Let’s put it this way: If you notice athletes prominently featured on Deadspin on a Sunday, they probably aren’t featured for any philanthropic reasons. It isn’t because they visited a downtown Boys & Girls Club. And it isn’t because they hosted an anti-crime campaign insisting people should “shoot baskets, not guns,” or anything like that. [...]

For all of his detractors who grumble about his predictable, cautious play-calling, no one can accuse USC head coach Lane Kiffin of not thinking outside the box in other ways. Of course, a great deal of that thinking has been controversial and not exactly aboveboard. News broke just last week that NCAA will institute, for [...]

Everything about the first football practice of spring this Tuesday seemed a little bit different. No one was wearing No. 7 for the first time in what seems like an eternity. Gone were all four team captains from last season. In their wake was a brand new crop of players wearing unfamiliar numbers, playing roles [...]

When news broke of USC Athletic Director Pat Haden’s three-hour meeting with former USC men’s basketball head coach Tim Floyd, my reaction was similar to that of fellow editor Alex Shultz’s, at least at first. I was a bit surprised, to say the least. But once that initial shock subsided, my next thought was simple:  [...]

On Monday, the Los Angeles Times reported that USC Athletic Director Pat Haden reached out to former USC men’s basketball head coach Tim Floyd. The two met for over three hours to discuss the Trojans’ coaching situation beyond this season. Haden declined to comment, but Floyd said everything “went well.” At this point, I’d like [...]

The countdown began as soon as USC departed El Paso, Texas, on New Year’s Eve. The countdown continued in earnest as head coach Lane Kiffin announced a perhaps less-than-desirable recruiting class on national signing day. But the countdown to the 2013 season now takes a backseat. Cue spring practice. Battered and bruised after a 7-6 [...]

As an outgoing senior, I’m often overcome by nostalgia these days. In the next two months, I will experience a bevy of “lasts” at USC — my last bike ride down Trousdale Parkway in the wholly unnecessary bike lanes, my last chicken-chipotle panini at Popovich Cafe and my last signature on a Monday 9 a.m. [...]

If nothing else, USC head coach Lane Kiffin provides for some solid sound bites. He didn’t disappoint on Wednesday. Quoted in an ESPN L.A. article, Kiffin discussed quarterback Matt Barkley’s draft status. Barkley took a tumble down the draft boards this season, and it’s possible he falls out of the first round. Kiffin said Barkley [...]

Before Saturday’s game against Arizona State, USC’s men’s basketball team will honor its five seniors before their final home game of their Trojan careers. Five names will be called, but the day will really belong to one player in particular. Senior point guard Jio Fontan knows plenty about the highs and lows of Division I [...]

Spring practice is right around the corner. Matt Barkley, Robert Woods, Khaled Holmes and Nickell Robey are making the rounds at the NFL Combine. This should be a period of positive thoughts and new beginnings for Trojans both past and present.   Instead, the focus of USC football continues to be on a recurring topic [...]