, but I assumed that he saw it in a way that caused him to be passionate about the way he needed to respond to it. So, I support him on his perspective. I don't know the circumstances, but I'm going to assume that it really upset him, it bothered him, he thought it was terribly unfair and uncalled for. He said what he needed to say.
One thing we need to do is protect the stature of the college football game in terms of the media and how they deal with our players (and how they deal with every aspect of it) to keep it different than the NFL. The NFL's got it's own way. They're pros. They get paid a lot of money. The scrutiny is sometimes ruthless.
In college football it shouldn't be like that. These guys are amateurs. They're doing the best they can. They're going to school and they're on scholarship playing football. And that's for all athletes in college. What I love about college football is the spirit of the game is still well intact. We play for the right reasons and we don't want to lose that by making it too serious. I think Coach Gundy made that stand and I hope that it reverberates. It's a clear statement of "let's be conscious of protecting these guys -- and protect the stature of the game." So I'm really in support of what he did. I don't know anything about the article or the writer. I'm just assuming that he needed to do that, so he did it.
Do you read a lot of your own press or press about your team, or do you have anybody who keeps an eye out there for you?
Yeah, we have a ton of people that are watching it and keeping track of stuff, but I don't know everything that's written.
Do you have anybody who's specifically in charge of monitoring that? Do you rely on the Sports Information Department?
Yeah, they're on it at all times. They're on it around the clock. If there's something that I need to know -- articles or references or whatever -- then I hear about it. I really think it's important for me not to read the newspaper and not to stay on it on a daily basis. I don't need the information that's coming out of there. I don't want to have it dictate what my mentality is at any time, so I don't pay as much attention to it as some other guys.
Continue reading Pete Carroll on Mike Gundy and the Media »
Next time you visit the University of Southern California, remember to walk an extra hundred yards. It's worth it.
The on-campus parking meters (above) are 700% more than the city's off-campus meters (below). They're hardly a football field apart. Even better, city parking is usually free after a certain hour, while campus is enforced 24/7.
 If you think college football rankings are debatable, what about a sport that doesn't have the exposure of regular network TV coverage?
The USC women's soccer team is having a pretty good year so far. At 6-1-1, they've had a start that many people think is worthy of a top 25 ranking. Where in the top 25 is another story. From today's USC Sports Information Department press release: The Trojans jumped four slots to rank highest at No. 14 according to SoccerBuzz. Meanwhile, USC rose to No. 18 in the NSCAA/Adidas poll, No. 19 in SoccerTimes and to No. 22 according to TopDrawer.
But that leaves out one well known publication -- Soccer America. They don't have the Women of Troy listed in the top 25, which is compiled by their editorial staff. To find out why, check out the explanation I got from Managing Editor Paul Kennedy (after the jump).
Continue reading Pulling Rank »
Men's Water Polo - The Trojans started league action this weekend, taking down #5 Pepperdine to extend their home winning streak to 24. They should be #1 in the polls for the fourth week in a row ... When people say USC is deep, they're not talking about the pool. Coach Jovan Vavic has so much talent on his hands that he subs six players at once like an ice hockey line. They're making sure to spread the wealth, too. In each game so far, the team has had a different scoring leader. Eighteen of 22 field players to get in the water have hit the back of the net, and nobody has more than seven goals. One of those players to get on the scoreboard this season is highly touted Trevor Clark, who missed the last two years with injuries. ... Sometimes the stiffest competition is in your own backyard. All of the top 10 schools in men's water polo are in California.
Women's Volleyball - The fourth-ranked Trojans took down both Arizona schools last week to open Pac-10 play. They've started the season 12-0 for the 7th time in team history (four of those seasons ended in a national championship). ... Freshman Geena Urengo (libero) is leading the Pac-10 with 0.52 service aces per game. ... Like men's water polo, women's volleyball is best in the West. All of the Pac-10 had a winning record prior to league play, and the top seven teams are a combined 73-5. ... USC will be honoring two former players this year. Paula Weishoff, a three-time Olympian and MVP of the 1992 Olympic squad, led the Trojans to their third national championship in 1980. She will get special recognition at the match against Oregon State on Thursday, Oct. 11 at 7 p.m.
Women's Soccer - The Women of Troy had a pair of 2-0 wins over the weekend to improve to 6-1-1. Ranked as high as #14, they host the nation's top program (Portland) on Saturday at 1 p.m. ... USC had a heralded recruiting class a couple years ago, but this year's crop may rival them in productivity. The winning goal in all six victories has come from a freshman. ... Three players have played every minute so far: Kristin Olsen, Janessa Currier and Karter Haug. Olsen, the starting goalkeeper, has recorded four consecutive shutouts.
