The twenty four hour rule is over and now it is time to focus on this weeks opponent USC. The Huskies have defeated the Trojans twice in a row but Las Vegas isn't impressed installing the "Men of Troy" as prohibitive favorites heading into this one.
Nick Holt says he would rather prepare to play against USC than Oregon which is an honest statement since both squads are pretty familiar with what the other is going to do due to the common roots of the coaching staffs. Despite that I am sure those comments end up on the USC bulletin board.
The 7-2 Trojans are playing pretty well right now. The only losses they have were to ASU and Stanford. when you compare how UW and USC played against Stanford you have to pick the Trojans to win this one. As Lee Corso so often says not so fast...Washington historically plays the Trojans tough no matter how good they are or whoever the head coach happens to be.
UW always has a ton of Cali kids on the roster and all of them have a chip on their shoulder about SC. The motivation of doing well in front of family and friends is always a big factor. The biggest intangible just may be that 95% of those kids were told that were not SC material...so they pump themselves up sky high for this game with little prodding.
Look forward to a head to head bruising style football game. These two teams are very similar and they are not going to fool each other. In conclusion I am looking for the typical tight game that goes down to the wire and is decided by a field goal.
Stadium Renovation
Hard to believe that the day finally arrived. Renovation has begun on Husky Stadium and it is going to be fascinating to watch as they begin to disassemble the 90 year old stadium. Katherine Long of the Seattle Times who has been on top of this story for quite some time gives a break down in this mornings edition.
Penn State Scandal
Firing and resignation is too good for the Penn State administrators involved in the Jerry Sandusky scandal. They need to face some serious jail time for being involved in the cover-up. As for Joe Paterno he needs to retire even though he seems to have insulated himself (well enough for the moment) from the situation involving his former defensive coordinator.
Sandusky, Curley and Schultz all deny all the allegations against them despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Paterno has reportedly been aware of the allegations since 2002 and kicked it upstairs to his superiors. Despite that Sandusky continued to have an office on campus until recently to help him with his children's outreach program.
It is pretty clear that everyone including the sainted Joe-Pa passed the buck and looked the other way
(Sorry for the publishing delay due to the time difference this week)
Pac 12 Power Ratings
1. Stanford...The Cards got a little beat up against Oregon State and that could end up hurting them next week against the Ducks who are the fastest team in the West.
2. Oregon...The Duck defense was impressive against Washington. Can they handle the conference's most physical team? (ATQ is calling it the game of the century...rofl. )
3. USC...The men of Troy have been pretty impressive over the last few weeks after an unimpressive start. Up next is Washington who has knocked them off two years in a row. You think that maybe the Trojans circled this one in the pre-season?
4. Washington...Nick Holt says that he would rather prepare to play USC than Oregon which makes sense since he and Sark helped write the USC play book.
5. UCLA...I guess we need to start calling Rick Neuheisel "Lazarus" because he definitely has risen from the dead and his Bruins control their own destiny in the PAc 12 South. Destiny could come crashing back to earth next week in Salt Lake City..
6. Arizona State...How do you lose to a team like UCLA? I guess all the injuries are starting to catch up with the Devils. I still figure that ASU will win the Pac 12 south but they need UCLA to lose and they have to win out.
7. California...Dominating win over the Cougars keeps the dogs at bay in Berkeley. They shpuld be able to handle OSU at home this week.
8. Utah...The Ute's are making a late season drive toward bowl eligibility. Next up is UCLA at home in a game they should win.
9. Arizona...Unexpected loss to Utah at home. Next up is Colorado on the road in a contest that they should be favored in.
10. Oregon State...The Beavers impressed me against the Tree. This isn't a team that is giving up and they are improving on weekly basis. Next up is Cal on the road
11. Washington State....Cougs stunk it up against Cal and it is now pretty much a sure thing that Paul Wulff is going to get the axe. They get the Devils at home this week.
12. Colorado....The Buff's hung in there with the Trojans enough to lose with some respect. They finally get a winnable game on the schedule with Arizona visiting Boulder.