FightOn!

The NCAA cannot admit a mistake.  They won't admit that the penalties or non-calls against Ohio State and Cam Newton are flawed, and they won't admit that they punished USC based on non-existent evidence.

It seems that everyone who follows college football, with the exception of the NCAA Infractions Committee, realizes that the main argument in the USC-Reggie Bush affair is based on evidence that is factually incorrect.

I'm speaking of the two minute phone conversation, of which no one actually has a recording, that supposedly took place between Ricky Lake (or whatever his name is) and Todd McNair.  During the hearing, the NCAA investigator repeatedly asked Mr. McNair about this conversation that took place in 2005.  McNair claimed no knowledge of such conversation.  This is because the conversation actually took place one year later, in 2006.

Based on this, the NCAA determined that a USC assistant coach knew, or should have known, of improprieties related to Reggie Bush.  Huh?  We have no idea what was the content of the call, but it's even worse than that!

The call did not occur in 2005, but in 2006, after Reggie Bush had completed his career at USC.  No matter the purpose of the call, no matter if McNair had been told that Reggie took money or benefits, Reggie's collegiate career was already over.

The NCAA used this call (2005) as the basis for handing down penalties so strict against USC that many cannot fathom.

The fact of the matter is that the call occured one year later, but the NCAA, in spite of tremendous contrary evidence, refuses to reverse their position on the matter.

I so wish that USC would seek an injunction against the sanctions and pursue this matter in Superior Court.

The NCAA penalties are nothing more than a beleagured attempt to destroy what is the finest program in NCAA College Football.  The fact that the NCAA would stoop so low as to misinterpret evidence and direct testomony belies any sense of fairness.

My biggest complaint right now is that USC will not sue the NCAA in open court for Restraint of Trade, Monopolistic Practices, Defamation, and various other torts that are available.  One would think that with so many graduates of the Law School who have gone on to great heights, USC should be able to find a former Trojan to take the helm in this kind of action.

Actually, Pat Haden's #2 has a law degree, so maybe he should lead the charge.

Am I surprised by the NCAA's ruling?  No.

Am I surprised that USC is willing to drop the matter at this point?  Unfortunately, Yes.

USC needs to stand up to the NCAA, not only for its own reputation, but for the reputation of the next school targeted for the NCAA's wrath.  

Actually, I came across something that their Athletic Department put together that is worth sharing.  Go to the site below, and check it out:

http://thesundevils.cstv.com/

Don't worry about them sharing your information.  Go ahead and give your real phone number, but you do not have to insert your emal address.  Use your actual name.  This cannot be used for generating recruiting contacts, and I don't believe that you will end up on any list.

This is a very creative site, and someone at ASU has used technology in a new and creative way to help sell season tickets.  Give it a shot!

I'm sure that this is going to be copied by other programs, but I believe they did this first.  Enjoy!


Go Trojans, Fight On!

First things first.  Before you flame me, understand that I had a dream 18 months before the primary election, in which I rode in a limousine with Barrack Obama and his wife, and discussed his campaign.  While not agreeing with a damn thing in his platform, I knew that he was going to win the general election.  This was long before he overtook Hillary for the Democratic delegates lead, and before a clear-cut Republican nominee surfaced.  I knew almost nothing about Barrack Obama at the time, and I have no idea why I had the dream.  Regardless, the dream proved true, and here we find ourselves.

I can name at least one hundred points in Obama's platform with which I disagree.  Don't test me, it's true.  One thing that I know about Barrack is that he is a sports fan.  That might be our only connection.  Well, my step-mother is black, and I am white, but I don't call a blending of those races a connection, so don't even go there.  I'm not a racist, and I abhor racism, as evidenced by previous posts, so don't even go there.

While Obama is a classic liberal, regardless of his platform for "change," I am a conservative, and no, I don't agree with all of Bush's decisions, but he was our President, and we elected him to make certain choices on our behalf.  We don't have to like ALL of the choices, but we did elect him. 