Women's Cross Country - Freshman Sarah Cocco has run in two meets this year -- and won both. The team placed third overall at the Pepperdine Invitational this weekend.
Women's Basketball - The offseason news has been more bitter than sweet for women's hoops. The top recruit in 2006, Jacki Gemelos, missed last season with a knee injury. She reinjured it this month and may miss another year. She'll have it scoped next week. ... Adding insult injury to injury, 2007's top recruit, Stefanie Gilbreath, is also out with an ACL problem. ... These two injuries are compounded by the loss of last season's top three scorers. Jamie Hagiya, Chloe Kerr and Shay Murphy are all headed overseas to play professionally in Greece. Murphy is also one of six Trojans in the WNBA.
Baseball - Former Trojan coach Mike Gillespie is going to coach at UC Irvine. So much for retirement. ... With MLB's regular season wrapping up, Trojan Brian Bannister (now with the Kansas City Royals) is a dark horse for AL Rookie of the Year. He was AL Rookie of the Month in August.
Golf - USC's men finished third at the Fall Preview tournament this weekend. Women's play will end on Wednesday.
ESPN flashed an interesting graphic on Monday Night Football. USC alumni have the most rushing yards in NFL history, just shy of 80,000.
Reggie Bush and LenDale White didn't add much to that total, but they did find the end zone.
Bush ran for two scores on seven carries, but only had 15 yards on the ground. He picked up 20 more yards through the air on six catches.
White had 50 yards on 17 carries and a touchdown. He also had one catch for 10 yards.
In the end, Vince Young got the best of Reggie Bush -- again. Tennessee beat New Orleans, 31-14.
Shaun Cody (DT) had two tackles for the Detroit Lions, raising his season total to seven.
Keary Colbert (WR) was the second-leading receiver for the Carolina Panthers with 3 catches for 52 yards. His 38-yard reception was the team's longest play from scrimmage.
Justin Fargas (RB) ran the rock 8 times for 50 yards in the Oakland Raiders' first win of the season.
Sammy Knight (S) nabbed an interception and had four tackles in the Jacksonville Jaguars' victory.
Matt Leinart (QB) couldn't hang with pressure from the Baltimore Ravens and was yanked after going 9-of-20 for only 53 yards in an Arizona Cardinal loss.
Carson Palmer (QB) was 27-of-43 for 342 yards and a score, but he also threw for two picks in the Cincinnati Bengals' loss to Seattle.
Mike Patterson (DT) made a couple tackles to help the Philadelphia Eagles beat Detroit.
Troy Polamalu (S) made 8 tackles (5 solo) in the Pittsburgh Steelers' victory over San Francisco.
Junior Seau (LB) made five tackles, one for a loss, in the New England Patriots' victory over Buffalo.
Steve Smith (WR) had one grab for 10 yards for the New York Giants.
Lofa Tatupu (LB) made three tackles for Seattle.
Kenechi Udeze (DE) made eight tackles for the Minnesota Vikings, including one for a 5-yard loss.
Mike Williams (WR) had a 24-yard catch for Oakland. Then he fumbled.
Also played: Dominique Byrd (TE - St. Louis), Matt Cassell (QB - New England), Brian Kelly (CB - Tampa Bay), Manuel Wright (DT - New York).
Monday Night Football: Thunder and Lightning will be reunited when Tennessee travels to New Orleans. Reggie Bush and Billy Miller will play host to LenDale White (and Trojan nemesis Vince Young).
The Trojans dispatched Washington State as expected on Saturday night, in a game in which the only thing dampening fans' spirits was the inclement weather.
I'll leave the action shots up to the guys with the super-expensive lenses. Instead, here's a photo essay of the fan-aticism that you missed if you decided to stay inside. There were plenty of seats available -- 86,876 attended, leaving about 5,000 tickets unused. A friend of mine learned about Saturday's attendance the hard way. He wasn't even able to give away his last three seats. You'd think this town isn't used to rain or something.
Next time you brave the elements and go to a USC game, dress up or do something else to stand out. You could wind up on All Things Trojan. If you don't see yourself in this post but still want to show off how you repped the Trojans, submit your own photos to Your Scene.
We'll have more perspective on the game in the next day or so, and finally focus on some other USC sports -- how about that cross country team, eh?
Continue reading Picture Perfect Game »
... but guess who is? The Trojans' safety, number two!
And apparently these guys, who happen to be in one of USC's three Jewish fraternities. When asked, they also were big fans of the ol' "Mike Williams is gangsta" line and obviously had no problems with The Juice's retired number hanging just a couple sections away.
Speaking of Adam Sandler songs and Jewish fraternities, happy Yom Kippur, everybody! USC's Taylor Mays (yes, he's #2 and Jewish) celebrated the new year with a 47-14 USC victory.
