How USC can make it back to No. 1
Peter Simones
Issue date: 10/16/07 Section: Sports
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Oct. 26, 2002.
Fresh off her "American Idol" triumph, Kelly Clarkson and her debut single, "A Moment Like This" had just finished a run atop the Billboard Music Charts; 100,000 people flocked to Washington, D.C., to decry the one-year anniversary of the PATRIOT Act signing and the possibility of war in Iraq; and by scoring three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Anaheim Angels beat preBALCO Barry Bonds and his San Francisco Giants to force a World Series game 7.
Oct. 26, 2002 was also the last time USC was ranked 13th or lower in the Associated Press Top 25.
Clarkson, the Iraq War, Bonds and USC football are all still newsworthy.
But while the other three occupy similar positions in the public consciousness, the Trojans are raising the needle and reversing the record.
In 2002, the team was rising behind hotshot quarterback Carson Palmer, achieving its highest ranking that deep into a season since 1989.
In 2007, the team is fighting a rash of injuries and attempting to rally behind a backup quarterback, its air of indefatigability fading.
Thus, I present the question on every fan's mind at this critical stage of the season: How can the Trojans make like a lemur on crack and climb all the way back to the top?
All right, maybe you used different phrasing, but it's the same general idea.
Before delving into the tedious task of analyzing the teams currently ahead of USC, we need to clear one critical hurdle of logic.
The Trojans must win the rest of their games. If they lose once, you can forget about national championship aspirations, or crumple this column and use it as tissue while you cry over what could have been.
The Rose Bowl? Still possible with two blemishes. BCS title game? Not so much.
With that being said, USC has a few things on its side in the race to the top.
1. Schedule strength. The BCS rankings, which will decide who plays for the national championship, were released for the first time Sunday.
Fresh off her "American Idol" triumph, Kelly Clarkson and her debut single, "A Moment Like This" had just finished a run atop the Billboard Music Charts; 100,000 people flocked to Washington, D.C., to decry the one-year anniversary of the PATRIOT Act signing and the possibility of war in Iraq; and by scoring three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Anaheim Angels beat preBALCO Barry Bonds and his San Francisco Giants to force a World Series game 7.
Oct. 26, 2002 was also the last time USC was ranked 13th or lower in the Associated Press Top 25.
Clarkson, the Iraq War, Bonds and USC football are all still newsworthy.
But while the other three occupy similar positions in the public consciousness, the Trojans are raising the needle and reversing the record.
In 2002, the team was rising behind hotshot quarterback Carson Palmer, achieving its highest ranking that deep into a season since 1989.
In 2007, the team is fighting a rash of injuries and attempting to rally behind a backup quarterback, its air of indefatigability fading.
Thus, I present the question on every fan's mind at this critical stage of the season: How can the Trojans make like a lemur on crack and climb all the way back to the top?
All right, maybe you used different phrasing, but it's the same general idea.
Before delving into the tedious task of analyzing the teams currently ahead of USC, we need to clear one critical hurdle of logic.
The Trojans must win the rest of their games. If they lose once, you can forget about national championship aspirations, or crumple this column and use it as tissue while you cry over what could have been.
The Rose Bowl? Still possible with two blemishes. BCS title game? Not so much.
With that being said, USC has a few things on its side in the race to the top.
1. Schedule strength. The BCS rankings, which will decide who plays for the national championship, were released for the first time Sunday.
Viewing Comments 1 - 8 of 8
John
posted 10/16/07 @ 12:26 AM PST
This is a great article.
JC
posted 10/16/07 @ 5:19 AM PST
USC better show up better than it did last week if it wants to beat Notre Dame in South Bend. Irish fans will consider this a decent year if we beat USC. (Continued…)
Kokuanani
posted 10/16/07 @ 5:40 AM PST
Ditto!! Great article.
Jeff Nast
posted 10/16/07 @ 5:55 AM PST
Entertaining article. Pretty sound analysis since you lack a crystal ball. It think the season so far has shown us that in some instances, black is white, up is down, green mean stop, and red means go. (Continued…)
Mark S.
posted 10/16/07 @ 6:02 AM PST
All the analysis aside, do the men from Troy have the intangibles to get the job done? A BCS championship match-up against the SEC Champ or the Big 12 Champ would be an unbelievable accomplishment for the Trojans, but one thing certainly hasn't changed 2002, the players still have to get the job done. (Continued…)
David
posted 10/16/07 @ 10:01 AM PST
The author forgot the most important parts of success: the work ethic to backup your talent, leadership, smart play, and ambition. Our team is lacking those things right now. (Continued…)
Fight on!
posted 10/16/07 @ 10:47 AM PST
This article is about as good as it gets. It is reasonable. It inspires terrific discourse and it is right on. SC wins out, we play in the championship game. (Continued…)
DAN LYREK
posted 10/16/07 @ 3:41 PM PST
ROCK CHALK JAYHAWK KU #13 USC #14 EAT THAT PETER! YOU LOSING TO STANFORD AT HOME IS LIKE US LOSING TO BAYLOR AT HOME BUT WE BEAT THEM 58-10. YOU SAY IT IS IMPROBABLY FOR US TO WIN OUT? IT IS MORE IMPROBABLY FOR USC TO WIN OUT WITH THEIR SCHEDULE
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