O.J. Mayo had a buzzer-beating 69-foot shot the other day in NBA summer league action. Even though he's turning out plenty of highlights, his stats are still lacking. Through five games, he's averaging 4.8 turnovers compared with just 2.6 assists. Mayo's 18.8 points in 31 minutes per game are coming against guys who probably won't make the NBA. Still, it's just for practice so take it with a grain of salt. For more about Mayo's first games as a pro, check out Steve Springer's article in today's paper.
Davon Jefferson has yet to put his sneakers on the court for the Lakers, but it's good to hear that Desmon Farmer is still keeping his dream alive. He scored six points in eleven minutes for Toronto the other day.
Washington's Nick Young has 27 points in two games. Young also has the dubious distinction of getting nine fouls in onee game. Yes, summer league operates on modified rules -- it takes 10 to foul out.
Two stats emerge when you look at O.J. Mayo's NBA summer league bio. In three games, he's averaging 18.7 points -- and 6 turnovers. Although his play may not be consistent, he is showing flashes of brilliance (check out the video clips after the jump).
Davon Jefferson is on the Lakers' squad but has yet to get any playing time.
Embedded reporting is a technique well known on the battle field, but a lot of people don't realize how useful it is on the playing field. George Plimpton helped pioneer the practice in the 1960s. Recently we saw Spencer Hall go through football training camp and Stefan Fatsis try to kick in the NFL. Former USC tailback Petros Papadakis even hosts a TV gameshow with a similar premise called Pros vs. Joes.
None of those efforts match the one by Ben Malcolmson.
As part of a story for the Daily Trojan in 2006, Malcolmson tried out for the USC football team -- and made it. You can still hear the excitement in his voice when he talks about it today. "[As a reporter] it's so cool witnessing the Trojans and the greatness that the team has gone through over the past few years -- but it takes on a whole new dimension when you become a part of it."
Two years later, Malcolmson is still embedded with the football team -- now as a staff member. One of his responsibilities is running a popular website and blog at USCRipsIt.com, where fans can get a look deep inside USC football.
You can learn more about Malcolmson's journey this weekend on the season finale of Amazing Sports Stories on FSN West. The half-hour program will air on Sunday at 8:30 p.m.
It was tough for him to name a single highlight from his walk-on days, but one opportunity stood out. "Getting that one play in the Notre Dame game was incredible and something I'll never forget," he recalled. "It still gives me goosebumps today just talking about it."
So a guy walks onto a legendary football team and gets into a big game ... but against Notre Dame. Sounds like a familiar movie with a twist.
"I like Rudy a lot." Then Malcolmson laughed, "but it's hard to support that considering it's a Notre Dame film!"
Former USC standout and current Celtic Brian Scalabrine didn't play in the NBA Finals but apparently his coach sent him (and fellow Trojan Gabe Pruitt) to the locker room in the fourth quarter to change from a business suit into a uniform so that they could properly celebrate Boston's title victory last night over the Lakers.
Scalabrine crashed the Celtics-Lakers post-game news conference, and when no one had any questions, took matters into his own hands, challenging reporters who picked the Lakers to win.
Watch the video. It's hilarious. Or painful. Or hilariously painful. I'm not sure yet.
Making up for the last week, I'm getting a couple of videos up today. Above, John David Booty is interviewed at his photo shoot for Topps (as in the trading card company). Recognize where they were standing?
You don't have to watch the full seven-plus minutes to appreciate the media/PR circus that is professional sports. If you just want to see him talk about playing football next year, skip to the four-minute mark.
At USC, Lawrence Jackson was feared on the field. The first-round draft pick hopes to keep that up with his new team, the Seattle Seahawks. Off the field, he was known as a thoughtful and intelligent guy (translation: popular with reporters!). Odds are that won't change, either.
On Friday, he was honored by his other alma mater -- Inglewood High School. The school retired his number and held Lawrence Jackson Day. You can check out the write-ups on SC Playbook and WeAreSC. The news release (with more photos) is after the jump.