Just to show that I'm not beating a dead horse (that would be O.J.), this fan was on the library steps before the game. He isn't Jewish, but he was celebrating something.
As you can see in this classic photo, the LA Sports Council Foundation has been
giving kids an opportunity to experience USC football games for many years. A few weeks ago we told you about their efforts with this season's Touchdown For Youth, but now we're happy to announce that they'll be doing a second game and donations are still being accepted. The official press release follows ...
Thanks to a generous donor, a second “Touchdown For Youth” game has been added to this year’s USC home football schedule.
The
decision to add an additional game was prompted by a $50,000
contribution from a donor who wishes to remain anonymous. As a
result, more than 1,000 disadvantaged area youngsters will attend the
game on October 6 against Stanford at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum.
An additional 1,350 were in attendance at the game versus Idaho on Sept. 1 as originally scheduled.
The
“Touchdown For Youth” program, conducted jointly by USC and the L.A.
Sports Council Foundation, raises money to send disadvantaged kids to a
Trojans football game each season.
For each $30
tax-deductible contribution from an individual or corporation, one
youngster is provided with a ticket to the game plus refreshments. USC
distributes the tickets to youth charities affiliated with the
university’s athletic department.
“Touchdown For Youth” was
inaugurated at the 1993 Super Bowl, played at the Rose Bowl. Since its
inception, the program has allowed more than 32,000 youngsters to enjoy
Los Angeles-area college and professional football games.
Anyone interested in supporting “Touchdown For Youth” can call (213) 482-6333.
Image courtesy LA Sports Council.
 Questions have been raised about USC continuing to prominently display O.J. Simpson memorabilia. No matter what some columnists want, these items should not be taken down. It's not simply that we shouldn't erase history. We shouldn't hide from it, either.
At one time, O.J. Simpson did a lot for USC and USC did a lot for O.J. Simpson. As a Trojan, he won the most coveted individual award in sports. He guided the school to a national championship. He was an All American in two sports. Twice. He even held a world record in track and field.
Does that redeem him as a human being?
No.
I did a very unscientific poll and found -- surprise -- a lot of Trojan alums don't like O.J. "the person." From the San Gabriel Valley to the South Bay, his approval rating is hovering right around zero. Alums in their 70s think the guy is off his rocker. Alums in their 20s look at the latest arrests and toss around words like "karma."
But nobody I talked to was ready to tear down the symbols of his accomplishments as if they were an Iraqi statue of Saddam Hussein.
USC's Heritage Hall echoes with history. In addition to being the nerve center for several of the school's sports, it's a museum. It houses trophies, plaques, jerseys, magazine covers, and time lines -- and that's just the stuff with O.J.'s name or number on it.
Keep that in perspective. O.J. Simpson gets no better treatment than any of the school's seven Heisman Trophy winners. He hasn't been seen hanging out on campus or attending games in the Coliseum. The last official contact between O.J. and the school was when he surprised everybody by showing up at practice before the 2003 Orange Bowl. Obviously he hasn't been invited back. You can't blame the school for that. You also can't blame the school for leaving up artifacts that commemorate what he did at USC.
Unless somebody proves The Juice was on the Juice, his records and trophies will stay up. His approval rating, however, will stay down. Just like it should be.
Is this a "have your cake and eat it, too" outlook on O.J.?
Perhaps. But it's a piece of cake that doesn't leave a good taste in anyone's mouth.
More pictures of the "USC O.J. Collection" after the jump ...
Continue reading Squeeze Out The Juice? »
Some football stats released by the Pac-10 this week:
- USC leads the conference in red-zone offense, scoring on 13 of 14 drives that reached the 20-yard line.
- USC averages 3 punts per game, lowest in the league.
- USC is tied for 8th in turnover margin with Stanford. Only Oregon State is worse.
- In two home games, Oregon State has had a combined attendance of 78,894. Washington State has had 78,354. Stanford has had 75,004. In just one home game, USC had 90,917.
- The Pac-10 is 20-6 (.769) in nonconference games and 3-2 against top 25 teams.
- Four Pac-10 teams are averaging 200+ yards per game on the ground.
- Instant replay is being used for the third year. This season there have been 29 stoppages (4 on coaches challenges) and 5 reversals (0 on coaches challenges). The average length of review is 1:44. That doesn't count 48 plays reviewed without needing to stop the game.
Trojans pick up a lot of hardware and they need somewhere to put it. Check out the latest L.A.Times video report as Jeff Amlotte looks around Heritage Hall with USC Sports Information Director Tim Tessalone.
