In the wake of the Eugene Massacre, my posts on the BCS championship game “pecking order” have lost all significance for USC fans. It would take a nationwide collapse of utterly epic, cataclysmic proportions — making the BCS chaos of 2007 look like a day at the beach — to get the two-loss Trojans back into the national championship picture…. Read more »
Wow. I’m not surprised the Trojans lost, but I wasn’t expecting that. After eight years without a loss by more than a touchdown — a streak dating to when I was a junior at USC — we lose to the Ducks by twenty-seven?! Holy cow. Putting it another way… Oregon beat USC by a wider margin than Notre Dame’s over… Read more »
In an article I linked to earlier, ESPN’s Ted Miller wonders whether Saturday’s USC-Oregon clash will be “the sort of contest where two teams play so impressively that even the loser becomes a top candidate for an at-large BCS bowl berth.” Miller is really asking the wrong question. BCS at-large berths aren’t determined by one team’s “impressive” losing performance in… Read more »
Well, USC held off Oregon State, 42-36. The Trojans are now 6-1 heading into a Top 10 showdown with Oregon next week. That’s the good news. The bad news? First of all, USC’s defense has apparently vanished. Perhaps it’s floating in a balloon somewhere, or hiding in an attic. But one week after allowing ND’s Jimmy Clausen to go 24-of-43… Read more »
As I did last week, I’ve gone through tomorrow’s college football schedule and highlighted the games with major implications for USC as the Trojans try to sneak into the BCS championship game with one loss (something the majority of SI’s panel of analysts think they will accomplish). The two biggest games, outside of the Coliseum, are at 5:00 PM Mountain… Read more »
Just a few days ago, I stumbled upon an early-August column by ESPN’s Rick Reilly titled “Remember us? We’re UCLA football.” Reilly writes about Bruin coach Rick Neuheisel’s little-brother complex, his hyperactive desire to catch up with Pete Carroll and the big bad Trojans across town. It’s almost sad, really. And yet, ultimately, more funny than sad, because it involves… Read more »
It’s been a week since my original BCS pecking order post, and a number of things have changed: Virginia Tech and Ohio State lost, USC beat Notre Dame, Cincinnati beat South Florida, the Big 12’s implosion continued, and more. Plus, the first BCS standings came out, I looked at a few things more closely, re-considered a few scenarios, etc. Anyway,… Read more »
Much like four years ago, I’m proud of both of my alma maters’ football teams tonight. Yes, USC committed some stupid penalties, and should have put the Irish away sooner, but ultimately, they made enough plays to win a very tough game on the road, and that counts for a lot. As for Notre Dame, they played with heart and… Read more »
With 24 hours till kickoff, l thought a stroll down memory lane might be in order… 2002: 44-13 2003: 45-14 2004: 41-10 2005: 34-31 2006: 44-24 2007: 38-0 2008: 38-3 2009: ??? FIGHT ON, TROJANS!! BEAT THE IRISH!!