USC Living The Nightmare

USC's mascot, Traveler, was acting uneasy. The white horse refused to stand still as his rider lit the Olympic torch to start the fourth quarter. Animals can detect things humans cannot, and something was definitely in the air that night. The unsteady steed seemed the first to know.

A quarter later, Stanford Coach Jim Harbaugh ran around the field, hugging players and yelling, “I love these guys!” There was a dark mark around his eye as he celebrated, but it washed off later in the visitor's locker room. The only black eye suffered on Saturday night was by USC’s football team.

In the home locker room, the Trojan quarterback looked dazed. Scruff that was considered handsome on Matt Leinart made John David Booty look haggard. As he walked out of the shower in a towel, the media pounced on their wounded prey. A teammate shielded his eyes from the glare of the cameras and exclaimed, “Can’t he get dressed? #@$%!"

Booty had some flashes, and not just on the receiving end of his pass-arazzi. The crowd was electrified when he found freshman Ronald Johnson for a 47-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. Earlier, he hit Fred Davis for a 63-yard score. With another 56-yard connection to Davis, Booty completed the longest and third-longest passes of his career. Those plays padded his stats (24-of-40, 364 yards, 2 TD).

The team's numbers weren't too bad, either. USC led Stanford in almost every major statistical category. Four exceptions stood out: penalties, turnovers, kicking and fourth-down conversions. It's no shock that those areas of the game caused the Trojans' collapse; a 35-game home winning streak was no more.

Stanford felled Booty four times -- more sacks than in USC's past three games combined. Toss in four interceptions, and he was almost as successful in throwing to the Cardinal as their own quarterback.

"I'm beside myself. I don't know what to do."

Those were not the words of a dejected Booty, but a triumphant Tavita Pritchard. The Cardinal QB was only 11-of-30 for 149 yards and a pick, but those numbers didn't do him justice. His lone touchdown pass came at the most crucial time imaginable -- fourth down, with 49 seconds left in the game. All night he managed to evade a relentless rush from USC's mighty athletes, who could apply pressure but struggled to finish. That turned into a metaphor for the game. Stanford's offense produced zero points in the first three three quarters. They had 17 in the fourth.

If you hadn't noticed, four was the Trojans' unlucky number on Saturday night. Here are four more parting observations:

• Near the end of the first half, USC gave up the ball on downs at Stanford's goal line. Many fans booed while both the Trojans and Cardinal ran off the field, but the ever-loyal Thundering Herd left USC with a standing ovation as the last thing they saw before entering the locker room.
• The players may have looked lackadaisical, but the play-calling was as inspired as Orange County tract housing. Before the Internet message boards go after the kids, maybe they should go after offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian. After all, he's a man. He's 33.
• If it was a blowout for USC, people probably would have labeled it "predictable." Thanks to their reputation, the Trojans are in a can't-win situation, even when they do. Of course, a loss is a loss. And around here, that will never do.
• In the press box, an AP reporter's computer crashed. Another writer's Web browser froze. Later on, the lights would go out when reporters filed into the postgame press conference. The meltdown suffered by USC had spread to its press corps.

Comments

[PK-IN-THE-MESA]

Adam,
I didn't pick up game until late in the 3rd and was surprised by the score, but from what i saw the rest of the game was mistakes; penalties; and a team not on tract with each other. They looked the same almost the week before, something doesn't seem right about these guys. I feel they are looking for leadership and John David is maybe trying to hard, because if you watch him in the pocket he looks uneasy and i understand this because most of the time there is no defenders even clost to him. Maybe it is the play calling but why is he not audiblizing like he did last year, i guess Kiffen is missed more than most people tought. Well maybe this will bring them all together again.

GO TROJANS
and remember ''Your only as good as your second serve and your first volley"

[Armadillo by morning (up from San Antone)]

Tennis, anyone?

[toddsputnik]

San Diego is nice in December. You Trojans will enjoy it. GO BEARS!

[Martin Jeffries]

It didn't take too long to realize that something was wrong with the USC team. Pete Caroll, who usually looks like he's having fun, seemed stressed and worried. Even he didn't have that confidence that he usually exudes. He knew something was wrong but wouldn't tell. How come when USC plays second rate teams all their receivers seem to catch the ball and all the blue chippers from USC can't hold on. I hope that the reason for this failure can be identified and corrected or this could be a long season of "rebuilding"

[Fred]

The recent defeat of the mighty USC Trojans at the hands of lowly Stanford was a blessing in disguise. Not because it will place a fire under Pete Carroll and his players to punch it up a notch, but because it comes at a time when USC is turning the corner in breaking into the top ranks of universities academically. There is no denying USC football has enjoyed a proud and illustrious tradition over the years. There were a few rough patches here and there, but USC football is synonymous with athletic excellence and championship pedigree. Academically, however, USC has not enjoyed the same level of admiration over its 125 plus years of history, that is, until the past decade when it has made tremendous strides in academic excellence.

Now, USC is at a cross roads. It has gained respect and admiration in the scholarly front and regained its athletic dominance on the gridiron. This progress is attributed to the inspirational and intelligent guidance of president Sample and a very dedicated team of administrators. However, USC football has played a major part in raising the profile of USC to a national level. USC has used the national attention of the football team to translate into overall excitement about USC and this has helped drive a greater number of very talented applicants. Football created a national profile for USC, while its increased excellence in the classroom and laboratories helped draw the more academically talented. Meanwhile, USC has been quietly building a very unique and innovative institution that redefines the very tenets of teaching and research. But, for the most part, academics still sit in the shadow of the mighty Coliseum.

Now it is time for USC to move to the next level. The Stanford defeat was a not so subtle message that USC academics needs to rise above the Trojan athletic elephant and reveal to the world what an amazing educational institution it has become. But the athletic departments focus on athletic abilities over academics is preventing USC from taking its place among the academically elite. The perception that USC is willing to sacrifice academic credentials in the name of winning national championships reduces its credibility in the academic community.

Stanford may not win any national championships anytime soon, but they have proved that academically gifted students can compete on the field as well as in the classroom. Does this mean USC has to follow Stanford’s lead and maintain the same admission standards for its athletes as the general student population? No, but using a students athletic abilities as an added dimension along with their academic performance instead of a primary criteria would further USC’s profile as a unique and progressive institution.

What if Pete Carroll recruited exclusively top athletes that also excelled in the classroom? They don’t have to be valedictorians, but a certain measure of success as a student as well as a top performer athletically. Could they be molded into a national championship team? Would this mean the Trojans will no longer win national championships, or even Pac 10 championships? Do classroom smarts translate into better athletes? I don’t have the answers, but isn’t it worth experimenting and ultimately creating a new model for success? Is the success on the field still too much a part of USC’s identity and its ability to attract students and faculty and keep alumni happy?

USC has created a truly exciting place to learn about the wonders of the world. It now needs to view athletics as a part of this new culture of innovation, curiosity and passion for excellence in the classroom, laboratory and on the field. First and foremost, USC is about scholarship and the quest for truth and the wonders of the world. It is about the drive for excellence in becoming the very best a person can be intellectually, spiritually and yes, athletically. USC’s profile needs to be reshaped to reflect its academic image more than its athletic. However, I believe USC can achieve greatness in both academic and athletics, after all, Stanford has the third most national championships behind USC and UCLA. It is very possible that one day USC will win a national championship and the headline will read: “Engineering double major quarterback connects with national merit scholar to win the national championship.”

[Buck]

I thought losing to Auburn and LSU were bad. But Stanford? My god. Nice game fellas! (www.GatorAlert.com)