FOOTBALL

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

Is the Pac-12 still talking to ESPN or is the cable network out as a primary rightsholder candidate? Yes.

  • I think I’ve been unfollowed by Annenberg Media Sports on twitter. Was it something I wrote?

One loose end about the story of the Annenberg sports writers stealing jerseys at the NFL Draft. Police said three jerseys were taken and reports say two jerseys were found in the bags of the sports writers at the Kansas City Airport. So where is the third jersey?

  • And now for some history:
  • USC defensive lineman George Achica vs. Notre Dame in 1980. When the Trojans get some linemen like Achica, the College Football Playoff will be a yearly event.
  • No. 1 USC vs. No. 2 Oklahoma in 1981. Doesn’t get much better, does it? Especially at the end as USC won on a TD pass with 2 seconds left from John Mazur to Fred Cornwell (pictured above No. 84) for a 28-24 victory.

“They had us on the ropes most of the game but we didn’t quit. We fought them and we fought them some more. And we beat them,” USC coach John Robinson said.

“It was a great day, a truly great day. That stadium, those fans, all that emotion and to have an ending like that… It’s almost too much to believe. We captured the entire country for a few hours and it turned out to be one of the very best games I’ve ever been involved in.”

USC AND DOGS

  • I’m always ready for more dog photos. Here’s the 1961 Victory Bell celebration. John McKay is speaking to the team. But I’m more interested in that dog and it appears to be the 1961 version of George Tirebiter. This version isn’t widely known these days and this was the final year Tirebiter was USC’s mascot.
  • Now this is the Victory Bell in 1952 and that is George Tirebiter III.
  • Mel Hein, USC offensive line coach, watches offensive linemen Skip Johnson; Dave Morgan and Pete Lubisich during spring practice in 1961. Hein was NFL MVP in 1938 and a first-team All-Pro for eight straight seasons (1933-41). He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1954 and Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963. It would be pretty hard to question his knowledge and he was a USC assistant coach from 1951-65.
  • It’s the Football Writers Awards’ dinner in 1959. The great Mal Florence (a USC graduate) of the Los Angeles Times (left) presents awards to Rams running back Ollie Matson; USC lineman Mike McKeever and UCLA back/receiver Marv Luster. Whatever happened to these award dinners?

Florence, who also played football at USC, was a master at entertaining stories. I went to Tokyo with Florence for the Mirage Bowl in 1985. As the plane descended into Tokyo, Florence, a World War II veteran, said in all seriousness, “The last time I was here, I was in a bomber.” He was joking, of course.

In the early 1980’s, USC had a German basketball player named Ingo Mendel. Florence told a gullible sportswriter one day, “You know, I killed his father in the war.” The sportswriter then wrote that in an article.

  • College students did different things for entertainment back in the day.

USC freshman Thayer Holbrook, 19, soaked his feet in ice water after a 50-hour ping pong marathon at the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity in April,1959. Holbrook played 303 games in a row. He reportedly only had orange juice and soup and the USC students drank 15 gallons of coffee.

 “I would have gone on later but I have class tomorrow,” Holbrook said.

  • Did you know USC football player Nick Pappas was the stunt double for Pat O’Brien in the 1940 film, “Knute Rockne, All American.” O’Brien portrayed Rockne, of course.

Pappas reminisced about filming the famous scene where O’Brien, as Rockne, gave the “Let’s do it for the Gipper” speech to his Notre Dame players during halftime.  They were on a sound stage designed to be the locker room, just outside was the football field all setup for the scene that would follow.

“It was so convincing – and we had all been through a lot of such pep talks – that he got me and the other actors all fired up like it was a real game.  I had tears in my eyes.  I jumped up and yelled, “Let’s go!” The other guys charged with me and we knocked down all the fake scenery as we got out there. We really thought we were going to win one for the Gipper. Then we remembered where we were.”

USC football coach Howard Jones and USC football player Bill Radovich were also in the film.

Pappas later created the Trojan Club donor groups and spent 59 years at USC as a player, coach and athletic department administrator.

Since George Lucas went to USC and May 4th was Star Wars Day, here’s some trivia about the movie.