USC alum Troy Polamalu has experienced success in the NFL, but he's also struggled to return from injury. Instead of getting back on track by lifting heavy weights, he's doing the opposite. Check out this video as he explains his alternative training philosophy.
"It probably works for him because he's sold on it, and that's part of it," [Coach Mike] Tomlin said this week. "The reality is he's recovering from an injury, he's unable to participate in organized team activities, so it provides an opportunity for him to do what he feels good about."
Polamalu is being trained by fellow USC alum Marv Marinovich. Yes, the one who trained his son Todd to be the perfect quarterback. No, that had nothing to do with the Ricky Williams comment.
An All-American wide receiver at USC, Curtis Conway became a first-round draft pick and spent a decade in the NFL. Recently, he married Laila Ali (boxing champ, "Dancing With the Stars" contestant and daughter of Muhammad Ali) and the couple are expecting their first child. I ran into Curtis at the 710 ESPN Southern California Sports Awards and caught up with him on life, love and football ...
What's been the best part of your marriage?
We're a very positive couple. That's what I enjoy more than anything. It's her being a positive role model, myself being a positive role model, and wanting to give back to the community. Any time you can see a couple doing that, I think it speaks volumes.
The Trojan Club of the Desert tees off for its annual Marv Goux Memorial Golf Tournament today in Palm Desert. The event will raise money for scholarships and honor Goux, a former USC football captain and assistant coach who became known as Mr. Trojan.
A silent auction will be held after the tournament, and one of the items is a 17-inch statue of Goux created by Pat and Lyn Reagan. Pat played right guard for USC from 1956 to '57. "Marv is portrayed here in a 'come at me' posture and when you did he would tear your head off. I know -- I saw it first-hand," he recalled.
Pat and Lyn now live on a farm outside of Salem, Ore. The best part of this story?
Pat claims that he's the most avid Trojan in the state and has won the Autzen Stadium (U of O) Most Obnoxious Fan Award ... twice.
If you know anything about Autzen, that's quite a feat!
Rey Maualuga made the 2008 Lombardi Award watch list. The trophy is awarded annually to the nation's best linebacker. If you've been living in a cave, this video explains the nod.
It's not quite a player pretending to fall off of a building, but Pete Carroll pulled another big prank. On April Fool's Day he had the fuzz come into a team meeting and look for defensive lineman Everson Griffen because of an alleged physical assault against a freshman. After a bizarre moment, the team was shown film of Griffen man-handling offensive lineman Matt Meyer in a recent practice drill. Video goodness is available here.
Per USCRipsIt.com: "Safety Taylor Mays and linebackers Rey Maualuga and Brian Cushing have been named to the Playboy Preseason All-American team ..."
I've been hesitant to post much on this subject because, as many of you have confirmed, Matt Leinart's hot tub is hardly newsworthy.
Or is it?
One of the biggest dangers in the TMZ-era is that these moments do make headlines and do get splashed across millions of flickering computer monitors. If there's anything I find interesting, it's that two days after I casually linked to the photos the story became news in the "traditional" format of the LA Times.
Apparently, Web gossip can become hard news.
What's more disconcerting? In an interview done by The Times with the people behind the website that acquired the Leinart photos, we've learned this could be part of an ugly Internet trend. Websites that focus on localized gossip are gaining traction -- Leinart was not the victim of a celebrity rag like TMZ, but a Scottsdale, Ariz., site about drunk college kids.
This is not the first time a Trojan has been cast in a bad light by such a site. Within the last year, there was a rash of anonymous blogs about the USC social scene. At least one leveled an underage drinking accusation against a current USC athlete (who has made several L.A. Times headlines in the last year). Thankfully, that "story" never saw the light of day. Traditionally, it's not news if one of them has a drink or smokes some weed -- unless they get arrested. These websites threaten to blur those lines. Don't even get me started on Facebook.