Trojan Wire ran a classic college football joke that's been circulating on email the past couple days. Here's another one from Herb in Calabasas:
A young football recruit is in the process of selecting his college of choice. While visiting Notre Dame, he notices a golden phone sitting on coach Charlie Weis' desk.
"What is that?" the recruit asks.
Weis responds, "That's the phone to heaven. All college coaches have one."
Ecstatic, the recruit asks if he can use the phone.
"Sure," Weis replies, "but it'll cost you $100 per minute."
Disheartened, knowing he can't afford the call, the recruit thanks Coach Weis for his time.
While visiting Cal, the recruit sees the same gold phone on the Jeff Tedford's desk. "Is that the phone to heaven?" he asks Tedford.
"Yes, it is," Tedford responds.
"How much is it to call heaven?" he inquires.
"It's $100 per minute, son," Tedford responds.
Again saddened, he leaves the office.
At his last stop, USC, the recruit spies the gold phone on Pete Carroll's desk.
Noticing the glance, Carroll says, "That's the phone to--"
The recruit interrupted him.
"--to heaven. I know," he said disappointed.
"What's the matter?" Carroll asked.
"Well," the recruit started, "it's so expensive to call I can't afford it!"
Carroll responds, "Expensive? Son, it doesn't cost anything to call heaven from here!"
Confused, the recruit says, "Really? When I was at the other schools, it cost $100 per minute!"
Smiling, Carroll responds, "Well, son, that's because here, it's a local call."
I have a feeling Rich Perelman won't post about this, so I feel obligated to spread it around our fair city.
Check out the UCLA logo on ESPN's Bottom 10.
::Snicker::
Along the same lines, here's the Your Scene Photo of the Week taken by Trojan Huddle. To submit your own photos on latimes.com, head over to the USC area of Your Scene. "Smack shots" (pictures taking the place of smack talk) are encouraged -- but the troll who posted the Vince Young shot may want to find something that isn't a copyrighted image. Try to be more original, like these Nebraska fans (I had lost the link, so thanks to David at HuskerPedia.com for helping track down the pic, and NUfans.com for hosting it).
Come to think of it, those Nebraska fan (along with these photos) may have been the inspiration for this hypothetical Pete Carroll interview on Every Day Should Be Saturday.
Sports Illustrated is just one of many, many sports outlets. But if you ever want to take a quick temperature read on America's pastimes, the SI cover is your best thermometer.
Yes, that would be the fourth Trojan tailback to appear on the cover in about a month. Something tells me nobody on this one will be transferring.
Cover courtesy of Sports Illustrated.
At Tuesday morning's news conference, Pete Carroll was asked about going for a sixth straight Pac 10 championship. He answered, "We don't spend very much time talking about that at all. We hardly ever talk about it."
It didn't seem like anybody was talking about it after the Nebraska game. But defensive end Kyle Moore was talking about something even bigger. "If we continue to keep doing that through the season we should be in New Orleans." That would be the home of this year's national championship game.
Asked after Tuesday afternoon's practice about Moore's comment, Carroll maintained his focus on the here and now.
"That's not a reasonable comment at all. I'm surprised he even said that. He knows better than that. I don't know what the context was so I'm not going to critique what he said. ... That's not something that they ever hear around here. There's no reason for talking about that. That's so far away from where we are right now. We work hard to train ourselves to not focus in that direction. I think that's a total waste of time."
When asked about his one-game-at-a-time reputation, Carroll emphatically reiterated:
"That's how we do it. That's all we ever do. That's all we're focusing on. Everything that we do, every meeting that we've ever started off every season with, and almost every day there's emphasis about focusing on what is right directly in front of us right now, and that's the way it is. You focus on this practice, and this next play, and that's how you do it. You train yourself to do that regularly, and then the "other thing" isn't even an issue. You don't have to deal with it ... Our guys are so good at that, they hardly ever make references like that."
That would be a proven championship attitude.
Courtesy of ESPN, here's about 15 minutes from Saturday's big game. (Video found by TrojanNYC.)
There are about about 700 tickets left for Saturday's game. To purchase, go to the USC Ticket Office.
You weren't watching a replay of the opening kickoff when the Trojans started the second half against Nebraska. It just seemed like it.
Before the game, Nebraska won the coin toss and made USC kick off the second half. Three minutes later, USC kicked off the first.
Yup, the Trojans kicked both times.
NCAA coin toss rules are a little more nuanced than "heads" and "tails." The winner gets to pick who kicks off or which goal line they will defend. Its decision can apply to either one of the halves. Frequently, as Nebraska did, the winner will choose to receive in the second half. After the Cornhuskers made their selection on Saturday, USC was given a choice of goal line in the second half. Next, the Trojans were able to choose who would kick off or which goal line they would defend in the first half. USC mistakenly chose to kick off in the first half. Finally, Nebraska picked their side of the field in the first half, as they normally would when choosing to receive in the second.