Anyway, Obama says that Division I football (now known as the Bowl Championship Subdivision) needs a playoff.  I could not agree more.

It has been hard for me to hold my tongue until now on this subject.  Actually, I have not held my tongue, but I wanted to wait before I posted it here.  See my other posts.

Back on topic, we need to find a way out of this morass (pronounced More-ASS, but that is according to Webster).  I wanted to wait until the end of the official "National Championship Game" to post my thoughts, just in respect for the system as it now stands.  Personally, I think that Bob Stoops should be fired for his play calling, but that is just me.  Oklahoma should have won the game, hands down.

Perhaps, we should change his monicker from "Big Game Bob" to "Big Farce Bob," but perhaps I am being too harsh.

The key point here is the same point that Mr. Obama put forth when asked about the game.  "USC, Texas, Utah, and Florida all have legitimate claims to call themselves the best college football team in the land."  This is a shame.

Now, the NCAA will tell you, on a website no less, that having a playoff will hurt the majority of college football teams and that it will diminish the regular season.  They will point to two years when two teams with unblemished records played for the national championship, and explain that it would be incomprehensible to ask these teams to play two additional games in order to have the chance to face each other.  Now, CBS will not allow me to say "BULLSHI*" in response, so I will simply say, "BLOW ME!"

Utah had an unblemished record this year, and the liberals at the Associated Press rewarded them with a #2 ranking.  That is bull!  They are not the second best team in the land, even with a perfect record.  Of course, they also anointed Alabama with a #1 ranking for five weeks, for the simple fact that they were the only BCS school without a loss.  If they were #1, why did every bookie in America, for two weeks before the game, have Florida with a 14-point advantage in their game?  BTW, did Florida beat the spread?

Look, even with polls, rankings, conference standings, and what-have-you, we don't know where teams stand.  Sure, some years, we know who is the best team.  What is wrong with having them beat two or three lesser teams along the way to proving that they deserve it?  Let's get an eight-team playoff.  I don't care what is your argument about protecting the regular season or protecting the bowls.  With only eight teams in the mix, no team will ever slough off a loss thinking that it doesn't matter, and no team worth its salt will stop playing, just because they are not in the Top 8.  If that was the case, then the whole Bowl Complex is a farce, anyway.  If you let the four major bowls be the first round, they won't lose any money in the process.  If nothing else, they will get more competitive match-ups.

If you have to then take the four remaining teams, and give a home game to the higher-ranked seed in each of the two games, that is fine.  Play the final game on a neutral field.  The fans will take the extra trip, I promise you!  If a football team takes three road games in a row, all the traveling fans will make the trip.  Perhaps, the teams won't allow themselves to lose focus for a week, like they do for bowl games at present, but if taken in moderation, the teams (and their fans) could still spend a week in the host vicinity.

I don't care if USC is #1 or if another team beats them (OK, I do care, but wait for my point).  I just want to know that the #1 team is the undisputed #1 team.  Don't give me a bitter pill, and ask me to swallow it.

I welcome your thoughts.



Go Trojans, Fight On!

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Join CBS' Official Southern California Trojan Football Fanatics Group.  Go to the following link, and sign-up for free: 

CBS USC Football Fanatics

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For supporting NCAA's "Stay in School" Drive.

With the 0-16 Detroit Lions holding the first pick in the NFL draft, how many Juniors will opt to stay in college for another year?  Will Sam Bradford really come out to join that team?  How about Tebow?  I think this has to be a big disincentive to coming out early.

Anybody remember the success that David Carr had with the Texas Texans organization?  While the Texans were an expansion team, and the Lions have a history (Didn't Barry Sanders play there; let's not forget Rodney Peete), I'm not sure that they would be any new player's first choice of a team, regardless of the potential payday that comes with being picked #1.

One must feel sorry for top senior players, such as USC's Rey Maualuga, who may be looking at being the #1 overall pick as a defensive player.  Sure, the Lions could use defense, an offense, special teams, and coaching.  Unless the NFL expands the schedule for next year, next year's Lions team could only be worse in statistical categories, and the win-loss record won't drop.