I'm not condoning underage drinking, but I am asserting that it's important for kids to be kids (or "young adults," whatever). If you think none of these college athletes are enjoying alcohol before their 21st birthday, then you're an absolute fool. Likewise if you think young guys don't like to party with 18- to 20-year-olds. If these are society's biggest concerns, we should be so lucky. The important thing is that they learn from all of it. That sort of personal growth is what college -- and young adulthood -- is about.
So did Leinart demonstrate that growth? Not exactly. But, as they say, he did what almost any red-blooded 24-year-old American male would do. At least he's partying with teenagers instead of allegedly assaulting them like other NFL players his age. There are older ones doing far worse (see: Vick, Michael).
So go ahead, question Leinart's maturity. Last I checked, he's the second youngest starting quarterback in the NFL (and Vince Young is only one week younger). Give him time -- or at least a season, which may be all he has left to produce results on the field.
Since these personal invasions are inevitable for both college and pro athletes, lets just hope they're kept in proper perspective -- and out of the headlines.
Keep in mind the sort of antics other pro athletes enjoy, like orgies with five hookers and a couple of teammates (surprisingly, not the Vikings). Heck, this might be good behavior if he were a European soccer star (where the lower drinking age would make this a non-issue, anyway). We won't even get into other peccadilloes like drugs (taking and trafficking), assault, and dog fighting.
As mentioned before on this blog, fans watching spring practice should be careful. You never know who might get hurt. Yesterday it was almost a little girl. Instead, it was wide receiver Damian Williams.
The second Under Armour All-American game will feature the high school class of 2009. 45 of the 80 players have already been selected. USC and Texas lead the way with four commits each.
What if the Trojans played in another conference? "In the last seven years under Carroll, USC would've won the SEC title the same amount of times it won the Pac-10 title: six." -- Matt Hays, Sporting News
What if you filled out your March Madness bracket based on the median salary of each school's graduates? It would look like this. And you would probably lose your pool.
A few months ago, Reggie Bush was named #2 on the Forbes list of top-earning superstars under 25 (trailing only LeBron James). Forbes teamed up with E! for a breakdown of the top 20. Reggie's segment is above.
From the Forbes profile:
2. Reggie Bush, $24 million Born: March 2, 1985 Bush entered the NFL last year with a Heisman Trophy and a scintillating game that had companies lining up to have him sponsor their products. Deals with Adidas, Subway, Pepsi and EA Sports net Bush $5 million annually. His big money comes from his contract with the New Orleans Saints, spanning six years and worth as much as $62 million. Last year Bush earned $19 million in base salary and bonuses from the deal.
Gary Klein has a new Q&A feature in the L.A. Times about USC football. He literally wrote the book on the Trojans' return to glory (coincidentally, the entire L.A. Times gift store is having a clearance and the book is 50% off).
Reggie Bush may not have met all of his expectations in the NFL yet, but he has been exciting. TrojanWire found a 10-minute highlight video.
Things are looking good for a Davon Jefferson return. With a solid forward like Jefferson, the Trojans officially stand a chance next season. At what, nobody's sure.
The last year has yielded two of the Internet's most guilty pleasures: the Rick Roll and Stuff White People Like. Both are amusing and, on some level, awkward and disturbing.
With a nod to EDSBS's recent post on Stuff Black and Gold People Like, we present Stuff Cardinal and Gold People Like (not to be confused with the alumni organization by that name, which primarily likes football and tailgating) ...
Numbers - The nine-oh. The two-nine. The three-two. These all mean something to Trojans (though younger ones might now know the latter as "Superior"). Area codes fall into this as well. The 949 carries a different social meaning than 909 or 818. Those new to the area claim to be "still reppin' 213" when they get their new digits. And nobody knows what the Harbor freeway is anymore. It's the 110.
Whoever Is Playing UCLA/Notre Dame - When the Bruins and Irish face each other, USC fans will be satisfied only if both lose. Longtime Trojan broadcaster Pete Arbogast coined the term "The Perfect Day" for any time that USC wins and both of its archrivals lose. Trojan fans have been reported to have a toast outside of the Coliseum whenever a perfect day occurs.
