I love to spar with UCLA folks and they are all on fire over Rick Neuheisel’s latest recruiting class, which they point to as proof that “the monopoly is over.” Truth is, Neuheisel HAD to get a big recruiting class. After USC’s off year and questions about Lane Kiffin’s ability to coach, the Trojans were ripe for the picking. But New Weasel was under the gun, because he loses two huge trump cards that he plays when recruiting against USC—the Pete Carroll is leaving and the NCAA is going to put them on the death penalty threats won’t be there to use. Ricky can be quite a charmer , but he negatively recruits more than maybe anyone in the country. A friend of mine has a son headed to Oregon State, and after Carroll left, it took Neuheisel all of an hour to have his assistants get on the phone to Beaver recruits to tell them that “Mike Riley has already signed to be the new USC head coach.” And, a USC recruit told me that his parents were turned off by Rick’s pitch to “spend a weekend on their campus and then spend a weekend on ours and tell me why you’d want to live there” as elitist and racist. All’s fair in love and war and one of my sources at USC told me that one reason Carroll threw the rub it in touchdown against UCLA was his disdain for Neuheisel and that Carroll was truly turned off by Rick’s negative recruiting tactics…

But give Ricky credit for building up his talent, and trying to level the playing field, now he has to do something that gets lost in all his bluster—actually coach…

So Floyd Mayweather and Shane Mosley really are going to actually get in the ring? It was a great fight—two years ago. At 38, I don’t think Shane has enough quicks to neutralize Money and in another boring fight, Mayweather will dominate and win…

I laughed at Dave’s account of his day watching one of my guilty pleasures–

“Man Vs. Food”. Wow, now I have a tough time wondering who has the better life, the host of MVF, Adam Goldman, who goes around getting paid gorging himself, or the fictional Charlie harper from “Two And A Half Men”, who sits around, drinks, does nothing but live off of residuals and get laid. Tough choice..

Watching the Lakers play reminds me of myself during my senior season in high school—just counting the days until, graduation—bored, with nothing to look forward to, and only there to look at the ladies, and my effort just enough to get by…

Laker coach Jim Cleamons made me laugh the other day when asked what advice he gives to Laker center Rip van Bynum—“Run, Andrew, Run!”

Really now, Lamar Odom couldn’t do better than Khloe Kardashian? As Roger Lodge said, she’s a dead ringer for the WWE wrestler Chyna…

Quite honestly, I don’t get into politics too much because I find myself getting aggravated over public servants worrying more about their reputation and getting re elected more than actually serving the public…

Back in 2008, when the election was going on, I asked my dad, an older gentleman who has no problem speaking his mind, what he thought would happen in the election. He told me thought that although he was unqualified, Barack Obama would win because he was bringing a message of hope and change to young America , but that after he won he would realize hope and change always run smack dab into reality. Also, he said, “You know, the most embarrassing situation in sports is the lack of minority head coaches in college football. The only time a school hires a black coach is coming off a winless season, with no real hope, and then they can say, ‘Well, he got his shot.’ Well, right now with the economy and divisive feelings in this country, this nation is kind of like a hopeless football program, so the black man will finally get his shot—and it won’t be pretty.” Well, looks like he’s right on…

Wow, Super Sunday is coming up—let’s see, Colts 48, Saints 28 in a game not that close…

She has really gotten into the college life, and while LMU doesn’t have a football team, they do have a basketball team, well, kind of. The last two seasons of LMU basketball produced less than 10 wins total, but this season, in a very good West Coast Conference, the Lions were picked to finish last, and are 2-6, but overall have 11 wins and have posted upset wins on the road against USC and Notre Dame, and start a very young team so the future looks bright…

But the glory in LMU basketball is in the past, specifically 20 years ago when they became the nation’s darlings scoring 122 points a game, including 181 points in a single game. Of course their fast break offense was one of a kind, but, sadly, what drew the national attention was the death of Hank Gathers in the conference semifinals. Gathers was a perfect player for the “system”, a 6’7 flyer who in 1989-1990 once scored 48 points against an LSU tam that included Stanley Roberts and a guy named Shaquille O’Neal. Imagine that, a smaller, hustling guy taking advantage of Shaq—who would have ever thunk it? Gathers was a notorious bad free throw shooter who started shooting free throws left handed to try to get better, and as a tribute in the tournament, his best friend, Bo Kimble, shot every first free throw left handed left handed—and made every one of them. There were definitely moments that made the eyes tear up.

In one of the most exciting games I’ve ever seen, eliminated defending champion Michigan in the second round of the NCAA playoffs by a whopping 149-115 count. The frenetic style and three point barrage was everything a basketball junkie enjoys. They were so good that a far superior athletic team, Alabama , chose to slow the pace in the Sweet 16, and ended up losing to LMU, 62-60. Unfortunately, the magical run ended there as eventual national champion UNLV was too good and beat LMU, but the Lions got their 100 points.

