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If It’s Friday, It’s Time For A USC Notes Column

This week was the 25th anniversary of the O.J. Simpson white Bronco chase.

And of course, the driver was Al Cowlings, who now has a building named after him at USC.

People I know who run into Cowlings tell me he doesn’t talk about the current USC football team these days, let alone Simpson.

But back to Simpson. A USC football player, who is about five years younger than Simpson, told me that after the trial, he was driving when a woman pulled up to him and yelled, “You were guilty! Murderer!”

“More than one person confused me for O.J.,” the former USC player said.

  • Cornerback Clark Phillips of La Habra will make his college announcement today. He is the No. 4-ranked cornerback in the nation by Rivals and 247. His final five schools are Ohio State, Oregon, UCLA, Notre Dame and Cal.

You might remember USC did not even offer Phillips until March. And there are still some pundit-types out there who say, “I trust Clay Helton. I trust Tim Drevno. I trust Clancy Pendergast. I trust Greg Burns.”

USC takes a two-star prospect last week but doesn’t offer the No. 4-ranked corner until it’s too late? Makes perfect sense.

  • The Cleveland Cavaliers clearly wanted USC guard Kevin Porter: Trading four second-round draft picks and giving the Milwaukee Bucks $5 million.

Imagine what Porter is about to experience in Cleveland. He goes from playing for little-respected Andy Enfield to highly respected John Beilein.

I don’t think Porter will be calling Beilein a “f—— idiot” like he allegedly called Enfield last season. And he will suddenly be playing for a detailed-oriented coach. Sink or swim time.

  • Meanwhile, USC forward Bennie Boatwright signed a free-agent contract with the Detroit Piston late Thursday night.
  • USC women’s basketball has added graduate transfer Aliyah Jeune, a 6-1 guard from Morehead State. She averaged averaged 16.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game last season.
  • A former college baseball coach gave me this analysis on USC hiring Jason Gill as its new coach. “I have yet to hear any USC insider went to bat for Gill other than to say he was affordable. Every D-I program in the area is laughing. They are not impressed or threatened.”
  • And this on the new USC coaching staff of Ted Silva and Gabe Alvarez: “Silva is a A- or B+ hire. Jason and Gabe are C- at best.”
  • When is USC athletic director Lynn Swann going to make an announcement on what he is doing with the men’s and women’s water polo coaching jobs?
  • Duke had three of the top 10 picks in the NBA Draft and didn’t make the Final Four? At least USC won the national title when it had five first-round picks in the 1968 NFL Draft (Ron Yary, Mike Taylor, Tim Rossovich, Mike Hull and Earl McCullough).
  • Below, from left to right, Taylor, Yary, Rossovich, Hull and McCullough give best wishes to teammate, O.J. Simpson, who a year late would be the No. 1 pick in the 1969 NFL Draft.

Photo/@NotesnaScorcard

31 thoughts on “If It’s Friday, It’s Time For A USC Notes Column”

    4. Sorry, Ken, but Wolf calling out SC the Football coaching and recruiting brain trust on not offering #4-ranked cornerback (a position of huge need, always) until March while taking a two-star is warranted. Go back into Rah-Rah Fan Ostrich-Mode and pretend all is well with the football program. Channel your angst toward Swann and Helton, not toward a beat writer pointing out the obvious problems. I am sorry this hurts your feelings by shattering your rose-colored glasses about how great and smoothly things are running in the football program. Like the poster below stated, you still can’t help yourself but to come here and read the blog, regardless of the fact that Wolf seems to get under your skin constantly.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

      1. Dear Chris,
        I have always had deep respect for Ken. If he makes an appearance it is because he has something new and fresh and imaginative to say. He would never think of just typing “Wolf Bad” month after month after month…..
        #ThatWouldBeBeneathHim…….

        Like

    1. Because he’s a vexatious litigant.

      There are a lot of problems with USC’s implementation of Title IX. This gadfly idiot isn’t helping matters.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

      1. There are a number of cases where men’s civil rights are being run roughshod over at several colleges. This guy does seem like a gadfly as you note but it is good that someone is bringing attention to this. Without somebody like this, these issues tend to get swept under the rug.

        Liked by 2 people

      2. Hilary Schor is a professor of English and gender studies at USC’s College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, with joint appointments in the department of comparative literature and the law school. She also is a member and past director of the USC Center for Law, History and Culture.

        gould.usc.edu/faculty/?id=304

        We can trust a feminazi Professor of Gender Studies to be fair to a male doctorate candidate.

        Liked by 2 people

    3. The article reminds me of an old joke. A little boy and a little girl are waiting beside each other on adjacent changing tables. The boy points to his genitalia and says proudly, ” I have one of these.” The little girl points to hers and says, ” Well I have one of these, and with one of these I can get all of those that I want!”

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

  3. Good take on the baseball program. A cop out to hire Gill who was
    around 11 yrs. with no other school looking at him. Alvarez kept for the
    Hispanic recruits only , being lame as a hitting coach. Athletic Dept. has
    reached the bottom of the totem pole with the same old tired few persons
    running the show. Men sports are clearly non competitive nationally
    especially the majors.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

  4. Al Cowlings was a good guy. Don’t really know what he has done with his life. He used to come by our fraternity house and play poker on Monday night. Long before 1994 and the O.J. trial.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

      2. Waiting ALL the way til the LAST paragraph…?!
        #Typical…
        #…HopeYou’reProudOfYourself,Wolf!
        #[MoreProofThatWolfIsEvil…AsIfWeNeededAny]!

        Like

      3. Awh! I’m not really a hero, Arturo. In the words Ted Kennedy used to describe his brother, Bobby, I’m “just a man who saw suffering and tried to alleviate it, who saw poverty and tried to stop it, who saw war and tried to end it.” That’s all.

        Like

  8. You guys are absolutely right. I should not be on the anti USC board. What is wrong with me? I do not go on CNN or any of the other Trump hating media sites because all they do is bash Trump without so much as one mention of the many things he has accomplished. Take care gentlemen.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. I agree, Ken. You should “not be on the anti USC board”…..
      #ButWhyWereYouOnItInTheFirstPlace….?
      #[TheCableViewingPublicSeemsToAgreeW/YouAboutCNN]…….

      Like

      Reply

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