Rose Bowl: "No Reportable Action"

This was written as a "live blog" post, meaning it was updated periodically as the story unfolded. If you read it prior to 9 p.m., there have probably been some changes since. A detailed story from Gary Klein will be on latimes.com later tonight.

The Rose Bowl Operating Company announced that it has nothing to announce. The implications spoke louder than the words.

The RBOC's board held extended private negotiation with representatives from USC over the possibility of the team moving into the stadium with a short-term lease. In a unanimous decision, the board decided to hold off on agreeing to any formal arrangement with the Trojans.

The announcement was made in a brief public session before a room slightly less packed than yesterday's Coliseum Commission meeting.

In particular, the RBOC cited concerns over the need for UCLA, the Rose Bowl's primary college football tenant, to weigh in on all details of a possible contract.

President Bill Thomson, speaking on behalf of the board, added, "We're going to allow USC and the Coliseum time to continue their talks."

When asked, he denied that they had been in touch with the Coliseum Commission, joking, "I don't think the Coliseum Commission talks to too many people."

He didn't think anything more would develop on his board's end before the beginning of the year, but took another good-natured swipe at the Coliseum Commission by pointing out that the RBOC can move quickly because it only has to deal with one government agency -- the city of Pasadena.

As negotiating ploys go, this one hasn't blown up in USC's face, but university officials aren't going to be able to leverage their "second home" as well as they might have hoped. In this game of "Oh yeah? Look what I could do!" there's one less immediate option, and a USC representative admitted the university didn't have anywhere else in mind that could hold 90,000+ fans.

USC Associate Senior Vice President of Real Estate and Asset Management Kristina Raspe (yes, that fits on her business card) tried to spin things in a positive light. Even though the RBOC didn't seem enthusiastic, she insisted that the board was interested in welcoming USC to the Rose Bowl contingent upon UCLA's approval. She added that no formal agreement was expected walking into the meeting because it was known that a final document would have to be submitted to UCLA first.

USC negotiator Todd Dickey, who was not present at the meeting, said yesterday that the school would sign with the Rose Bowl as soon as an agreement was on the table. But everybody involved in this process (USC, UCLA, RBOC, and the Coliseum Commission) seems eager to have the Trojans remain in their traditional home.

If the ink dries on a Rose Bowl contract, don't be shocked if USC finds a way out when the Coliseum becomes an option again. "I think with all contracts you can certainly pay a price to get out, and this one would not be unique in that regard," acknowledged Raspe, "but I couldn't comment on the price"

She did make it clear that breaking such a contract "would be expensive for us."

Update: KLAC (570AM) has full audio of the RBOC's press conference and Kristina Raspe's subsequent press gaggle.