Confused? So were the Trojans. Coach Pete Carroll admitted, "We just screwed it up."
While the impact was insignificant on Saturday, it did bring this obscure rule to light. Another nuance -- a team can go the same direction in the first and third quarter, or in the first and fourth quarter.
The full text of NCAA football's Rule 3 on "Periods, Time Factors, and Substitutions" is after the jump.
Continue reading Double Take »
Just when you thought there was no more painful news to squeeze out of this alumnus ...
If you've been living in a cave (in which case, thanks for reading the blog), O.J. Simpson has been arrested and held without bail on suspicion of multiple felonies, including assault and robbery with a deadly weapon.
No need to rehash all the details of this case. Here's what you may not know:
- O.J.'s book, "If I Did It," is currently #2 on the Amazon.com bestseller list.
- As confirmed by the school, O.J. has had no official contact with USC since he surprised the team with an unannounced visit to practice prior to the 2003 Orange Bowl.
- USC pays homage to Simpson's football career in three ways: a Heisman Trophy displayed in Heritage Hall, a retired number (hanging in the Coliseum, as is the practice for all Heisman winners), and a bio alongside other winners in media guides and websites. Obviously, he still has some numbers in the record books, too.
- There's an audio clip of the most recent incident that's making the rounds. TMZ's version has multiple expletives, while ESPN's version is a little cleaner. Neither is family-friendly.
The media had a few popular catch phrases to describe USC's 49-31 beat down of Nebraska. You wouldn't know it by the final score, but "beat down" was an appropriate description. It was 42-10 just 10 minutes into the second half.
- "This was a statement game."
- "The Trojans ran over/by/past/away from Nebraska."
- "The offensive line created holes the size of [insert giant object here]."
- "USC answered any questions."
- "Nobody's heard from T.J. Simers and we're starting to get a little worried."
O.K., that last one was made up. The anti-rural columnist, who went to college in the megalopolis of DeKalb, Ill., is just fine. He must be gloating somewhere. Probably not in Nebraska.
It was pretty obvious that USC won big, spread the ball around, and had gaudy rushing statistics (313 rushing yards vs. 31 for Nebraska). It's also accepted that John David Booty didn't have a very impressive performance and that turnovers improved -- marginally. Then there are themes mostly overlooked by the mainstream media:
- The new kickoff rule has hurt the Trojans. Literally. Vincent Joseph and Alfred Rowe both had stretchers come out on different kickoffs (more on them in a moment). This year's kicks have been moved back from the 35 to 30-yard line, meaning more returns and more room for players to pick up speed. It also means that even strong-legged David Buehler had trouble pinning Nebraska. All of his nine kicks were returned, for an average of 21.8 yards. Seven of them were caught within five yards of the goal line. An extra five yards could have resulted in more touchbacks. At this point, the Trojans need as much help as they can get on special teams -- a long-standing weakness.
Continue reading USC Shows Pop Against Cornhuskers »
O.J. Simpson is involved in a new investigation, this time as a suspect in a Las Vegas hotel theft that took place last night.
While USC hasn't done much to promote the former Heisman winner, his name isn't coming off the record books anytime soon -- nor off of the Internet message boards. No anti-USC tirade is complete without a cheap reference to The Juice.
At what point is O.J. Simpson no longer news? Are you sick of hearing about him? Or will he remain one of the greatest sports-talk lightning rods for years to come?
Another T.J. Simers road trip video is out. Find out what caused the Mayor of Norfolk to declare, "That's guaranteed to shut 'em up!"
Simers has been getting some serious hospitality in a state Beano Cook recently lauded as a last bastion of sportsmanship (USC @ Nebraska is discussed about two-thirds into this clip). Lee Corso called the local fans "the best in America."
T.J. seems to be returning the favor, acting surprisingly well behaved on camera. Does that means he's pulling punches because he's not dealing with media savvy pros like Pete Carroll? Nah, check out his column.
Just because the Cornhuskers are nice doesn't mean they're saints. I'm sure the kid wearing a Longhorn hat in the video is committing some sort of sin, anyway. Frat boys are plotting to storm the field and steal the goalposts, while local "brokers" have driven some ticket prices up to $600.
NOTE: The video originally shown in this post has been taken off of ESPN's website (though we left the player after the jump just in case it's a temporary glitch). It was a hypothetical pre-game speech that Lou Holtz would have given to Nebraska if he were coaching there.
Among his words of advice, “I’d rather play [USC] than UCLA. Why? Because USC’s easier to spell.”
