FOOTBALL

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

Dogs, food and perhaps the greatest USC football team of all time. That’s a pretty good trifecta of subjects for this week’s notes column.

  • It will be hard not to be hungry after reading the Restaurants of the Week section today.
  • Spencer Harris, director of player personnel at USC, is going to work for BLVD/Stay Doubted. He was probably best known to fans as the guy Donte Williams was always talking to and snickering with on the sideline last season.

The question is whether moving to BLVD is a move up or sideways these days? Lincoln Riley has revamped most of the recruiting staff since he got hired so that might provide the answer.

  • The official title for Brandon Sosna with the Detriot Lions is senior director, football administration. Sosna’s last day at USC is July 10.
  • Suzanne Nora Johnson, who became chair of the USC Board of Trustees on Thursday, is the first woman to hold that position.
  • Actress Eden McCoy of General Hospital is a student at USC and on the roster of the beach volleyball team.
  • USC women’s basketball has rehired Beth Burns as associate head coach. Burns was associate head coach at USC from 2014-17 and applied to be head coach when Mark Trakh was rehired. She was head coach at San Diego State from 2005-13.

RESTAURANTS OF THE WEEK

  • Just look at the options for Thanksgiving Dinner around USC in 1935. And when I say around USC, some places were literally across the street.

RESTAURANTS OF THE WEEK, PART II

If you didn’t want turkey, you could go to The Hub Cafe or Harry’s Malt Shop on Thanksgiving.

AND NOW FOR SOME HISTORY

  • Staying in year 1935, the Trojan Theatre on Jefferson showed USC-Notre Dame game highlights for four days the week after the game, including on Thanksgiving Night.
  • Where did teams stay when they played USC before flying became commonplace? When Pitt played USC at the Coliseum in 1935, the Panthers did not come to Los Angeles but instead took a special train from Pittsburgh to Colton. They stayed at the Lake Norcoian Club in Norco and practiced on the resort’s golf course. They didn’t leave Norco until Saturday morning and beat the Trojans, 12-7.
Lake Norcoian Club
USC tennis great Dennis Ralston playing in the Southern California Intercollegiate Tournament in 1964. Two years later, Ralston reached the men’s singles’ final at Wimbledon
  • USC will honor the 50th anniversary of the 1972 team during Saturday night’s Salute to Troy. The Trojans were 12-0 and national champions. So we’ll focus a bit on that golden year.
  • 1972 was definitely the Year of the Dog at USC.
Dogs have always been a part of the USC campus and this group enjoyed a campus fountain in 1972.
A dog made its way into the Women in Communication group photo.

A USC song girl dances with a bear in 1972.

  • Outside of George Tirebiter, no dog was more popular at USC than this stray (lower left) that showed up on campus and was adopted by offensive lineman Pete Adams.

The dog would accompany Adams to games and practices and even went to the 1973 Rose Bowl.

The dog would run wind sprints at the end of practices with Adams, who would introduce it to female students on campus. They would say it was cute and ask its name? “Turd,” Adams would reply.

  • I’m going to save this for another day but tailback Rod McNeill deserves more appreciation. He gained more than 1,700 yards in his career.

Quarterback Mike Rae scrambles for yardage vs. Cal.

The season culminated with a 42-17 victory over Ohio State in the Rose Bowl.

By the end of the 1972 season, John McKay was 100-33-6 at USC.

USC great Gus Williams grabs a rebound at the Sports Arena.

USC had a men’s soccer team in 1972.

Fred Lynn was a first-team All-American in 1972.

THE MAN WHO BUILT USC

John Parkinson was involved in designing seven buildings at USC, including Bovard Administration building, the Student Union, the P.E. Building, the Law School and Bridge Hall.

The Bovard Administration building is among those John Parkinson helped design.

You might remember Parkinson also put the bear holding a football on the outside of Bridge Hall.

Parkinson and his son, Donald, designed the Coliseum and Union Station. John Parkinson also co-designed City Hall and Grand Central Market. He died in 1935.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK

You know Tom Jones. You know Cher. But do you remember Esther Ofarim? They all performed together in 1969.

