|
The USC Trojans practiced with their usual confident aplomb this week, getting ready for their game against cross-town rival UCLA Saturday in the Coliseum. It was business as usual for Coach Pete Carroll and his players, who refused to get caught up in the controversial BCS decision to rank "questionable" Ohio State ahead of USC in the latest poll. The Buckeyes jumped over the Trojans and into the No. 2 spot on Monday, putting them in position to play Oklahoma in the Sugar Bowl for the national championship on Jan. 4. When asked for his reaction to the BCS' new rankings, USC's star wide receiver Mike Williams said, "Who cares?!"
Well, the Trojans may publicly not care but their supporters and fans in Los Angeles and other parts of the West do. Newspaper columnists and sports talk-show programs have been ripping the BCS' computer rankings, especially those from the New York Times, all week. It's hard for the Newport Beach hardcore to fathom how a team that wins 45-0 (USC over Arizona) can lose ground to a team that doesn't score a touchdown on offense and ekes out a 16-13 win in overtime (Ohio State vs. Purdue), preceded by a 43-16 rout of No. 6 Washington State, while OSU struggles to beat 3-7 Penn State, 21-20, followed by a win over an average Michigan State team.
Is it the old East Coast-college football establishment bias against the West Coast and the Pacific 10 slithering below the surface like a snake in the tall grass? One look at the Associated Press and ESPN Coaches polls and you get a "No" to that question. USC is solidly ranked No. 2 by both.
Some are saying that the resurgence of USC's football program, unlike the ones that are still sputtering at Notre Dame, Penn State and Alabama, is the last thing that die-hards east of Chicago want to see.
It was reported last week that Carroll and Co. are heavily recruiting two prized high school players in Ohio, one in Cleveland, the other in Akron.
Well, something's got to give but it probably won't before USC plays
Oregon State on Dec. 6, the day before the final BCS standings come out. In the meantime, Ohio State plays Michigan at Ann Arbor (to be televised in L.A. at 9 a.m. on ABC), followed by USC-UCLA at 12:30. The Coliseum is sold out (92,000 seats), and the lowly Bruins, who are struggling with Karl Dorrell's implementation of the West Coast offense, would love to wreck SC's season with an upset.
It could happen, but wins by USC and Ohio State are the way to bet. |