Orange County - If they aren't from there, cardinal and gold people have usually watched their fair share of Laguna Beach or The Real Housewives of Orange County. And don't forget that The OC was produced by a USC alum. But mostly, cardinal and gold people are either from Orange Country or dated somebody from there.
Some of the Wonderlic scores have leaked out. On the test used by NFL teams assessing prospects, people of average intelligence are supposed to score a 20. Sam Baker nailed a 27 while Keith Rivers got a 16. This Wikipedia article has more on what the scores mean.
Emmanuel Moody is learning a new system in Florida. He reportedly said he chose the Gators because he didn't think he could ever become the feature back in USC and still wanted to be somewhere in contention for the national championship. (h/t Da Wiz)
Reggie Bush is doing radio PSAs encouraging people to get off the couch and be active. We couldn't find a link to the actual spot, but here's the cause.
Hoops
Andy Katz called USC his sleeper pick for the Final Four before Selection Sunday. Now that the brackets have been drawn up, Stewart Mandel and Dan Wetzel agree.
If you're on Facebook and need to do something besides poking Pete Carroll, you can poke fun at Kevin Love. Among the accusations made against UCLA's rarely penalized star: "Kevin Love shot JFK and Lincoln" and "Kevin Love took down the Titanic and the ship was called for the charge."
SI's Andy Staples raised an eyebrow at Tim Floyd's decision to sign Romeo, then pointed out he's probably being a good CEO.
Harold Miner is MIA. If you have any information on his whereabouts, let us know.
Shortly after being honored by USC, Desmon Farmer had a 40-point game in the NBA D-League. He has averaged 36.7 points in his last three games with the Rio Grande Vipers.
The 2008 College Football Hall of Fame Ballot was announced today. Four Trojans made the list:
Hal Bedsole, Southern California-Split End- Helped lead USC to an undefeated season (11-0) and National Championship in 1962... Two-time First Team All-Conference selection... First Trojan to have 200 receiving yards in a single game.
Sam Cunningham, Southern California-Running Back-Named First Team All-America in 1972... Rushed for 1,579 yards and 23 touchdowns during career... Named 1973 Rose Bowl Player of the Game (four touchdowns)... Member of the 1972 National Championship team.
Marlin McKeever, Southern California-Tight End-Named First Team All-America in 1959... A three-time All-Conference selection (1958-60) and MVP of the USC/UCLA game in 1960... Two-time AP and Sports Illustrated Lineman of the Week.
John Robinson, Southern California (1976-82, 1993-97), Nevada-Las Vegas (1999-2004)-Head Coach-Led USC to 1978 national championship and three Pac-10 titles... Ranks first in highest bowl winning percentage among coaches with at least five bowl appearances (89%)... 1979 National Coach of the Year, two-time Pac-10 Coach of the Year, 2000 Mountain West Coach of the Year.
Ian Kennedy rocketed from USC to the bigs last year, almost missing his own wedding in the process. Today he's pitching against Minnesota in Grapefruit League action, looking to cement a spot in the Yankees' starting rotation. He's part of a trio expected to be New York's future on the mound.
The Los Angeles Avengers kick off their Arena Football League season tonight at Staples Center. Former Trojan players Lonnie Ford (fullback) and David Davis (kicker) will be on the turf for L.A.
Fellow USC alum John Walker plays DB for the New York Dragons.
The league's commissioner is David Baker, father of USC senior Sam Baker. At the NFL combine this week, Sam joked about his dad getting him a gig as QB in the AFL.
The legendary San Pedro restaurant is owned by former USC football player John Papadakis and his brother Tom. John's sons are Taso and Petros, who also played for the Trojans. Petros now has a talk show on KLAC-AM (570) and is the PA announcer at USC basketball games.
On its website, they modestly claim to be "perhaps the greatest Greek restaurant the world has ever known!" Scores of loyal Trojans and other locals have agreed for decades.