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

      1. Sure glad Marcia Clarke decided not to introduce the fake beard and 10,000 in cash to show ‘consciousness of guilt’ …..
        #OneSmartDecisionAfterAnother…
        #[StartingWithTheNewHair-Do]
        btw, what is it with us these days? Scott puts up a honey of a piece —replete with menus featuring scrumptious food, adorable dogs of every breed and cheerleaders dancing with bears –and we get a a quarter of the traffic we get when we’re fighting over politics?
        “I ask you: is this fair?”
        — De Niro as Al Capone in The Untouchables

        Liked by 4 people

      2. Hey, I tried to at least steer it towards OJ’s anniversary today. 🙂

        And I posted a restaurant themed post below. Doing my best, MG. It’s just such an unprecedented shit show that it’s impossible to ignore.

        Liked by 2 people

    2. Check out the prez’ remarks today at a business gathering, “I’m sorry your CEO dropped dead unexpectedly –that’s some tough stuff…”
      #ShakespeareCouldn’tHaveSaidItBetter

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

    1. Cute, noble dogs! Almost better than restaurants. Thank you, Scott!
      Tom Jones must be really short — my wife and I ran into Cher at the Century City Theater (she was there to cheer on Conan the Barbarian in his fight to the death with James Earl Jones) and I was surprised by the fact she wasn’t that tall cuz she seemed to tower over Sonny. In Scott’s video she looks taller than Jones too.
      P. S.
      All Parkinson’s buildings are things of beauty….. except for the old USC Law School. Parkinson’s heart, apparently, wasn’t in it on that one.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

  4. Kraken CEO Jesse Powell told his 3,000 employees we will not be a Woke organization. If you don’t like that and want to leave, I will pay you 4 months salary! Bye!

    30 employees took him up on his offer.

    “If nobody is ever offended, we either don’t have enough diversity of thought or we don’t have enough transparency in communication. We recognize that hurt feelings are inevitable in a global organization that is optimizing for team outcomes above individual sentiment. The ideal Krakenite is thick-skinned and well intentioned,” he wrote.

    Too bad he’s not the General Manager of the Washington REDSKINS.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. So Cal
      One of the problems with Del Rio’s statement was the incredibly poor timing. Snyder is currently begging for public funds for a new stadium.
      Right statement, right time. Good
      Wrong statement, wrong time. Bad.
      Right statement, wrong time, still bad.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

      1. I hear ya. Still sucks.

        P.S. So does Orange County banning Crossroads of the West gun shows at the OC Fairgrounds! Bastards.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. So Cal
        The largest gunshow west of the Rockies is at the Phoenix Fairgrounds thurs-sunday the week after Thanksgiving. Several times larger than OC which had really tailed off. Take your LIC plates off in the parking lot because Sacramento records Cal plates at AZ shows. Surprise surprise!!

        Liked by 2 people

      3. With the Denver Broncos franchise’s recent sale for about $4B, the Washington Football team’s market cap will approach a similar price. I don’t know what Snyder paid for the WFT, but with a few Billion Dollars in equity, he should build his own stadium.

        So, the surrounding communities were not going to plump up cash for Snyder’s new stadium anyway. Leveraging JDR’s statements to suggest that he bears some responsibility for the deal dying is wrong on many levels.

        Like

  6. 50 cents for a Turkey dinner in 1935 seems very appealing. But, we were in the midst of the Great Depression. We did not institute the minimum wage laws until 1939. For those lucky enough to find work, a laborer made about 25 cents an hour. Two hours of wages for a Turkey dinner, maybe not such a great deal. Stick to the 10 cent hamburger.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

  7. LOS ANGELES (CNS) — Iconic Los Angeles restaurant Langer’s Deli will mark its 75th anniversary Saturday with 50% discounts.

    Langer’s Deli was founded in 1947 and is renowned for its pastrami sandwich, particularly the famed #19. Owners Norm and Jeannette Langer say the deli has sold more than 20 million pounds of pastrami.

    The family-owned 135-seat delicatessen at 704 S. Alvarado St. will mark its diamond jubilee anniversary by rewarding its dine-in customers with half-off prices between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday.