I read an article recently about the 1989-1990 LMU team, and a national sportswriter noted that only two teams that he had covered in his career really caught the imagination of the national sporting public, the 1980 US Olympic hockey team and 1990 LMU Lions basketball team.

Last Saturday, as LMU took on a really good St. Mary’s team at Gersten Pavilion, there was a halftime reunion of the 1989-1990 team, and it was truly special. All the familiar names were there, a little less hair on top and a little more paunch around the middle, There was the star, Kimble, all smiles recalling his buddy Gathers. There was the hustling Finn, Per Stumer, the human body bruise, Tom Peabody.The Mad Bomber, Jeff Fryer, brought huge applause as did the super sixth man, Terrell Lowery. They all stayed around after the game to mingle, and it was great to hear them recount that season.

But the biggest applause was saved for Gather’s mother Lucille, who raised her arms to the sky and cried as the student section joined with the rest of the crowd and yelled, “This Is Hank’s House! This Is Hank’s House!” You looked around the pavilion and the emotion was palpable, you just don’t get special times like these…

Loyola Marymount lost by 18 points that night and might never experience the success that the 1990 Elite Eight run brought. It was probably a blip on the radar screen never to be seen again. But that’s what made it so memorable and special. And at the end of the night, my daughter, with a “HANK” headband on said, Now I do feel like a Lion”. Oh, the college experience…

A) Bye Bye Pete- Right after the Halloween Massacre known as the Oregon game, I went to a USC football practice to get together to get a feel for the team along with some Trojan insiders. USC losing was not a surprise, but the margin, and more importantly, the seeming lack of leadership and direction was stunning. I couldn’t get the image of Pete at halftime saying he was basically clueless as how to stop Oregon , and that hopefully the offense would score enough points to hang in there, It was a startling admission that the team was unprepared. It was at this practice that one of the guys I know who is usually straight with me about the team told me, “Don’t be surprised if Pete is out the door this season.” I took him at his word and as the dismal play continued throughout the season and the lack of preparation and discipline from the players continued, I continued to remember what my USC friend had told me, so I was hardly stunned when Pete announced he was leaving for the USC. Pete is, in the vein of most NFL coaches, a “10 year guy”, a firm believer a coach can rarely stay in the same place more than 10 years before he burns out or his players tire of listening to him. Pete is 58 years old, and the window of opportunity for him to take off was closing.

Pete Carroll’s time at USC was absolutely magical, and there is no reason for any

USC fan to be bitter for him leaving. He brought a moribund program that was

dead in the water and drawing 50,000 spectators and stuck with offensive

“stars” like Petros Papadakis, and brought big time players, 90,000 screaming

fans, and national prominence. He owned Notre Dame, UCLA, and the Big Ten.

He brought pride to the school and attention to the plight of the inner city. In the

End, he probably spread himself too thin, but he will always be up there with

John McKay in my book. Thank you, Pete…

B) The Lame (Lane) Hire- A head scratcher to say the least. According to some people that I trust, Jon Gruden was very nearly the hire after Mike Riley turned USC down, but the hiring body wasn’t comfortable with the fact that he might not be a very good recruiter and weren’t too enthralled with the coaches he might bring in. Kiffin is a great recruiter who has great energy, but very immature and undeserving of the jobs he has corralled FL head coach and coach of two of college football’s great programs (USC and Tennessee ) at age 34? Okay, I take that back— Oakland should not be considered an NFL team. Ironically, winning 5 games with Oakland might be Kiffin’s greatest accomplishment!

Kiffin was hired because he has come with the promise of a “dream” coaching staff of his dad , defensive guru Monte Kiffin, an old USC favorite, defensive line coach and recruiting legend Ed Orgeron, offensive line coach Tim Davis (still not here) and offensive coach Norm Chow—not here—more on him later.

I personally would have hired a guy who wanted the job, Utah coach Kyle Whittingham, not a big marquee name but a tough minded, disciplined coach who tutored under Urban Meyer, and who has won some big games against big name programs.

I’m willing to give Kiffin a chance, what choice do I have? But at this point, as Dave pointed out, he is less Pete Carroll and more like UCLA coach Slick Rick, more con man than coach, more about bluster and style than substance. Is that what USC has come to? I say Lane Kiffin won’t be USC coach when my daughter graduates from college—2013…

C) The Chow Disaster- First off, let me break away from the pack and say I’m more than happy with Norm Chow not being the USC offensive coach. The popular refrain around here is “Pete couldn’t win without Norm”. How about “Pete’s players made Norm look good?” Norm Chow is a dinosaur whose two seasons in the NFL and two seasons at UCLA have been abysmal. Norm comes across as this cerebral Dr. Frankenstein of offense but, having been around people that I trust, he is one bitter guy who right or wrong, felt he was pushed out the door at USC. Yet a USC alum, Jeff Fisher, hired him and got him a high paying NFL job, where he got fired because he simply didn’t produce. When I saw on the ESPN ticker that he was going to be hired at USC, I knew the chances of that happening were about as good as Shaquille O’Neal and Dave Smith going all BFF. He and Kiffin detest each other. Chow going to UCLA had nothing to do with the “chance to work with Rick Neuheisel”. Norm was like the girl you dumped and her way of getting back at you is going out with some guy you don’t care for. Norm’s move wreaked of vindictive and more the chance to give the bird to USC, but he couldn’t beat his old buddy Pete. Yet USC is getting hammered, and rightfully so, for getting turned down by Chow in their courtship. Mike Garrett should be ridiculed for getting on television and being giddy about going after Chow. Chow saw a chance to get an extension from UCLA and embarrass USC, and he took it.