The Taverna used to host recruiting dinners for USC, but that caused some controversy when somebody realized the restaurant lies marginally outside of the maximum distance the NCAA allows those events to be held from campus.
To this day, the Taverna still welcomes other USC-related events and is a part of school lore. Its loss would be sad for the Trojan Family and San Pedro.
Nick Young returned to the Galen Center on Friday to hang out, goof around with his old teammates and enjoy the new flat-screen TVs that were just installed in the player's lounge.
Young now plays for the Washington Wizards, passing on what would have been his senior season this year. He's scheduled to be honored by the school during halftime of Sunday's game against UCLA.
Asked what his favorite memory was from the rivalry, he seemed to joke "just a few weeks ago when we got the victory." Reminded about the 2006 upset in the Sports Arena, he recalled it as a great game -- especially by Ryan Francis.
He said USC's youth is noticeable, but predicted another victory over over the Bruins.
Two USC alumni went to Rio last week for Carnival and wound up lost in a Brazilian rain forest. They hacked their way through the dense foliage for 26 hours until a rescue crew found them. Local reporters jumped on the story, eager to talk about these young men from the land of movie stars (the most outlandish articles, sadly, are available only in print).
They didn't catch any tropical diseases but maybe the media circus was contagious.
Since their return, bizarre outbreaks have been cropping up all over Troy.
USC and the Coliseum Commission tentatively agreed to keep the Trojans playing on their home field for two, 25 or 47 years. The announcement was complete with the Trojan Marching Band, an appearance by Pete Carroll, and, in the middle of everything, a surprise proposal by a private equity firm to take over the Coliseum for $700 million. If none of that works out, state lawmakers might just offload the property.
Reggie Bush was scheduled to give a deposition on the 25th in response to accusations that he called "cowardice." The case took another strange turn when Lloyd Lake stormed out of his own deposition. Allegedly, somebody accompanying Bush's legal team flashed a gun at him. Lake's attorney told ESPN, "Come on, we're lawyers. I don't threaten people, I sue them."
As ugly as it may get in civil court, things couldn't get much worse for another Trojan on the hard court. Cyberspace is running out of room to list all of Daniel Hackett's injuries. At last count, he's suffering from a fractured spine, partially torn oblique, bruised pelvis and sprained ankle. At least the broken jaw is healed. Another guard -- Marcus Simmons -- is hoping to hobble out against UCLA on his own sprained ankle to help USC's depleted roster.
OK, maybe that last one isn't a media circus -- but it should tell you something when a USC-UCLA rivalry game fades into the background of all this other news. Don't worry, O.J. Mayo is still getting ink.
At least nobody in the Trojan family has their mugshot on TM ... nevermind. Don't tase me JDB's bro!
With so much going on at USC, the Old Gray Lady found it fit to print a feature on a young blond boy. Yup, high school junior Matt Barkley's commitment to USC is even big news in the New York Times.
One of Troy's most popular figures, Will Ferrell, is stepping it into high gear to promote his latest movie. Ferrell appears in Sports Illustrated's swimsuit edition with Heidi Klum and can be seen on billboards for "Semi-Pro" rocking short-shorts. He spoke with Arash Markazi about his old job in USC's sports information office, where they could probably use an extra hand right about now.
The Trojans may add some more international (or at least multi-lingual) hubbub when the women's soccer team plays the Mexican women's national team next week.
If the Trojans were playing Brazil, maybe the circus could come full circle.
Udeze has played the last four seasons for the Minnesota Vikings, where he started to come into his own this past year. He registered a career-high 47 tackles and 5 sacks in 2007.
At USC, Udeze was an All-American at defensive end on the 2004 national championship team. He played three seasons before becoming a first round draft pick.
After a strong nine-player showing at the Senior Bowl, USC has had a dozen former players invited to the NFL Combine in Indianapolis.
Seniors Sam Baker, John David Booty, Fred Davis, Sedrick Ellis, Lawrence Jackson, Drew Radovich, Keith Rivers, Matt Spanos, Terrell Thomas, Chauncey Washington and Thomas Williams will be there, along with junior Chilo Rachal.