    There will be a limit of one sandwich per customer.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. The Corned Beef was pretty fucking fantastic too….
      #NeverHadADisappointingMealThere….Ever
      [Historical Note: Langer’s Deli was the first business establishment attacked by the earliest iteration of Antifa …then called the Revolutionary Communist Party. It happened on May Day 1983. The crowds came over from McArthur Park and began breaking windows, blocking the deli doors and throwing rocks and bottles at the police. I recall cuz I was assigned all 54 cases]…..

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

      3. Vickman’s! Another fantastic deli —with great atmosphere, long lines and plenty of fun stuff on the billboard menus—it was discovered for me by Central District of Florida U. S. Attorney, Marcella Cohen (who came out in late November, picked out all her holiday pies and had them shipped home)…..

        Liked by 2 people

      4. P. T.
        Good question –This was the beginning of the marxist bullshit crusade to overload the justice system— I had the cases through discovery & pretrial motions (which lasted 2 years —all bullshit)….and was promoted out of trials by the time trial dates were set…
        #[IBetTheyEventuallyGot$50FinesForTheirAssaults&Vandalism]….

        Liked by 1 person

    2. Great story, So Cal.
      I dined there once or twice over the years.
      Great addition to the otherwise awesome Friday post!
      Thanks

      Like

      Reply

  8. THE 1972 USC team was by far the best ever maybe in all of college football. Rod McNeil, had alot of injuries while at USC including hip surgery which opened the door for AD. One has to believe McNeil would have probably won a Heisman Trophy if it weren’t for the injuries. Played with his brother Fred at Baldwin Park HS. Allen Carter, from Bonita High School was another great high school player who played behind AD on the 72 team, and never saw much action despite having terrific talent.

    Liked by 3 people

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    2. tommyd,

      A good friend of mine is good friends wiht Rod McNeil. McNeil says that they were planning for him to try and win the Heisman. With all the injuries, he tried for the nfl. He said he was a quarter step slower from the injuries and that is what i took for him not to do as well in the NFL because most were that speed when he was a quarter step slower.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

    3. …kinda’ sad to know that McKay and JR (during the 95 scholarship limit days) would stack the RB room with tons of talent that likely would never see the field. We should probably do a post of just the RB’s during the 60’s and 70’s who were so affected….?

      Like

      Reply

  9. Trivia quiz of the day: Even Scott Wolf won’t know the answer to this one!

    Who was the kicker on the USC 1972 team who performed the kickoffs only. He was not the extra point or field goal specialist? He played another position in the starting line up for that team, but Mckay loved his strong legs and talent for kicking the football also.

    John Mckay, was a genius coach no doubt about it. He always put the best athletes he had at the right positions to match up with their talent. Many college coaches recruited and thought OJ would be even better as a wide receiver with his lean frame and speed. Bob Chandler, known as “Whittier’s best” was another great athlete and Mckay had him playing 3 positions during his career at USC- QB, Defensive Bank, and finally his last position switch to flanker which was quite successful. Big John Vella, came in as a defensive tackle, then switched over to the offensive line, and then became an All-American and star with the Oakland Raiders.

    No question Clay Helton and Graham Harrell would 1) Probably not recruited OJ, and 2) Made him a safety or wide receiver which shows how clueless those two were.

    I will be impressed who has the correct answer without going to google search to my quiz.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    2. What makes you say that, Charles?
      #[BetterThan”Bitch”,Right]?
      #[NoteToAllWhoWantToBeOffended:IWouldn’tGoW/EitherOne]…

      Like

      Reply

      1. I used to live in Newport Beach and I would always see these guys out walking their dogs … and you knew the only reason they had a dog was to meet women.

        Like

  12. Nice post by Scott. Lots of information. Fred Lynn was one of my all time favorite players. He played for El Monte High School which was in the same league with my high school. He was a great all around athlete and received a scholarship for football, not baseball, although he could have received one for baseball. He was a very good punter and a good kick returner, receiver, and defensive back. Of course, he made the right decision to focus on baseball in college and was rookie of the year, MVP, and a golden glove recipient in 1975. Hard to believe today but in the sixties El Monte had some really good athletes. They always beat-up on other cities in the little league all-star games. A real hot bed for baseball talent.

    Liked by 3 people

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    1. I remember watching Freddie Lynn break into the Red Sox lineup pretty much fresh out of college ball at USC (ie, with hardly any time in the minors) and star. As a kid, I thought Trojan Baseball was pretty much MLB level!