Continue reading How Would You Motivate Nebraska? »
L.A. Times columnist T.J. Simers rode the welcome wagon tractor in Nebraska, accepting some Midwest hospitality in response to a column written ahead of his trip to watch USC take on the Cornhuskers. He was very, well, T.J. Simers.
Dana Parsons cracked yesterday that Simers is the paper's "chief diplomatic correspondent." We figured he could draw Nebraska's attention, but would he also draw their ire? That's affirmative, horse rider.
There's another video of T.J. in Norfolk and on a farm to come, but I really can't wait to hear what happens when he goes to a toga party and stays overnight in a frat house on Friday. We already know that he's outspoken. Imagine what he might say after a couple rounds of beer pong.
It's midweek and we're just a few days away from a big showdown in Nebraska. Here's what you can do to keep yourself occupied and fully immersed in all things Trojan:
- Vote for Pete Carroll as Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year. It's alphabetical by school, so try not to snicker when you pass by the names "Carr" and "Weis."
- Bid for the domain rights to www.johndavidbooty.com on eBay. Nobody has taken the bait yet ($24.99 opening bid, with a reserve), but there's still a few days to go. Just think, you could own the second most popular JDB website out there! (The first? A site called Booties for Booty. Use your imagination.)
- Place your bets. The line against Nebraska keeps shrinking.
- Send invitations to the Dave Matthews Band in a contest to have them play a college concert/pep rally. It's not looking good -- USC is sitting at 57th in the standings.
- Research the opposition. Learn what's up Cornhusker QB Sam Keller's uni-sleeve. Discover just how darned patriotic they are in the Midwest. And hold onto your hats ... latimes.com is about to release a video of T.J. Simers running around a farm in Nebraska. Something tells me he's never ridden a quad before.
- Plot your own prank. Fake priests seem to work at Notre Dame.
- Quack up while watching Oregon find another way for a Pac 10 mascot to get suspended. You may recall the Stanford Tree got axed for drinking on the job last year. Even though it's hard to find a good mascot these days, Tommy Trojan can hold his (oversized) head high as he sits at #2 in SI's power rankings.
 Pete Carroll maintained his usual mellow tone with the media today.
During a conference call, he was asked if he wants the running back committee to get narrowed down within a few games so that one or two clear starters emerge.
"If we're winning, I don't care."
Later he held a news conference for the USC media corps and was asked about LSU climbing in the polls.
"Where do those points come from anyway?"
He continued to turn the tables on the press and asked a few questions about how the AP poll works. He didn't know much about it -- or at least he didn't let on that he did.
If you want to hear more straight from the Trojan horse's mouth, FSN Prime Ticket will premier "In My Own Words: Pete Carroll" tonight at 10:30. The 30-minute program, hosted by Lindsay Soto, will give a more personal look at the USC coach. It will rerun several times this month: Sept. 14 at 2:30 p.m., Sept. 15 at 10:30 p.m., Sept. 18 at 10 p.m., Sept. 19 at 10 p.m., and Sept. 26 at 6 p.m.
If you don't get Fox Sports, some quotes from the show are after the jump.
Continue reading Speak Softly and Carry a Large Press Corps »
 Besides players, there are also a number of head coaches in the NFL with ties to USC. Out of 32 teams, seven are led by a man who either played or coached for the Trojans. We won't be recapping their results weekly, but let's take a quick read on how they're looking at the start of 2007:
Lane Kiffin - Last year's USC offensive coordinator took the helm in Oakland this season. His first game wasn't pretty, as the lowly Lions beat the even lowlier Raiders. Yes, lowlier is a word -- and very appropriate here. On a positive note, Kiffin's boys scored three touchdowns. They only found the end zone 12 times last season.
Jack Del Rio - Jack's been in Jacksonville since 2003. He took the team into the playoffs in 2005 with a 12-4 record, but was .500 last season and may be on the hot seat. An All American linebacker for the Trojans, he took home MVP honors in the 1985 Rose Bowl.
Norv Turner - Nine seasons coaching at USC (including a stint as offensive coordinator in 1984) prepped Turner for a long NFL career. He's starting his first year with the San Diego Chargers, who are looking good after going a league-best 14-2 last year under Marty Schottenheimer.
Jeff Fisher - After winning a national championship as a cornerback at USC, Fisher had his three-year NFL career cut short when he broke his leg on a tackle by Bill Cowher (who later coached Pittsburgh to a Super Bowl victory). Fisher holds the longest tenure of any NFL coach. He's been with the Tennessee Titans since 1996 -- back when they were still the Houston Oilers. They haven't made the playoffs since 2003, but did start off this year by beating Del Rio's Jaguars. Fisher hired former USC offensive coordinator Norm Chow (both pictured on right) to handle the same duties for the Titans in 2005, and many think Chow will eventually be a head coach somewhere.