  • Lucas wrote a treatment called The Star Wars and United Artists, Universal and Disney passed on it. Lucas gave it to Francis Ford Coppola and William Friedkin (who owned a studio) and Friedkin said: “I said ‘what’s this sh*t?’ I didn’t believe George could pull it off. I was wrong.”
  • Lucas agreed to be paid $150,000 for writing and directing the film on the basis that he got the rights to any sequels and full rights to merchandise, including toys. Over the next 40 years, that deal made Lucas around $6 billion. He’s the richest filmmaker of all time.
  • Lucas wanted unknown actors. William Katt, Charles Martin Smith and Robert Englund (who played Freddy Krueger) all auditioned for Luke Skywalker. Englund told a friend about it, Mark Hamill. He auditioned and Lucas said: “Mark threw himself into it like nobody else.”
  • Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford, who was married at the time, had a 3-month affair during production. She was 19. He was 33.
  • Billy Dee Williams, Christopher Walken, Sly Stallone, Kurt Russell and John Travolta auditioned for the role of Han Solo. Al Pacino turned the role down.
  • Lucas and cinematographer Gilbert Taylor clashed over how to shoot the film. They tried to replace Taylor but 20th Century Fox and the crew intervened. Taylor said: “I hated every second of my time on the picture.”

VIDEO OF THE WEEK

Time to pay tribute to Gordon Lightfoot, the Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist, who died Monday at age 84.

One thing that interested me is Lightfoot actually changed the lyrics to his classic ballad, “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” to make the song more accurate following new evidence on the sinking of the ship that was uncovered by a National Geographic research team in 2010.

After the song came out, he got to know families of the ship’s crew and in 2015 came to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum for the 40th anniversary of the sinking. But Lightfoot came a day early, on November 9th, to meet and talk with family members because he did not want to be the focus of the next day’s memorial.

Our video picks are two songs: “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” and another Lightfoot classic, “If You Could Read My Mind.”

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

      1. 100%, George. Scott has reached the point where he’s doing the kinda stuff Montaigne and Pope used to do in their collected essays —- sharing memories and dreams with us while still bringing us the news of the day….
        #NobodyElseIsDoingThat…
        #[ItWouldn’tEvenOccurToThem]

        Liked by 2 people

      2. That picture of the victory bell celebration with John McKay speaking must be 1960, McKay’s first year as head coach at USC, when unranked USC upset #11 UCLA 17-6. SC lost to UCLA 10-7 in 1961.

        Liked by 1 person

      3. hi John/So Cal, Da people say eye neeeed mi spellcheck fixx, kan u hlp meee? eye let u win when weee play peenus swords if u fix it.. ok?

        Like

      4. Greatest o-Line Coach. Coach Hein? Or Coach Calloway? Your choice, George.
        #”EverybodyWillGrowToLoveCoachCalloway!”
        —“Coach Clay Helton”
        [I notice Helton didn’t scoop Calloway up for Georgia Southern]

        btw, Friday’s column has grown into the most magnificent eclectic feast on earth.
        Thank you, Scott!

        Liked by 1 person

      1. A priest, a rabbi and a bruin hermaphrodite walk into a bar….
        #….TakeItFromThere,George……

        Like

      2. USC President Carol Folt supports institutional racism!

        May 4, 2023, 1:35 PM
        USC President Worries Court to End Race-Based College Admissions
        By Eliyahu Kamisher

        Carol Folt, president of the University of Southern California, said she is “very worried” about the potential impacts should the US Supreme Court overturn the use of race as a factor in college admissions.

        In an interview with Bloomberg Television Thursday in Los Angeles, Folt said she’s confident the university would keep promoting racial diversity on campus no matter what the Supreme Court decides.

        https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/usc-president-worries-court-to-end-race-based-college-admissions

        Liked by 1 person

    4. Good morning Ed! I’m not sure what you just said, but it’s good to know you still sound like a Fucc-Tard. 😂 Did you get your tonsils checked this morning with MissusEdG’s peenus 🎤 ? Btw, I’ll need it later for my anal exam.. ok ?