      Whut happended?

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  13. A TURD BY ANY OTHER NAME WOULD SMELL AS SWEET. MAN I USED TO LOVE THAT LITTLE DOG. ADAMS TOOK HIM EVERYWHERE. DUNNO IF HE TOOK HIM TO BED THO. LOL. ANYONE KNOW WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO TURD ?? ANYWAY TURD IS IN DOGGIE HEAVEN NOW WHERE ALL GOOD LOYAL TROJANS GO. R I P TURD. WE REMEMBER YOU AND LOVE YOU LITTLE DOG.

    Liked by 2 people

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      1. IF DOGS HAVE A HEAVEN———-______THEN THERES ONE THING I KNOW—————OL TURD HAS A WONDERFUL HOME !!!!

        Liked by 2 people

  14. It’s been a long week. I haven’t done anything but I also haven’t had time to post much.
    I guess the best thing I have seen online is I remember January 6th was the last day gas was under $3.00 a gallon.
    I was in Vegas and USC socks were selling for $16.00 a pair- but only if you bought two pairs. I wore Trojans gear and got lots of thumbs up and plenty of expectations for the football team. I hope I can get the PAC 12 channel somewhere because we switched providers and all my sources are not working.
    The only network owned by 12 teams but carried by no services.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

  15. MY CONGRATULATIONS TO THE GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS AND STEPH CURRY THE GREATEST PURE SHOOTER I HAVE EVER SEEN
    IF YOU DONT LIKE TO WATCH THEN THATS YOUR PRIVILEGE. NO HARM NO FOUL.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

      2. Who can forget “Swaggy P” (Nick Young), nearly falling off while disembarking the Warrior flight home back in 2018, shirt off, stinking drunk. Just completely hammered.

        BTW, Looney’s name is “Kevon”, not “Kevin”, and he was smart enough to only stick around Westwood for one season.

        Liked by 1 person

  16. ANYONE WATCH TRUMPS SPEECH YESTERDAY??HE WAS MAD AT PENCE. BARR. MC CONNELL. CHENEY. KINZINGER. OR IS THAT KINSINGER. PELOSI. BIDEN. AND ABOUT A MILLION OTHERS. I ALONE CAN FIX IT HE SAID. ANYONE ON THIS BOARD WOULD BE A BETTER CHOICE FOR PRESIDENT. HEY ED WHY NOT GO FOR IT ?

    Liked by 1 person

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      1. Zero chance Dementia Man runs again. The curtain has been pulled away. The entire world has seen what those of us with any sense saw in 2019.

        Liked by 2 people

    1. Indeed, Charles! In less than 18 months, the wheels have definitely fallen off of this administration.

      People who voted with their brains and not their (wah, wah!!) feelings knew they would.

      Liked by 3 people

      Reply

      1. That explains it! It was an assault bike! Not Dementia Joe’s fault at all. Same as the border, his lie about having a plan to defeat COVID, inflation, Ukraine, gas. It’s all someone else’s fault! But hey, this is the administration who said they were bringing back integrity and transparency to the White House. LMAO

        Like

  21. Always loved the Architecture on campus–and Parkinson’s buildings were among the best! (I don’t recall the Law School, but I’d probably like it). University Park was a true Urban Oasis. Difficult to accomplish when one considers what was going on in LA from the 1920’s to the 1980’s.

    Great Friday Post

    Liked by 2 people

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    1. Confession:
      For a long time nothing caused me more pain and grief and anger than seeing an “If It’s Friday” column as lead piece on Saturday morning. But then I remembered I felt the same way about Orwell’s 1984 on New Year’s Day 1985….
      #We’llGetThroughThisTogether

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

      1. It’s going to be a LOOOOOONG 948 days!!

        Saw a woman this morning still dumb enoough to be sporting a Biden sticker on her car. Serial killers get fan mail in prison, so I guess it shouldn’t surprise me.

        Like

  24. Biden WAY past his prime but thank God Trump lost.

    Yes, that’s right, Donald. You lost.

    Looking forward to seeing CLR offense and hoping the D can hold it’s own.

    Fight On Forever ✌️

    Like

    Reply

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