Rod Marinelli - Marinelli spent a year as USC's defensive line coach in 1995. He now leads the aforementioned lowly Lions, who beat Kiffin's Raiders on Sunday.
Mike Holmgren - Quaterbacking USC to a national championship helped set up Holmgren for a lifetime as an offensive guru. After coaching Green Bay to a Super Bowl win in 1996, he moved to Seattle, where he picked up career win 148 on Sunday.
Joe Gibbs - With three Super Bowl rings, 25+ years coaching in the NFL, and a NASCAR Championship team, most people don't associate Joe Gibbs with USC. He coached offensive line for the Trojans in 1969 and 1970.
Photo by Mark Humphrey / AP
Carson Palmer - Was efficient but not spectacular as Cincinnati escaped with a win over Baltimore. Palmer went 20-for-32 for 194 yards and two TDs.
Matt Leinart - Was intercepted on his first and final passes of the evening as Arizona fell to San Francisco. He was 14-for-28 for 102 yards and one score. In his own words: I'm very disappointed in myself, the way I played as the leader of this football team ... It starts with me getting the ball to the right guy and making the plays. I didn't do that. That falls on me. We're not going to win football games if I play like that at quarterback.
USC's Susie Phadke won the female collegiate division of the Los Angeles Triathlon on Sunday. The sophomore finished in a time of 3:04:31, taking first place in both the bike and run. Phadke is president of the USC Triathlon Club, which is run out of Recreational Sports.
More than 2,000 athletes competed in the 8th annual event, which consisted of a 1.5K (0.93mi) swim, 40K (24.8mi) bike ride, and 10K (6.21mi) run. What did you do on Sunday morning?
Earlier this month, another Trojan had a "tri" victory on an even bigger stage. USC senior Allyson Felix won three gold medals at the Track and Field World Championships in Osaka, Japan. Felix can't compete for the USC team because she is considered a professional athlete.
Photo by Nate Koenig.
From a USC press release about men's water polo:
OK... everyone is wondering where the Trojans’ 44-game winning streak that spanned the 2005 and 2006 seasons stands. By hitting win No. 35 with its win over UCLA, the team passed up the USC football program’s storied win streak, which was snapped in the 2005 national championship game just a month after the USC water polo team claimed the 2005 NCAA title. Water polo’s 44-game run well overtook the program’s previous best winning streak of 17 games, but it was still seven wins short of the all-time longest men’s water polo winning streak in the country — held at 51 by Stanford (1985-87). At Troy, USC women’s volleyball put up a 52-match winning streak across the 2002-03-04 seasons.
Football - Just because the Trojans didn't play doesn't mean nothing important happened. The Pac 10 had a big weekend, snapping the nation's two longest winning streaks (Washington upset Boise St. and UCLA escaped BYU). Oregon also put the hurt on Michigan as part of the league's 7-1 performance ... Thanks to a strong showing, four Pac 10 teams are in the Top 25. USC held at #1, though lost some ground to LSU. Cal is #8 and UCLA is #11. Oregon is #19 in the AP and #21 in the USA Today Poll. To put that in perspective, Newsday had an interesting take on the history and significance of polling, and the L.A .Times' Chris Dufresne dreamed up another nightmare for the BCS. Yes, it involved LSU and Oklahoma ... ESPN College Gameday will be broadcasting live from Nebraska when the Trojans take on the 14th-ranked Cornhuskers on Saturday. The local media is a little concerned about last week's performance, declaring, "This won't cut it against USC" in the Lincoln papers ... Nebraska is led by quarterback Sam Keller, who faced USC when he was playing for Arizona State a couple years ago. Since then, he's transferred, sat out a year, and got in a little trouble.
Men's Water Polo - Top-ranked USC dispatched Loyola Marymount, 9-4, on Saturday. The Trojans improved to 11-0 against the Lions thanks to four goals from transfer Shea Buckner. USC returns to Buckner's old stomping grounds, Cal, this weekend with aspirations of winning a third straight NorCal Tournament.
Women's Soccer - The 13th-ranked Women of Troy played two overtime games in Indiana, beating Maryland, 2-1, but losing to Indiana by the same score. In the second game, USC was called for 24 fouls and gave up the tying goal at 89:54. The bright spot was that Amy Rodriguez finally found the back of the net.
Women's Volleyball - USC will head to Ohio this weekend looking to keep its perfect (8-0) record intact. Last week they took down Pepperdine, 3-0, at the Galen Center before visiting Utah for a 3-1 victory.
Men's Tennis - The Trojans took part in the Napa Valley Tennis Classic this weekend. Over three days, they faced Georgia, UNC and Cal, with a record of 12-5 in singles and 4-2 in doubles. Several former Trojans participated in the Hennessey Funds Alumni Legends Cup just down the road in NorCal. The tournament involved tennis pros who used to play at USC, UCLA, Stanford and Cal.
