Stanford is the thorn in USC’s foot


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It’s a fine line student journalists walk, being neutral as a media member, while also still a fan as a student. But this column is not written by a journalist and a media member. This column is written by a student and a fan of the University of Southern California. And I am way beyond […]

Trojans searching for some answers


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PALO ALTO, Calif. — Ah, that looked like a USC team of yesteryear, didn’t it? The Trojans were ranked in the top five. They were beginning Pac-12 play on the road. They were more than a touchdown favorite. So, naturally, they laid an egg. Yup, USC again stumbled kicking off its conference slate, this time […]

For McNeal, last year’s fumble is in the past


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Following last year’s 56-48 triple overtime loss to Stanford, I thought the Coliseum public address announcer might as well cue the Jaws theme music. After maneuvering his way to the three-yard line in the third overtime, senior tailback Curtis McNeal fumbled into the end zone, and Stanford linebacker A.J. Tarpley recovered the football to seal […]

Pac-12 competitors all have fatal flaws


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Some USC fans bit their nails throughout the Trojans’ 42-29 win over Syracuse last Saturday — after all, they led the Orange by just five points entering the fourth quarter and ended up being outgained in total yardage, 455 to 445. Even worse, senior center Khaled Holmes left the game with an injury, and though […]

Without Jones, USC will still be relevant


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When USC men’s basketball coach Kevin O’Neill was questioned about the possibility of losing guard Maurice Jones to injury or other circumstances prior to the start of the 2011-2012 season, he took on a near-apocalyptic tone. “Don’t come to the games,” O’Neill said at Pac-12 Media Day in 2011. “It’ll be ugly. Don’t show up. […]

‘Arrogant’ message has run its course


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I almost wrote this column two years ago. I wanted to respond to the launch of the Lost Angeles blog, the brainchild of 29-year-old Zack Jerome. The blog went on to spawn an on-campus “Arrogant Nation” movement, which I wanted to point out perpetuated the outdated stereotype that USC was stocked with bigheaded rich kids. Then the […]

Woods is back on top of his game


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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — If Saturday’s contest against Syracuse taught us anything, it’s this: Not even rain delays and thunderstorms can slow down USC’s dynamic passing attack. Senior quarterback Matt Barkley failed to finish with his typical 300 passing yards, but he did manage to throw six touchdowns against the Orange. Three of those scoring […]

College athletes deserve a fair share


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In some ways, senior quarterback Matt Barkley gets a raw deal. It’s not just the astronomical expectations he shoulders with aplomb -— expectations so high that many question why his completion percentage wasn’t higher in last week’s game against Hawai’i in which he threw for 372 yards and four touchdowns — or the reality that, […]

USC can’t trust the NCAA to act fairly


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Last Saturday was a day of celebration: College football had finally returned, and USC was back to its winning ways. The Trojans trounced Hawai’i 49-10 in its first season of bowl eligibility in two years since the NCAA dropped the hammer on them after the Reggie Bush investigation. USC was ranked No. 1 in the […]

USC fans are wise to not get excited yet


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Trojan fans, I’m proud of you. I thought, after USC’s 49-10 blowout of Hawai’i in which sophomore wide receiver Marqise Lee took the first play of the entire season for a touchdown, you would all start booking flights to Miami and talking about how you couldn’t wait to beat down Alabama. I was all set […]