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      1. Dear im-poster I stand behind what I said last night (the last post of the last post. You should read it.

        Liked by 1 person

    5. …just don’t try to hide then in your luggage and book a flight outta town and you’re fine Ed……

      Like

      Reply

      1. “them” is always better than “then”…
        #Cuz”Them”IsPeopleOrThings…
        #…And”Then”IsJustTime…

        Like

  2. “Jerseygate”…..perhaps Scott can get to the bottom of the mystery surrounding the missing jersey…..Stay tuned!

    Good morning to all the 4-legged lovers.

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. …if only all human beings were animated by as much love as you see in a puppy…..
      [We had a kitten who thought he was a puppy —every morning he’d wait at the top of our lawn for schoolchildren to walk by ….and run to them as soon as they’d come into view in order to get petted]….

      Like

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  3. As I was scrolling through the digital equivalent of today’s newspaper, I wondered if a print edition still exists and if not, why call it a newspaper? And just when I decided to forget that thought I happened across a full page ad for Troy Story. This is the actual replacement of the blog upon which I am posting. It’s an email newsletter from Adam Grosbard the syndicate beat writer for the USC beat.
    Imagine USC sports news being delivered to your email inbox without the snark, trolls and im-posters found herein. I’m thinking about trying it, but I don’t know. I wonder if he sends out a picture of Marilyn Monroe every Friday to keep people interested.

    Liked by 2 people

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    1. You can’t replace the priceless part-“the message board”. Spirited bantering amongst football fanatics is contagious. The political landscape has definitely turned up the volume on the blog

      Liked by 3 people

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      1. Gabby –It seems political and, even, theological [along, of course, with our main course: football] debate has kinda become normalized here….
        #…ALittleBitOfChip&Lincoln…Bohn&Folt…
        #….AndALittleBitOfBiden&Donald….

        Liked by 1 person

    2. Guess what? No Marilyn… and no Belafonte, Novak, Welch, Ronstadt, Arnett, McKay, Robinson, Tam’s Bookstore or restaurant reviews either…

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  6. I saw this morning a story in The Athletic with USC ranked #4 in the nation. Pretty high for an unproven defense. I would probably put them at #6 or #7 until there is some look at the defense. Georgia, Michigan and LSU ranked above USC.

    The key for USC is an unstoppable offense that even good defenses cant stop.

    I think Oregon State should be ranked in the top 10, but they are going to need to prove themselves before they get ranked there. Washington is ranked in the top 10 and probably deserves that.

    If USC is going to make it into the CFP, they will need to go through 5 teams that could be ranked in the top 10 at some point in the season. That doesnt include UCLA.

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. It ain’t gonna be easy…. but….if Caleb stays healthy…. we’ll be in the TOP FOUR come December….
      #..AndWe’llBeatUp&HumiliateGeorgiaInTitleGame…
      #..WithConquestPlayingLoud…AndTravelerSprintingSidelines…

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

    2. ***game tv, mighty, mighty bozo FB, as usual, is overrated; and UCLA, as usual, is underrated. I don’t claim UCLA will make the CFP, but they just might have a better record than the “Shock the World” elite (LOL) bozos come the Nov. ’23, rivalry game.

      #Same song, 36th verse: 2023 bozo FB, 8 – 4, and they accept an invitation to play in the early Dec. , Bum F**K, North Dakota, Goober Bowl. I’m praying religiously for sub-zero blizzard conditions. If that’s that’s the case, it’s even money SUCC forfeits the game.

      I bet 75% of the bozo FB team don’t know there is a North Dakota in the continental US.

      All SUCC FB players have to do to gain a bozo FB scholarship is fog a mirror. They don’t need no stinking US geographical knowledge. Hell, the bozo team didn’t know where Fresno was before that so delicious, Freedom Bowl loss/debacle.

      As usual, Clown U really stunk vs major competition.

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      1. It’s been 69 years since your last 1/2 title, you have zero clout when trying to compare the two football programs.

