Saturday’s perfect day came at the right time


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Last week was crazy, to say the least. I covered the election and the ensuing protests for Annenberg Media. It was a great experience sitting in the control room of our studio, surrounded by some great friends while producing about seven hours of live television. It was a really unique working experience — nothing like I’ve had as a sports reporter.

In all of the hubbub of political reporting that I was around, I needed a break. When I say I needed a break, I don’t mean turning away and ignoring the vast political divide that’s consuming our country on a nationwide level and the relationships of those around me. I just needed a detox. Something that would allow me to slow the onslaught of political news that I was consuming from work, social media, television and my friends and family. My brain was on overdrive and a crash was coming any second. I knew that I needed something to get away, something else that I could dedicate my thoughts to for a short period of time that was far away from the political realm. So, I thought, what better way than to turn to sports?

The anticipation was palpable on Saturday morning, and I wasn’t even in Seattle. My day started with a USC sport, but it wasn’t football. The No. 2 USC Men’s Water Polo team hosted No. 1 undefeated UCLA to close out their MPSF regular season. The Trojans pulled off the upset to end UCLA’s 57-game win streak that dated back to last season. Any win over the Bruins is a great way to start one’s day.

After the action in the pool, the No. 7 Women of Troy took to the soccer pitch to open their first round game of the NCAA Tournament against Eastern Washington University. USC roared out to a 3-0 lead in the first half courtesy of two goals from senior midfielder Morgan Andrews and one from junior midfielder Nicole Molen. While the Eagles scored a goal in the second half, it was USC’s victory all the way. As a Trojan fan, I was feeling pretty good.

Then, USC women’s volleyball started off its match against Cal up in Berkeley. After a close first set against the Bears, USC quickly put them away to get the three-set sweep.

All of this happened before the kickoff of the football game. After having gone through all these victories, I was beyond ready and excited for the kickoff. I fully believed in USC’s ability to pull off the upset.

What transpired during the roughly three-and-a-half hours on the gridiron was amazing. While the Trojans made some mistakes and missed some coverages, their ability to fight back and hold the lead for nearly the entire game gave me flashbacks of the Trojan team I grew up loving. Every facet of the Trojans’ game was something to marvel at. They kept their penalty number low, held the Huskies to 17 rushing yards and the offense put up 400 yards behind a Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week performance from Darnold. Jackson had a game himself with two huge interceptions on Browning. It was overall a beautiful USC football game. The feeling was euphoric when I was able to hear the “We Are ’SC” chants clearly through the TV. 

Saturday was the best USC sports day I could possibly ask for. Every team that played while representing cardinal and gold won. There was really no better way to finish off my week sportswise. It refreshed my brain and readied me for the swarm of news that came in on Sunday.

By taking in the revelry of USC sports, I was in no way ignoring or trivializing the political distress many in our country are facing nor the political victory the other half is celebrating. Sports just allowed me to take a step back and remember that there are other things in the world than the U.S. presidential election and its outcome, to remember that life goes on. The sun rose on Wednesday morning — as it does every day — for every American, regardless of who they did or didn’t vote for.

Our country has a deep fissure rooted beyond just the results of the election, but in a time of such discord, sports can provide a relief — a break from everything that’s going on in the world. Sports can be bigger than themselves, and in this current climate, sports can bring people together when everything else is tearing them apart.

Jodee Storm Sullivan is a junior majoring in broadcast and digital journalism. Her column, “The Storm Report,” runs Tuesdays.