Baseball - In alumni news, catcher Jeff Clement made his debut for the Seattle Mariners last week. He's the third Trojan to break into the bigs this year, and 96th overall. We're still months away from the start of the college season, but the Trojans did announce 14 new players heading into the weekend. One of the pitchers is listed at 6'10" -- the same height as former Trojan great Randy Johnson. A full list is after the jump.
Continue reading Weekend Roundup 2 »
The NFL is back and so are a lot of Trojans. 28 former USC players were on pro rosters this weekend. We also saw plenty of commercials this week with Reggie Bush taking on Peyton Manning, Matt Leinart playing the Mannings, and Reggie Bush big-timing a friend (we're still looking for a clip).
Three of 'SC's biggest names -- Leinart, Carson Palmer and Frostee Rucker -- won't play until Monday night's doubleheader.
On to the field ...
Reggie Bush managed just 38 yards rushing and 7 receiving for the Saints, who suffered a woodshed beating by Indianapolis on Thursday night.
Lofa Tatupu recorded 8 tackles and forced two fumbles, including one that made a lot of highlight reels, in a Seattle victory over Tampa Bay
LenDale White had 66 yards rushing and 7 yards receiving in Tennessee's win over Jacksonville.
Mike Williams made one catch for 11 yards against his former team as the Raiders fell to Detroit.
Matt Cassell didn't see any action as Tom Brady's backup, but did fumble the ball while holding on a kick. He recovered the ball and later held onto three successful kicks. He didn't participate in a fourth-quarter kick and is rumored to have an injured pinky.
Steve Smith caught three passes for 16 yards in the Giants' loss to Dallas.
Shaun Cody picked up three tackles for Detroit against Oakland.
Keary Colbert had a nine-yard reception for Carolina in a victory over St. Louis.
Justin Fargas ran 5 times for 19 yards in Oakland's loss to Detroit.
Brian Kelly had 4 tackles for Tampa Bay in the loss to Seattle.
Sammy Knight, an 11-year vet picked up by Jacksonville last month, had 5 tackles in a loss to Tennessee.
Mike Patterson put some good pressure on Brett Farve, including a sack. Also recorded 10 tackles in Philadelphia's loss to Green Bay.
Junior Seau had four tackles for the Patriots in a win over the Jets.
Kenechi Udeze had three tackles and a sack to help Minnesota past Atlanta.
As a follow-up to Wednesday's post about compensation, here's a breakdown of what three of USC's top five paid employees made in the period beginning 7/1/2005 and ending 6/30/2006.
PETE CARROLL - HEAD FOOTBALL COACH
Compensation: $2,451,898
Contributions to Employee Benefit Plans: $83,514
Expense Account: $31,244
Excluded from compensation is $228,000 in payments to a deferred compensation plan.
TIM FLOYD - HEAD BASKETBALL COACH
Compensation: $618,563
Contributions to Employee Benefit Plans: $84,026
Expense Account: $16,768
Excluded from compensation is $12,000 in payments to a deferred compensation plan.
MIKE GARRETT - ATHLETICS DIRECTOR
Compensation: $603,520
Contributions to Employee Benefit Plans: $78,643
Expense Account: $20,497
Excluded from compensation is $46,250 in payments to a deferred compensation plan.
Figures for 2006-07 won't be available until next summer.
Salaries have been in the spotlight a lot this year. Nick Saban landed a $4-million annual contract to be the head football coach at Alabama, not counting up to $700,000 in bonuses and perks including "two cars, a skybox, country club membership and personal use of a private plane."
Even before Saban landed his deal, NCAA President Myles Brand called escalating salaries a top concern.
To put the USC compensation in perspective, the Trojans' current athletics budget is $67 million per year. Carroll is the highest paid person in the school, but he earns it. According to Sports Information Director Tim Tessalone, the football program subsidizes other sports because it turns a profit -- even after paying salaries. In fact, football and men's basketball "year in and year out are generally the only sports that operate in the black."
Schoolwide, total expenses in 2005-06 were $1.95 billion, of which a cool $1 billion went to employees, officers, directors, etc. Revenue was $2.35 billion, and they ended the year with $4.26 billion in assets. University President Steve Sample's share looked like this:
Compensation: $690,980
Contributions to Employee Benefit Plans: $91,571
Expense Account: $66,188
The school also disclosed that Sample's "housing is provided as a condition of employment for the convenience of the employer."
One thing that jumped out about USC's most recent tax return ... professor Yash Gupta (former dean of the Marshall School of Business) had an expense a | |