        Liked by 3 people

      2. We can’t be THAT dumb, my friend. After all, Reggie Bush taught Fresno State players and fans a lot more than they ever learned in classes…..
        #YouNeedToAskYourselfWhy”UCLAIsAlwaysUnderrated”…
        #…DoYouThinkTheWord”Disrespect”ComesIntoPlay?

        Liked by 1 person

      3. You mentioned it so I had to take it a step further! I still get the chills watching his performance…..enjoy!

        Liked by 3 people

      4. Owns,
        Admittedly UCLA football has an advantage that absolutely ZERO schools get up for a game with that program…think Washington State.

        Liked by 2 people

      7. I’m so stupid I denigrate UCLA’s shared NC in ’54 when SC has 5 shared NC titles…’39, ’74, ’78, ’03 and ’04.

        Liked by 1 person

      8. Hey, penis breath, who shared the 2004 title with USC….. USC WAS THE ONLY UNDEFEATED TEAM IN THE COUNTRY. …..

        (your sister-wife needs a new tin of chewing tobacco.

        11>1…..nice try!

        Like

      11. USC is stripped of its 2004 BCS football national championship
        BY CHRIS DUFRESNE
        JUNE 6, 2011 12 AM PT

        USC football met the inevitable Monday when the Bowl Championship Series officially stripped the Trojans of their 2004 football national title.

        “This was not an unexpected outcome,” USC Athletic Director Pat Haden said in a statement. “We will comply with all requirements mandated by this result of the BCS vote.”

        USC’s title will be vacated, the trophy will be returned. No replacement champion will be crowned even though Auburn and Utah finished undefeated that season. The Associated Press long ago announced it would not strip USC of its 2004 trophy.

        USC effectively lost its BCS crown late last June when the school announced its appeal to NCAA sanctions levied earlier in the month.

        Like

  7. Jerseygate needs a response. I say we put our best investigative blogger on it – Ed G. and perhaps Missus Ed. Ed will be relentless in his investigation, kind of like Mueller going after Trump except no subpoena power. And I am confident Ed with prepare a report. Ed hates it when a reporter does not prepare a report. (Notre Dame) If Ed’s report is satisfactory, maybe the school or journalism will offer him a scholarship. I heard a 40 year old graduate student with a penchant for petty theft may soon be leaving the program thereby providing an opening. And nobody is the current program writes better than Ed or has a bigger following.

    Liked by 3 people

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    1. Yes, the ND report continues to elude our curiosity! Ed, in my opinion, has mastered his own unique form of redneck ebonics. So Cal has alerted me to a translator app that has the ability to decipher Ed’s literary masterpieces. With Ed’s super sleuth skills, the jerseygate mystery should be solved sooner than later

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

    2. 2027 Los Angeles Times Headline;
      “Carol Folt breaks precedent, names graduating student new Dean of Journalism School!”
      #Subheadline:”FacultySenatePresidentFoundInPoolOfBlood…
      #….SuicideSuspected”

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

      1. Harry doesn’t just “have” it —he’s the one who stole it…
        [Guess who’s wearing it right now & saying “Look Harry…I’m a trans NFL player without any underpants!”]…..
        #”Wouldn’tIMakeAGreatQueen?”

        Like

      2. LMAO! Yeah, with the family rift and Meghan passing on the coronation, giving a jersey that smelled like her would be the perfect gift! 😛

        Liked by 1 person

      3. Hi John/So Cal. kan u fixx mi spellcheck, cuz I sound lik a Fucc-Tard. When u cum overrr Missus say she challenge u to peenus swords fight. She giv u songlasses wit windshield wipers to keep jizz out offf ur eyes.. ok?

        Like

  8. Harry doesn’t have the missing jersey. And Meghan would never wear it. She is holding out for the crown jewels. Rumor has it that our Meghan has 6 fingers. Word to the monarchy – don’t marry an American. It just doesn’t work out.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  9. Scooter,

    I was a at the Okie vs Sc game when Cromwell caughtt he ball from Mazur. Okie had the trojans on their heels almost for 3 quarters due to Holloway from Carson and their lightening speed rb’s. However, SC did find a way to stop Okie’s offense. Great game to this day.

    Liked by 2 people

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    1. I was a student at game as well.