It seems like every time I've done a "Trojans in the NFL" recap over the last month, I've said Steve Smith had the best game of his career.
Sunday at the Super Bowl, he did it again. Despite a tipped pass that was intercepted, his overall performance was crucial to the Giants' win and he came through in the clutch.
The New York Giants wide receiver, who has clearly become Eli Manning's second favorite target after Plaxico Burress, had five catches for 50 yards en route to a Super Bowl ring (which should look nice next to his pair of USC national championship rings). Although those numbers (and the tipped pass that was picked off) don't pop out under most circumstances, you have to remember that Smith missed most of the season with an injury and he's just a rookie. Taking the field across from one of the nation's premier wideouts, it's reminiscent of the pivotal role he played in the Trojans' success over the last few years.
Though he never took the field Sunday, Manny Wright will also get a ring. The defensive tackle played in six games this year but never figured to participate in the Super Bowl, especially after coming down with an illness this week.
On the New England side of things, linebacker Junior Seau had a pair of tackles. He was extremely choked up after the game, making me wonder if this is the end of the road for the longtime NFL vet. Matt Cassell (QB) and Oscar Lua (LB) did not see any action for the Pats.
Here's a quick interview with Matt Leinart over on The Palestra.
To nobody's surprise, Leinart has been at the center of Phoenix's scene this week. Sports Illustrated's Arash Markazi dubbed him the "unofficial host of the Super Bowl." Click the link for Arash's full review of all the pregame festivities.
While most USC fans know that Junior Seau and Steve Smith are in the Super Bowl (don't forget Matt Cassell, Oscar Lua, and Manuel Wright are on the rosters, too), there are a lot of Trojans hitting up the pre-parties -- especially Heisman winners.
Marcus Allen and Carson Palmer were at the Maxim party last night. Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush were both on the guest list and presumably went, too. The most packed table at the event was Palmer's, where McLovin was hanging out for awhile.
944/Tao/Hennessey hosted an after-hours party where Frostee Rucker and Josh Booty (JDB's #1 fan) enjoyed the sounds of DJ AM (who had just come from the Maxim event). As the only game in town at that hour (2 A.M. and on), it quickly became the hot spot.
There are also a number of USC alumni in the Super Bowl press corps, including Arash Markazi.
Here's an odd choice -- as noted in Arash's column, the Giant's team hotel is next to the Playboy party, which will be going late into the night. The event is being held in a huge tent, which probably won't do much to dampen the noise.
(To the best of this blogger's knowledge, McLovin and DJ AM aren't actually connected to USC, but, hey, they're both good at what they do.)
USC will face the Oregon Ducks this weekend in McArthur Court, a 79-year old arena that ranks as one of the oldest in America. Home to decades of great basketball, it's also the site of the most spectacular game-winning shot in Trojan hoops history.
The Pit, as it's better known, is legendary for its raucous crowds and intimidating atmosphere, with four levels of fans hanging -- and screaming -- over the court. One night in early 1999, USC senior Adam Spanich capped an unfathomable come-from-behind victory by draining two three-pointers in the final 2.8 seconds of the game.
All Things Trojan caught up with Spanich this week by cellphone. Nine years after he took his last shot for the Trojans, his professional basketball career has taken him to all corners of the planet, with plenty of exotic locales and hairy border crossings. He's currently playing close(r) to home -- for the Oklahoma Cavalry -- where he still has a wicked shot from downtown. He talked about his travels, advice for younger players, and another moment that might have meant even more than his half-court miracle. All Things Trojan: The game at Oregon in 1999 sounds like a crazy scene. The fans were heckling, you were really getting into it ... what led up to that game-winning shot near half court? Do you remember what you felt like?
Adam Spanich: We had been down between 8 and 15 points the whole game. The coaches just kept saying to us, "Listen, keep it close, we're going to make a run here at the end." I had a really good game, so the fans had been giving it to me since the warm-ups. I love going on the road and I love talking to the crowd -- especially then. I'm a little more mature now. As a younger kid, I fed off of it.