Other Notes-

Kiffin is getting drilled for leaving Tennessee after just one season—hey I wish he would have stayed—but how can anyone blame him for passing up the opportunity? Loyalty is one thing, but when your dream job is right in front of you, then you take it. Life is about upward mobility. And sorry, Los Angeles is better than Knoxville in any world…

If any of these ESPN moralists would take a look at the NCAA rules, they’d see what Ed Orgeron did was within the rules. But they’re too SEC-centric and hurt to be objective when it comes to USC, What about Notre Dame hiring Brian Kelly before a huge bowl game? It’s all in the timing…

So Blake Griffin is out for the season? As Phil Jackson noted, it’s not a curse, it’s karma. Donald Sterling is a bad human being and eventually things even up when you screw people over…

Vladimir Guerrero is a Texas Ranger—and will get a standing ovation from me every time he bats in Anaheim this season. By the way, Andre Dawson’s election to the Hall Of Fame bodes well for Big Daddy Vladdy, as their career numbers mirror each other, except for Guerrero’s higher batting average and impact on the game was much bigger…

So Mark McGwire WAS on steroids? And, in other news, the sun rises in the East…

Kentucky ’s John Wall is the best all around college basketball player I have seen in a long time…

For a long time, local newpaper writer Tom Hoffarth, who covers radio and television, always had Dave Smith rated in his Top 10 of local sports talk hosts, and I believe it was 3 or 4 times he had him rated tops. I think Dave would know. Anyway, in his last poll he had Dave’s former partner Roger Lodge rated the best, if you looked from the bottom up. Yup, he had ole Roger rated the worst sports talk host and I couldn’t agree more. I would further comment but since I don’t listen to the self promoting blowhard anymore I can’t. Dave Smith not having a job in this market while bums like Lodge and screamers like Stephen A. Smith do is just brutal. Dave might be a moron, but he’s OUR moron…

But this season, remembering Oregon ’s dismantling of USC, a lot of people were calling for a similar dismemberment of Ohio State in the Rose Bowl. The conventional thinking is that the Pac 10 schools have a significant advantage in speed over their Midwestern opponents, and with Oregon ’s fast break offense, on the outside, it looked like they could be right…

But as Lee Corso might say as I thought about the match up—not so fast my friends. To me, Ohio State has always been as athletic as any team in the country, and has really only been embarrassed a couple of times in their recent BCS failures. So the night before the game, as my friend took his annual trek to Las Vegas for a weekend of debauchery, I told him to bet my money on Ohio State and under the total points…

My reasoning was that Oregon was unlike USC, in that as potent as their offense was, they presented Ohio State with just another Big 10 type offense, albeit much faster. They run to set up the pass and don’t threaten you downfield. The reason USC has continually dominated their Big 10 counterparts is that they come in with a diversified offensive attack and expose the simple Big 10 defenses with passing schemes that they don’t see in farm country. Big, physical Ohio State teams can find a way to slow down a running team, and it didn’t hurt that they would attempt to (and successfully) control the ball. Their conservative, get points, even if was field goals offense (the reason I took the under) philosophy wore down and frustrated Oregon …

One thing the Buckeyes did, to their credit, was devise a game plan to neutralize Duck quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, a plan which was so simple that it made USC fans cringe. When Pete Carroll was approached at halftime of the disaster in Eugene , he looked as confused as Mike Tyson’s corner the night he got destroyed by Buster Douglas, and basically admitted the offense needed to score because his defense was clueless. What Carroll should have learned from Ohio State was to use his big, athletic defensive lineman to attack, rather than to react, to Masoli, and make him make quick decisions. He is not a great passer, and will make some dubious decisions, as will all quarterbacks when pressured…

Also, Ohio State ‘s offense was on the field an unbelievable 42 minutes out of 60, so, in retrospect, Oregon was lucky that Jim Tressel is so conservative offensively, so it could and should have been worse..

