Bye Week: Speaking of Reality

As we’ve mentioned here before, a bye week is a respite from the hype and anticipation of a regular game week. It also allows us to thoroughly enjoy the previous week’s win, and there is certainly much to enjoy coming off our domination of Ohio State.

Over the last few days we’ve had the pleasure of reading and hearing about the confirmed greatness of USC Football … how this year’s team could be Pete Carroll’s best, how our talent runs so ridiculously deep, how Mark Sanchez is a leading Heisman candidate, etc., etc.

Honestly, it gets kind of boring after a while. Not that we take anything for granted, but the greatness of USC Football is something we’ve been enjoying for years now – Win Forever – and there does come a point when it all starts to sound the same.

So, we remind ourselves that a bye week is also good for catching up on what’s happening on the other side of the tracks. Again, we must always remember to know thy enemy.

Now, I’m not pretending that we didn’t notice how ucla was stripped of its manhood during a 59-0 – that’s fifty-nine-to-NOTHING – reality check by the Mormons in Provo. How could we not?

But we didn’t bother to thoroughly investigate the details of 59-0 – that’s fifty-nine-to-NOTHING. And we certainly haven’t bothered to enjoy – that is, laugh and point at – all the PR spin and attempts to insult our intelligence during the post-game back-tracking from Slick Rick and the “nation” per Murshed. We haven’t taken the time, while basking in our own post-game glow, to notice the fools making fools of themselves again … until now.

The thing is, the funny stuff written about all the stupid stuff was easy to spot. No need to make up a catchy line or a play on Slick Rick’s words coming back to make him look silly. Chris Foster of our beloved Los Angeles Times did it for us:

Relentlessly optimistic ran into harsh reality Saturday.

There may come a day when the football monopoly in Los Angeles is over, but for now UCLA has enough trouble passing "Go."

An embarrassing 59-0 loss to Brigham Young was a big indication of that, and left first-year Coach Rick Neuheisel offering up his favorite catch phrase in a different light.

"We're going to test 'relentlessly optimistic,' " Neuheisel said after UCLA's worst loss since 1929. "But we knew it would be tested."

It was Saturday.

Tested and failed.

Ouch … or rather, LOL. Of course ucla’s even worse loss in 1929 was a 76-0 annihilation by USC. But I digress …

Notice the words “we knew” in that quote from Slick Rick. They “knew” this kind of thing – that’s fifty-nine-to-NOTHING – would happen. Just ask Nestor at the “nation.” He’ll tell you all about what ucla “knew” until he’s baby blue in the face, as if “knowing” ucla was going to get beat 59-0 – that’s fifty-nine-to-NOTHING – somehow lessens the disgrace.

We talked about the doses of reality we were going to have to deal with this year during the off season with a team with two injured QBs, a ravaged OL and an inexperienced defense with new starters sprinkled all over its lineup.

Oh, and did I mention all the excuses that apparently go along with “knowing” you’re going to be humiliated 59-0 – that’s fifty-nine-to-NOTHING – when you’re a member of the “nation”? But, I digress …

It’s not a surprise that we took one in the chin. […] This will be not be the last time we are going to take it in the chin either. There will be lot more tough moments rest of this season.

“This will be not be”? Anyway, it is obvious Nestor is trying to rally the “nation” to believe in its football program … I mean, brace for more embarrassment and disgraceful outcomes this season. That’s fine with me.

What I don’t get is how the “best coaching staff in America” allows 59-0 – that’s fifty-nine-to-NOTHING – to happen on their watch. It would be one thing if DeWayne Walker struggled during a 59-42 barn burner. And it would be somewhat understandable if Trader Chow offensively coordinated a close 17-13 defeat. But to get beat down to the point of humiliation on both sides of the ball – for Walker to allow five (5) TDs in the 2nd quarter and for Chow to put up a pathetic goose egg – well, I would hate to see what the second best coaching staff in the country can do ... or can't do, as it were.

All I know is, our man Pete Carroll lost by more than 11 points only once – 27-16 to the Domers during his first season in 2001 – the only double-digit defeat during his tenure.

That’s the reality of USC Football. We’re No. 1.

Meanwhile, we’ll let the “nation” and Slick Rick talk about filling a “passion bucket” and remaining “relentlessly optimistic” in order to declare that this “monopoly is over.” And, we’ll occasionally remind ourselves of the public promises “the best coaching staff in the United States” has made:


Know thy enemy.

We Are SC!