We were down by five points with about 2 1/2 seconds to go. Coach [Henry] Bibby called a timeout. He'd talked to us all year about never giving up -- we play to the last second no matter what. I hit a three in the corner, and that put us down by 2 with 0.8 left. As soon as I made the shot I ran as hard as I could back up court, just in case, maybe, we could steal a long pass. Sure enough, the guy out of bounds took the ball just and heaved it down court. When I saw him do that, I was in a pretty good position [near the half-court line]. I intercepted the ball and did the best I could to aim with 0.8 seconds.
HBO's "Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel" will air a program tonight looking into the Reggie Bush situation. Tim Hammer has a preview on LAist, including some good perspective on where this falls in the national priority list:
The rest of the country, however, seems to care more about Reggie's love life than his involvement with Lloyd Lake. Let's face it though; Lake doesn't have the curves of Kim Kardashian so it's tough to compete with her.
It's a good read. There's also some more analysis of the situation on the Sports Agent Blog.
The L.A. Sports Council handed out its top awards for 2007, and one of the biggest winners was USC's Allyson Felix. It's a role she should be pretty used to.
At a school where amateur athletes are the recipients of marketing campaigns, Felix has flown under the radar because she was competing in red, white, and blue -- not cardinal and gold. Her story is exceptional. Many athletes use USC as a springboard to their professional careers, but Felix turned pro at 18. With sponsorship money already pouring in and her first Olympics a year away, the sprinter did what few people in her position opt to do -- enroll in college.
Felix couldn't run in NCAA meets, but she's been representing the Trojans at a much higher level. The USC grad sprinted to a silver in the 200-meter at the 2004 Olympics and has consistently placed first at world-class meets ever since. In 2006, she won an ESPY award. In 2007, she went to the IAAF World Championships in Osaka, Japan, and came home with a whopping three gold medals (200m, 4x100 relay, 4x400 relay) -- just the second female athlete to accomplish that feat.
Her golden performance made the council's list of Greatest Sports Moments of 2007 and earned her the title of L.A.'s Sportswoman of the Year. Her male counterpart, David Beckham, may have stolen more headlines, but Felix stole the show when picking up her award. As Felix came up to accept wearing enormous red heels, legendary Dodger broadcaster Vin Scully couldn't resist cracking a couple of jokes. Both are quick on their feet.
The program also honored the top moment in 2007 for all local teams. USC's best, chosen by Internet voters from a list submitted by the school, was winning the NCAA women's soccer national championship. Other nominees had been the men's basketball run in the NCAA tournament and the football team's record streak of six consecutive Pac-10 titles and BCS appearances.
A panel of media experts ranked the region's overall top 10 moments and went a slightly different direction than the USC fans. The Trojans' football streak was named L.A.'s 6th greatest moment in 2007. The Ducks' Stanley Cup victory claimed first.
USC offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian was there to pick up the school's hardware. Also on hand was USC alum and sports personality Petros Papadakis, who emceed the event with Bill Macdonald.
After the show, Felix said that she planned on running the 200-meter and 100-meter in the Olympic trials and hopes to make a couple of relay teams, as well. Asked about the top sports moment she'd ever seen, she quickly recalled Michael Johnson's 200-meter record at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. She hopes to have some more memorable moments of her own this summer in Beijing.
[They] take their shots in the media, but they won't show up in court. … They don't want to see us in the courtroom. The lawyers are ducking and dodging us. The hangup is they don't want to give us their deposition. … But at the same time, they're doing interviews and making the media rounds? … It's like a trash talker on the field. If you're serious, meet me on the 50-yard line.
It's nice to see him finally respond, but that's it? Out of all the things he could say in response to a possibly-extorting-convicted-felon-turned-compensated-source, he complains about too much media exposure? (I'm not buying the "ducking and dodging" yet ... the legal system is slow.)
Let's look at this another way.