After the game, I was at my local gym, and there are a couple of Ohio State alum who frequent the place, and they, while rabid Buckeye fans, are pretty knowledgeable and objective college football fans. I congratulated them on their big win, because they had been in a BCS game slump, but while they were happy, they weren’t that impressed with a win over Oregon . As Buckeye Jim told me, “Everyone knows that USC is the king of football out here. Winning the Rose Bowl and a BCS game is nice, but since it wasn’t USC that we beat, it’s kind of like winning the heavyweight championship, but you didn’t beat Tyson, you beat the guy who beat Tyson”…..Well said, my friend..

I have a lot of respect for Boise State ’s football program and believe their head coach Chris Peterson is as good as any one in the country. But I get a little peeved when I hear the media and their fans constantly crying about them not getting into the BCS title game. Sorry, blue field bellyachers, beating one Pac 10 school and winning your weak conference every season does not constitute a championship team. I hear from Boise state boosters that they could beat USC on a regular basis if they were in the Pac 10, and they’re right, but my question is—what would they do the week AFTER they beat USC? Getting up to play a Pac 10 school and a big name school in the bowls is easy, but playing in a big conference against bigger, more athletic programs is much harder if only because the physical aspect, let alone the mental grind. Arizona State used to dominate the WAC with their great athletes, but once they got into the Pac 10 they became just another school with some big wins but mostly inconsistent. Boise State is a great program in a little pond, but put them in a bigger pond, they’d get swallowed up just like the Sun Devils. And believe me, no high school superstar really wants to live in Boise , Idaho …

My wife got me a great gift for Christmas. I know UCLA fans and Dave Smith were all up in arms about Pete Carroll’s decision to score a “rub it in” touchdown after Ricky New Weasel, er, Neuheisel, called a meaningless time out in a long decided game. She got me a shirt that, in front, in baby blue letters, “You call timeout:, and in cardinal letters below it, proclaims, “WE CALL TOUCHDOWN”…Just beautiful. Nothing like pouring a little salt in the wound…

I really like Floyd Mayweather Jr., but the recent news that the proposed fight between him and Manny Pacquaio isn’t coming off because the two sides cannot agree on a drug testing policy is all on him. His claims of being the greatest ever fall on deaf ears because I can’t ever remember Leonard, Hearns, Hagler, Duran, or even Oscar De La Hoya appearing to look for a way out of a fight. The guy has all the physical and boxing advantages and is looking at, in my opinion, an easy—and LARGE, payday. He needs Pacquaio, not the other way around. C’mon Floyd, ma n up! This is why boxing is getting overtaken by MMA—the best refuse to fight each other. Meanwhile, Shane Mosley awaits…sad state indeed…

God bless recently deceased Angel and USC basketball broadcaster Rory Markas, a solid play by play man whose humorous exchanges with Mark Gubicza made for fun listening on Angel broadcasts. It is just another in a long history of Angel passings. To paraphrase Rory’s signature sign off, it is unfortunately, “Just another Halo tragedy…”

Any time you see an alleged bowl game in a stadium built for baseball, with a capacity of less than 40,000, and BOTH teams standing on the SAME sidelines, it reeks of minor league, far below a team with as much tradition as USC. It’s off, off, off Broadway. It’s like The Who being the opening act for The Jonas Brothers, Muhammad Ali being in the walk out bout, Dave Smith hosting the Lake Elsinore pre game show–wait, he might want that gig—just kidding, my friend…

My point is that is was downright embarrassing for USC to be in that game, and it’s obvious that the only good thing that came out of the bowl was an additional couple of weeks to practice, because the game itself, like the USC season, was unwatchable. There was some good play mixed in with an indifferent attitude, a couple of dumb Matt Barkley interceptions, mixed tackles, missed assignments, untimely penalties, bad special teams, a couple of gift calls, just another exercise in frustration. If the opponent wasn’t Boston College and their 40 year old freshman quarterback, it would have been another USC loss, and Dave wouldn’t have been subjected to a Pete Carroll celebration and trophy waving show…

But the way I look at it, if this abomination of a season is the price USC fans have to pay for success and a bump in the road, which most people believe it is– you could do a lot worse than 9-4 with an inexperienced defense and true freshman quarterback and wins over Notre dame and Ohio State on the road and a win over the softball school in Westwood is something you can live with…

Meanwhile..

Just when “The U”— Miami —looks to be a big player, coming back into prominence, how in the hell do they lose to that symbol of Big 10, Wisconsin ? Wisconsin is the stereotypical Midwestern team — un-athletic, slow, 3 yards and a cloud of dust offense, yet they beat some of Florida ’s finest athletes? Somewhere Steve Kim is drowning in his beer….