      Definitely in my top 5 games that I attended.

      Take a look at game on youtube, you will see Ok coaches including Barry Switzer smoking cigarettes on the sidelines.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

  10. Remind me MG, why did Reggie “I saws the money and I tooks it” Bush lateral the ball to #48, in the 2006 NC, RB game? What a sweet bozo unforced T/O.

    Just asking for the Fresno FB fans…

    #SUCC fumbles on.

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      1. So 9000, in Clown U’s pathetic case, less is more uh?

        UCLA: 11 BB NC’s won in tournament, One & Done, competition

        bozo BB: OOOOOOOOOOOOO ferever and proud of it. Hell the best former bozo BB player is a woman, Reggie Miller’s sister Cheryl.

        Now that SUCC can’t buy votes with cash and free dbl. fireballs to win a FB NC, Clown U FB is forced to schedule cupcake FB teams just to remain a chump change, mediocre (D+ choker) FB program.

        Like

      2. HOOKUP!!!!!!!! Somebody get the deckhand and tell him to get the gaff! Owns swallowed the bait and changed the subject to basketball again. “My dear friend Owns”, as another prognosticator often begins his retort – this is a FOOTBALL blog. Rule #1 (or, should be) No shapeshifting! The way you move the goalpoasts, you’d think the bruins would have a full length practice field. Have a wonderful afternoon.

        Liked by 1 person

      3. “You’d think you’d have a full length practice field.”
        Ha ha —Oh, nooooo!
        #MyFriendOwnsIsn’tGonnaTakeThatOneVeryEasily….

        Liked by 1 person

  12. How many of you Trumpturds witnessed the Donnie Chee-o’s rape deposition video? Talk about all mouth and zero brain. Perry Mason couldn’t save Donnie Chee-o.

    I can’t believe the Donnie had his itchy fingers on the nuke buttons.

    Has the sale of Greenland to the US been concluded?

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      1. You’re ridiculous So Cal. Where’s the Biden pedophile trial being held?

        #Sleazy Fox F**K News BS is worse for the mind than bad crystal meth.

        Like

      2. Biden Depo:
        Attorney: Were you aware of the CCP payments made to Hunter?
        Biden: “…???…”
        Attorney: Would you be willing to take a lie detector test on the rape allegations against you?
        Biden: “…???…”

        Like

      3. Says the blog dunce who continued to shower with his daughter while she pointed at mushroom and laughed. I head the shar pei caught you trying to do the same shit with your grandson.

        Like

    2. I feel so relieved that Joe Biden has his finger on the nuke button.

      Liked by 1 person

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      1. The clueless imposter is dumber than I thought. Biden has cut the deficit by 1.7 trillion since taking office. Go service your sister-wife

        Like

      2. The press should stop decoding Biden statements —they should only quote him phonetically….
        #”EverPresadtIncrezDaDetCeylon..”

        Like

    3. You mean this?

      Liked by 1 person

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      2. Trump’s First Rule: Say exactly what’s on your mind —especially if it’s real, real insulting.
        #Refreshing

        Like

      3. The total national debt stood at $27.7 trillion on the day of Biden’s inauguration, and has increased by over $3 trillion since then, according to the Treasury Department.

        The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates “the Biden Administration has enacted policies through legislation and executive actions that will add more than $4.8 trillion to deficits between 2021 and 2031, or nearly $2.5 trillion when excluding the effects of the American Rescue Plan.”

        Read more at: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/national/article266851596.html#storylink=cpy

        Liked by 1 person

    1. Sometimes the row is too tough to hoe….. sometimes the hoe-er just winds up buried in muck and snow and ice…..
      #It’sNotPretty

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

      1. The bruins are bringin’ that dude with the flat top Ivy hat and town cryer bell on the road to do the 8 clap. That’ll show ’em. #FemaleTeddyBearMascotToo?

        Liked by 1 person

      2. No, hal —I’m told everything “Bruin” will henceforth adopt the form of hermaphrodite —coaches, players, fans…..
        #…Announcers,Donors,Professors,Administration…..

        Liked by 1 person

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