Bush is fully aware that his football value isn't limited to the field. Sports, especially the NFL, is a business. He's worth a lot more on TV and billboards than he is "on the 50-yard line." David Beckham could have taught him that while filming a commercial.
Bush will beat most people on a football field. He may very well beat Lake in court. But in the media field and court of public opinion (the same one that lines his pockets with multimillion-dollar endorsements), so far he's the only one choosing not to meet "on the 50-yard line."
While there's probably a team of attorneys telling him not to talk, the marketing execs at Adidas and Subway must be getting a little uneasy. Like the fans, they probably wouldn't mind closure, either.
So, Reggie, if you've got nothing to hide:
Find a reporter at Sundance (E!'s Laura Lane is on the scene -- she's a USC alum).
Flash your million-dollar smile.
Issue a firm denial that would make Roger Clemens look meek.
No matter what happens in two weeks, the Trojan Family will add some Super Bowl rings to the collection. Here's how USC alums fared in this weekend's NFL conference championships:
Steve Smith (WR - New York Giants) made two caches, of 14 and 11 yards, in a 23-20 OT victory in Green Bay.
Junior Seau (LB - New England) had six tackles and made the Pats' only sack in a 21-12 win over San Diego. Matt Cassell (QB - New England) didn't take a snap against New York, but will back up Tom Brady in the Super Bowl. He may become the first person to ever win a college national championship ring with an undefeated season AND a Super Bowl ring with an undefeated season (we haven't double-checked the undefeated Dolphins roster, though). He already holds the rare distinction of backing up two Heisman Trophy winners (Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart) and an NFL MVP (Tom Brady).
Norv Turner (Coach - San Diego) heads home after the Bolts ended a second straight season with a loss to the Patriots. Turner, in his first year in San Diego, oversaw an impressive turnaround that took the Chargers from 1-3 to 11-5. Including the postseason, they rode an eight-game winning streak into New England. To see how Turner's popularity changed throughout the season, click here.
Reserves Oscar Lua (LB - New England) and Manuel Wright (DT - New York) will probably enjoy a view of the Super Bowl from the sidelines.
From an AP report on yesterday's Nets-Blazers game:
The loudest cheer of night went to Giants wide receiver Steve Smith when the scoreboard showed him in the stands for the game.
Smith, a USC alum, has been performing well after returning from injury. His New York Giants will face Green Bay this week to decide the NFC's representative in the Super Bowl.
According to a forum on WeAreSC.com, Smith was wearing a Trojan hoodie and sitting next to former teammate LenDale White.
White has his first 1,000-yard rushing season this year for the Tennessee Titans, who announced today that offensive coordinator Norm Chow has been fired. Chow's name had been circulated last week in connection with the Hawaii job.
The NFL playoffs march on, and fewer Trojans are left as we approach the big game. Here's how USC alumni fared this weekend.
Steve Smith (WR - New York Giants) had the biggest game of his career, and has now had an impact in three straight games after missing most of his rookie campaign with an injury. His four catches went for 48 yards, with a long of 22. He showed impressive poise with the clock winding down in the first half, taking a serious hit on one play and making sure to find the sideline to save the clock. The Giants slipped past Dallas, 21-17.
Junior Seau (LB - New England) piled up 10 tackles, one for a 2-yard loss, as the Pats cruised by Jacksonville, 31-20.
Lofa Tatupu (LB - Seattle) made seven tackles, two behind the line of scrimmage, but the Seahawks fell to Green Bay, 42-20.
Sammy Knight (S - Jacksonville) made seven tackles in the loss to New England.
Coaches Corner: Former Trojan assistant coach Norv Turner (San Diego) led his surprising Chargers past the Indianapolis Colts, 28-24. With his team headed to New England to face the Patriots for the AFC championship, it doesn't seem very likely that Pete Carroll will be offered the San Diego job. ... Mike Holmgren (Seattle) and Jack Del Rio (Jacksonville), both former USC players, coached in losing efforts this weekend.
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