I’m not saying ESPN is biases and SEC-centric—okay I am, and they are doing it again. The not so subliminal messaging comes in loud and clear. As Oregon State and Cal took their bowl game beatings, and the results were becoming clear, the announcers spent a lot of time referring to them as “the Pac 10 representative.” However as USC and UCLA were winning, it’s funny that no mention of conferences came in. Just watch the ERSPN coverage and you’ll see…

It’s about time Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquaio stopped with the posing and just signed for their fight. At a time when MMA is dominating, boxing needs these two guys to get in the ring. By the way, I like Floyd, and believe he is as good a fighter as I have seen, but mentioning him and fighters like Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns, Roberto Duran, and Marvin Hagler, is just ludicrous. Skill wise, Floyd is off the charts, but by not taking on guys like Shane Mosley and Paul Williams, who I think he could beat, he insults the sport of boxing by ducking them. Great fighters don’t seek paydays, they seek a legacy…

While the rest of baseball’s major players –The New York teams, Boston , and Philadelphia —have been working hard in the off season, the local teams have been sleeping. The Dodgers have been more busy with Judge Judy, while the big talk, no walk Angels have added Hideki Matsui at a cut rate and Fernando Rodney while letting Jason Bay get away for a little more than what they paid Vladimir Guerrero last season. By the way, for the record, I would have rather the Angels showed some loyalty and signed Guerrero rather than Matsui, but we all know that loyalty and the current Angel management is not to be used in the same sentence…

Happy New Year’s……

Okay, here is where Dave Smith injects the inevitable Shaq comparison—that Kobe would find a way to play, while The Big IR would seize the opportunity for a 3 or 4 week stay on vacation, er, injured list. And, well, I would actually have to agree with The Sports God…

Anyway, the following night in Utah , I was surprised, though I should not have been, that Kobe decided to play with a fractured finger—as well as flu symptoms. Utah prevailed, ending the Lakers 11 game winning streak, and Kobe ’s line read 7 of 24 shooting from the field, although he managed to keep the team in the game at the end with a courageous performance. Once again you had to wonder where the other guys were as this marvelous player continued to compete at the highest level while injured while the other players watched him…

After the game I wondered if it wasn’t in the best interest of the team to put Kobe on the injured list, force him to take some time off to properly heal his finger. I always hear about the Lakers’ great depth and talent, and if this truly is a championship team, shouldn’t they be able to persevere for a month and at least play .500 ball while the star is out, and letting the back ups gain valuable experience and confidence?

But Kobe Bryant has done what Kobe Bryant always does—ignores pain, and plays the game at its’ highest level, and in the 5 games since the Utah debacle, has averaged about 35 points a game, sunk a buzzer beater, and led the team to 5 wins. I am convince that, if faced with the same situation, Kobe would do what the great Hall Of Fame football player Ronnie Lott did to continue playing the game he loves, cut off part of his finger…

Kobe is a polarizing figure in sports. He is not the most beloved player around to fans because he comes across as a Michael Jordan wannabe, insincere, everything scripted. Even before his

scandal in Eagle, Colorado , he wasn’t popular outside of Los Angeles to the extent that LeBron James is now. He has worked hard to rehabilitate his image, and being part of the gold medal winning team in Beijing has helped, but Kobe is more respected than loved, at least outside of Los Angeles . Hey, in a year that Jimmie Johnson, a RACE CAR DRIVER, is AP’s ATHLETE of The Year—are you kidding me?—they couldn’t have voted Kobe in to reward him for leading pro sports’ most glamorous franchise—sorry yanks—to the top of the mountain again?

But, here in Los Angeles , we don’t care. It’s pretty much Kobe ’s Town and anyone else is a distant second, and it should be that way. Sure he huffed and puffed and bitched about wanting to leave town, but has on many occasions talked about his love for the Lakers since he was a kid. He is going to do what you don’t see nowadays in big money professional sports—stay with one franchise his entire career…

I have always thought that the all time Laker team would consist of West and Magic at guards, Kareem at center (barely over Wilt), and Baylor and Worthy at forward. But how could you possibly leave out Kobe Bryant? I think I may have to go to a 3 guard offense, and take out Worthy…

The point of this whole article is that sure Kobe is beloved, but as his career winds down, we should appreciate what a truly special player this young man is, and what a great symbol for Laker basketball he has become..

And all I want to give him for Christmas is,……a bench to help him!

Merry Christmas to all….

The recent and unprecedented success that the school has enjoyed, returning to a high profile in the college football world, has spoiled many a Trojan fan. If any other school were promised road wins over Ohio State and Notre Dame and a win over your hated rival along with in all likelihood a Top 10 recruiting class, they would be thrilled, but at USC it has come to the point of “ yeah, been there, done that, what have you done for me lately?”

The lackluster, predictable offense and bend but don’t break defense which was broken a lot this season has raised concerned over Carroll’s commitment to the program, whether his micro managing scares away prospective coaches, and whether or not USC is just not the “it” school it has been for the past decade.

And then you have the very real and scary possibility that Pete Carroll is an example of a coach suffering from the Al Davis Ten Year rule. Davis has always believed that a coach can only stay 10 years in the same place being productive before his voice and system get outdated. Of course, ironically, Davis himself doesn’t see that his ways are old and outdated.

