An Uneasy Game

Along with the Rivercats and the Dodgers my favorite sports teams come from the universities I attended - UOP and USC. Yesterday in Seattle, USC played a remarkably uneven football game. True, for a while it looked like the officials were being paid by the penalty. There were a couple of calls that stunk the place up. And Washington ended up with only 30 more yards of offense than the Trojans received in penalties (190 versus 160) The Trojans had 460 yards for the game and their time of possession was good but their offensive output was challenged. The Trojans just did not look like a #1 team. At least once in the season there is a time for upsets. Yesterday seemed to be that for the NCAA. Five of the top ten were upset. The Cal-Oregon game also looked like an upset in the making.

One thing showed for sure. The constant argument about which conference produces tougher football (the SEC or the PAC 10). California moved up to #3 - the November 10 showdown between SC and Cal may be the game of the season. Oregon should have moved up a lot. There is also a case for Arizona State being ranked higher in the polls. The AP and the USA Today polls were split with LSU inching out SC in the AP poll. Before this week LSU had taken on such traditional football "powers" as Mississippi State and Middle Tennessee. (Although to give them their due they also beat South Carolina and Virginia Tech.)

For the rest of the season, the Trojans hopscotch between very tough teams and lesser ones. They play at Arizona, and at Oregon and at Cal. And although the Fighting Irish are not this season, anytime a team plays in South Bend is tough.