In a lot of ways Carroll is like Davis . At first when he got to USC, he brought a fresh football approach with lots of veteran football experience in his coaching staff. But as the success grew, his aides left for greener pastures and Carroll, believing in HIS system, brought in younger coaches looking to start out, and knew that he could control them, and not butt heads with older guys. But while these young guys are great for recruiting, as the years have gone on, the fundamentals have fallen by the wayside.

Sometimes coaches fall into the trap that believing great talent doesn’t need as much coaching, when the opposite exists—that great natural talents have gotten by so far on that skill set alone, and are amazingly bad when it comes to technique.

More importantly, the halftime adjustments that were legendary have become non existent. When USC was locked in a tight game at halftime before, you knew the game was over as Carroll and crew would adjust and be breezing by the middle of the fourth quarter. Now it looks like USC goes out in the second half with a hope and a prayer, and they have been shredded unmercifully. It is almost Paul Hackett like in its’ incompetence. Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesh!

And now that the Trojans have played like mere mortals this season, other teams become braver, and you hear opponents calling them out, such as the Arizona wide receiver who called them “just another uniform.”

Because of Carroll’s dominant teams, the Pac 10 coaches had to get bigger, more physical, and bring in coaches with fresh offensive ideas and the conference has gotten a lot better, and now it is Carroll’s move. He has to realize that he has to change his outdated offensive and defensive schemes.

If not, USC will become, as Dave Smith put it, “a former national power”…

How big of a scumbag is Charlie Weis? After Notre Dame kicked him to the curb, he outs Pete Carroll for allegedly living with a grad student in Malibu , then, of course, tries to backpedal. Weis is one bitter guy, and even if there is a chance that his allegation is true, he has committed a violation of the highest degree—a man card violation—by calling out Carroll. Just when you think Charlie’s bitterness knows no depth, he takes it further…

Looks like the Angels will be saying goodbye to Chone Figgins, and I say good riddance. Figgins is the poster boy for Mike Scioscia ball. In the regular season, he is a terror, runs the bases aggressively, plays great defense, and does everything right. In the playoffs, well—the numbers tell the story—35 career post season playoff games, .135 average, .223 on base percentage, just 4 steals, and, most alarmingly 35 strikeouts. If you’re going to strike out once a game lie a power hitter, at least provide power, which Figgins did not. At his defense became spotty at best. In other words, like Scioscia, he usually fell apart when the stakes were upped, and very tentative and unsure of himself, okay—he choked. Bye bye Chone…

The other night I took a sentimental journey down memory lane and watched the game 6 clincher by the Lakers over Portland , a huge upset before they lost to Michael Jordan’s Bulls. Magic Johnson, on the down side of his career, along with a fading James Worthy, beat a Clyde Drexler led team. But the best part was listening to the one and only Chick Hearn, who was in fine form. He was excited as the Lakers raced to a 15 point lead, and the Forum crowd was in full throat. But he warned not to write off Portland , and as the Lakers lead started to disappear he said it was “like watching a snow ball melt.” As the Lakers continued to turn the ball over in the fourth quarter Chick was in agony, describing it as “watching the noose tighten around their necks.” Even though I knew they would eventually win, I was actually getting nervous! As the Lakers missed a lay up in the final seconds clinging to a one point lead, Chick, like the fan he was, lamented, :Now they’ll probably lose”, but, when Magic snared the rebound after a Blazer miss and rolled the ball to the other end of the court to secure the victory, Chick blared out , “Lakers win, Lakers win!” Of course, watching the team nearly blow the lead, he had commented,< “ Chicago is watching this and is at home drooling over the prospect of playing the winners”, and was correct. I listened to Chick, and he was SO MUCH better than anyone today and it’s not even close. I really miss him. What a treasure…

Bye Bye Charlie Weis, and to all your “schematic advantages”. It was a pleasure watching you fumble all over the place, wipe your nose, and make Irish faithful long for the glory days of Gerry Faust. Your arrogance, your lies about how USC people made fun of your mentally handicapped daughter, your demeaning of your players made you so fun to beat. While you are undoubtedly a gifted play caller, your management skills leave much to be desired. You came in saying you owned Pete Carroll. To that we say—hahahahahahahahahahaha! Have fun in the NFL…

By the way, Notre Dame should really hire either Jim Harbaugh or Chris Peterson, but, then again, the idea in life is to move upward, so fat chance these guys would take the job..

Dadgummit! Bobby Bowden may have earned the right to go out on his own, but by staying on too long, he put Florida State officials in a terrible position. At 80, how could anyone possibly say “he deserves another year?” And what will they say about the year after that and after that? But I will always remember Bowden as an innovative coach who brought an unprecedented amount of success to FSU, and while some say he should have won more national titles than the two he got with all his talent (Uh oh, will they be saying this about Pate Carroll?), it’s hard to argue with his results. His battles with Miami and then his mano a mano duels with Steve Spurrier and Florida are the stuff of legend. Bur dadgummit Bobby—couldn’t you have recruited a KICKER? You will be missed…

Even though I truly believe Toby Gerhart of Stanford should win the Heisman Trophy, there is NO way the poster child for college football, Tim Tebow, doesn’t win it, especially if Florida beats Alabama this weekend. My order of the Heisman- 1) Gerhart 2) Tebow 3) Colt McCoy 4) C.J. Spiller of Clemson 5) Ndamukong Suh of Nebraska , the best defensive player in the country and probably the # 1 pick in the NFL draft…

People are all up in arms about Tiger Woods’ decision to keep his private life exactly what it is—private. I don’t believe he owes anyone an explanation outside of the companies that pay him millions of dollars to represent them, but by keeping mum, he will only fuel all the rumors and more skanks will step forward will stories of torrid affairs. For all the world it appears that the lovely Elin is not the stereotype that Dave paints of European women who allow their men to have multiple lovers as long as they keep them in golden slippers. It looks like the Swede followed in the footsteps of former heavyweight champ Ingemar Johanson and was trying to unload the “toonder punch”, except with a 9 iron to Tiger’s head after hearing all the alleged reports of Tiger’s torrid 19th hole experiences. And, I am still amazed at the many “She’s so beautiful how could he look at another woman” naivete that reigns in the world. A man is only as faithful as his options. And as the great Lee Trevino said while spotting a young beauty at a bar sitting by herself while other slobbered themselves, “Somewhere in the world, some guy got tired of that”. Tiger is finding out every day that fortune is great, fame not so much. Mo money Mo problems…

I wonder how dumb some people are, or how dumb they think we are. On his radio show, Mychal Thompson refused to believe that Tiger would have any extra marital affair because “He’s too busy for that”, saying with all his business commitments and practice at the tee, Tiger would be too exhausted to have any affair. Like his hero Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods has a great work ethic, and it may include energy beyond the athletic field. I know, hard to believe…

The good news for UCLA basketball head coach Ben Howland is that he won’t have to worry about having a “one and done” player this season, but the bad news is that is because he doesn’t have any player good enough to have that decision to make. What the hell happened to UCLA overnight? I watched them play 3 times last week and they lost every game, They might have looked like the “Duke Of The West” all right, but only because they had 4 white guys on the court—and all of them stunk. Unathletic would be a kind word to describe them. Howland is a great coach, but his visually unpleasing style of basketball makes it hard for a recruit to come there when the winning stops.. And now his best player, Drew Gordon, is leaving. Tough times in Westwood indeed. Softball season can’t come fast enough…

The more I watch Pau Gasol, the more I appreciate him. The guy is one of the best 10 basketball players in the world. His athletic skills are something else, but his feel for the game is unreal..

Is there anything more disturbing to Laker fans than watching the bench come in? These guys make leads disappear faster than my money in Vegas. Jordan Farmar is horrible, Sasha Vujacic has been hitting Maria Sharapova but little else (does he really have to?) and the rest of “The Bench Mob” has been non existent. Good God, does this mean Luke Walton is irreplaceable?…

Is there anything more exciting in sports right now than watching the New Orleans Saints play at home? The loud crowd, the fast break offense, wow, I might start liking the NFL again.

By the way, Jon Gruden is the best thing to happen to Monday Night Football in a long time…

So Saturday night, the all is good, I’m all for building a Better L.A. Pete Carroll, future mayor, and ambassador of goodwill, had his Hogan moment, and incurred the wrath of a lot of people, including Dave Smith, for the “classless” move of throwing a late TD pass, celebrating a win , and rubbing it in over the poor, downtrodden UCLA Baby Bears. I say—

“ WE LOVE YOU PETE…do it again, do it again…”

Let me first say that when Stanford’s Jim Harbaugh went for 2 points in an effort to hit 50 in Stanford’s beatdown of USC, I thought the move was classy and really unnecessary, because Stanford was going to score again, so what was the big deal in trying to get 50? But while I thought it was classless, I had no problem with it because it just showed Carroll and USC that Harbaugh had no fear of them and was drawing a line in the sand. It was reminiscent of the rancor that exists between Carroll and former Oregon coach and current AD Mike Bellotti. People resent success and the way USC flaunts it, much like a present day version of Miami minus a bit of the swagger, but not much.

USC’s arrogance as a school and a football team is legendary and whenever someone has the chance to stick it to them, it happens and that’s what you learn to live with here.

But I have a real problem with people crying for Rick Neuheisel and the gutless, er, gutty little Baby Blues. This is a rivalry and any pretense of respect is gone, and I am happy for that. Since Slick Rick’s arrival, he has stolen Carroll’s mantras of “always compete”, having a name for each day of practice, constantly negative recruiting against USC, putting down the neighborhood around USC, and basically being a Bruin, inferiority complex and all. At the pep rally before the game he told the Bruin faithful to “come and watch us take the town back.” UCLA safety Rahim Moore guaranteed a win, and tackle Brian Price said “you can feel the tide turning.”

I have to deal with Bruins in my own family and business dealings, and if Trojans are arrogant, these guys are obnoxious. The sad truth is that they hate USC more than they like their own school. They would trade in one of their Sam Gilbert financed basketball championships for a win over USC in any sport. I know a lot of Bruins and believe me, when USC loses my phone rings off the hook. Their little lives must be miserable.

Saturday night the football game was all I thought it would be—ugly, boring, defensive, and offensive to watch. But a beautifully thrown touchdown pass in the final minute made it all worth it. Too many times Carroll has sacrificed BCS chances because he was the nice guy instead of putting points on the board. Last season, in the Rose Bowl Pete let up on Joe Paterno and allowed the score to look closer than it should have been.

So Dave says Pete is two faced. Kind of like John Wooden, who sat in his chair and looked like a kindly professor but was skewering the officials. Pac 10 coaches hate Pete Carroll but should be thanking him. He brought respectability to the conference. Without him, out of state recruits who wouldn’t give a second thought to coming West now come to either play for USC or to try and beat them.

I wouldn’t call what Carroll did Saturday classless, I would call it comeuppance. Slick Rick constantly is tugging at him. He tried a little gamesmanship Saturday with the timeout. He said it was because he tells his players to never stop competing and playing hard. Oh, so the other guy is supposed to stop trying, too? As I read on Sunday morning, when Pete responded with throwing a touchdown pass, he acted like the woman who throws a drink in a guy’s face and is surprised when she is met with the back of his hand. Boo hoo, hoo.

As for the USC players taunting the Ruins, hey, beat them. UCLA fans and players always talk a great game. Listen to Maurice Jones-Drew, the former Ruin who has gone on to have a better pro career than Reggie Bush, Lendale White, and Matt Leinart combined, but still can’t let go of his bitterness for being passed over by USC and losing to them three times in college. There is a great saying in Trojan land that UCLA would always win national titles in football if that damned season didn’t get in the way, that’s how much they talk.

Excuse me if I’m not embarrassed like some USC actually are, or feel like “I’ve sunk to UCLA’s level.” It’s called bragging rights, and in this season when USC has not had its’ finest moments and we’re seen as vulnerable to the hopeful Bruin fans, they are sweeter than ever.

I’m only upset Pete didn’t go for two.

That’s the deal…

Other notes..
You know, when you were a kid, how your parents would tell you to put your hands over your ears when someone older was arguing so you wouldn’t hear the curse words? I’m getting that way listening to Emanuel Steward doing the analysis on boxing. I tell all kids in the room not to listen to Steward’s butchering of the English language. I love him as a trainer and his enthusiasm, but he has replaced Magic Johnson as the king of the double negative. Ouch!!!!…
So Dave thought Bill Bellicheck’s decision to go for a first down on 4th and 2 on his own 28 was “out of the box” and ballsy? No, much like Reggie Bush’s ill fated lateral in the 2006 Rose Bowl, it was a stupid foot ball play, even if it had worked…
You want ‘out of the box”? After the failed 4th down, why didn’t Belichick instruct his defense, whom he didn’t trust, to allow Indianapolis to score a touchdown immediately? Worst case scenario—with a 2 point conversion, the Pats would have been down 3 with almost 2 minutes left to score on a defense that had not stopped them most of the night?
I have no problem with Dave defending Kansas coach Mark Mangino’s old school discipline, screaming and grabbing his players. That should not get him fired. What should get him fired are his, if true, personal attacks on players. Telling one player that he would ‘send him back to the ghetto” and telling another player that “he would end up a loser like your alcoholic father” have no place in sports. And when you lose 5 in a row, the leash is really short…
The Angels should-
Sign John Lackey, sign Jason Bay , move Juan Rivera to right field, make Bobby Abreu a DH, show Chone Figgins the door, either give Brandon Wood the chance to show he’s either Troy Glaus or Dallas MacPherson or trade him and Mike Napoli for another pitcher, and—sign Adrian Beltre to play third base..
One of the remarkable achievements of the Angel season was Kendry Morales finishing fifth in the MVP voting. Who would have guessed that Tony Reagins’ and Arte Moreno’s gamble would pay off so successfully?
It’s time for Charlie Weis to leave South Bend, and, in a bold and obvious move, Pete Carroll to stop with his on the job training hires and pick him as his new offensive coordinator. He may not be a good head coach, but Weis is a great play caller and would work wonders with Matt Barkley. Not to mention, it would add great spice to the USC-Notre Dame rivalry…
I keep thinking UCLA will take advantage of USC’s late season funk and upset them Saturday in the Coliseum, but I believe a week to get their sh*t together will result in a boring, defensive oriented 20-16 USC win. Of course, with the history of this series, the game will probably end up a high scoring, wild affair…
I can’t wait for Oregon-Oregon State. It will trump anything Florida and Alabama do…
Happy Turkey Day! Don’t let watching the Raiduhs ruin your dessert…