Anyway, on behalf of college football fans everywhere, "Thank you Detroit Lions, for being such a miserable team that football players would rather stay in school to finish their education!"

Enjoy the rest of the bowl games.  This has been a great year so far, with only two games that have not been competitive.


Go Trojans, Fight On!

According to CBS, in order to really get points for your discussions, you must have a blog.  Fine!  I'll do it.

First things first.  If you have not added me to favorites, please do so now.  If you have not joined either of my groups, join one of them, and I will add you to my favorites also.  My groups have links as shown below:

CBS USC Football Fanatics

CBS CSUB Roadrunners Basketball Group Site

If you add either or both groups, I will add you to my favorites list regardless of your status with CBS Sports.  Otherwise, you must be at Superstar level or above for me to add you.  Hey, it's my blog, and I make the rules.

About me:

My name is Randall Parker.  I am currently president of a call center operation in the Philippines, and I am also president of the National Consumer Rights Alliance.  It's not easy running two companies, but I'm doing my best.

I performed my undergraduate work at El Camino College in Torrance, CA and Cal-State Bakersfield.  At El Camino College, I was Student Body President, the campus representative to the Los Angeles Collegiate Council, local and state chapter president of Phi Beta Lambda, and I sat on the Auxiliary Services Board and the ECC Foundation as the student representative. 

At Cal-State Bakersfield, I was involved in the Helen Hawk-Windes Four-Year Honor Program, was President of the Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) Team, and President of Chi Alpha Epsilon.  Along the way, I won a national award from Chi Alpha Epsilon for designing the best campus chapter website for two years running.  I graduated Magna cum Laude with two Bachelor of Science degrees.  The first was a major in Finance (emphasis in Financial Planning) with a minor in Economics, and the second was a major in Sports Management with a minor in Statistics.  I was the Honor Graduate (Top Student) in Sports Management.  I was also a member of Beta Gamma Sigma, while graduating with honors.

My graduate work took place at University of Southern California, where I earned an MBA in General Management.

My Affiliations:

Everyone knows that USC football rocks, but you probably don't know much about Cal-State Bakersfield.  They are in the third year of the five year transition to Division I.  If you are like most people, and most of you are, you have no idea what is involved in moving a school's athletic program from DII to DI.  I won't bore you with the details, but you can find a great explanation at the CSUB Athletic website.

Topics:

OK, so back on point.  I will talk about whatever I feel like talking about in this blog.  It is my blog, so deal with it!  I can guarantee that you will see posts about USC, CSUB, and my opinions on topics related to DI-A (BCS) college football.  Beyond that, I would probably be inclined to post informational articles about NCAA policies that people don't comprehend.  Such as the fact that you must have twelve teams in your conference in order to have a conference championship game.  I am amazed by the number of idiots, I'm sorry, I mean intelligent, sports-minded people, who are not aware of that rule.

When someone does something really stupid, or a reporter totally blows a story, I will probably blog about that also.  What I will do for my readers, however, is respond to input.  You may send me a private message at any time with a topic, and I will do the research on that topic, and post my findings.  Of course, I will monitor all responses to my blogs and flame you, I mean answer, accordingly.

Anyone who knows me will tell you that, as a sports fan, I am incredibly fair.  While I support my teams, I am realistic and honest with respect to what happens on the field of play.  I will tell you what I think, but I will be (mostly) graceful in the process.

My priorities are as follow:

1. My Team in my sport
2. My other local team (if available - OK, if fUCLA is playing someone else, I will cheer for them, unless they need to lose, in order to help the Trojans.)
3. My Conference
4. The Game or Sport
   

If your priorities don't line-up with the above, you will probably be disappointed with my comments.  I understand that you might be a fan of Alabama or Auburn, but if you are an Auburn fan, you should have been upset that Florida beat Alabama.  I know it is hard, but that's the way I slice it.  I'm not part of the crowd that says, "I love USC and whoever plays UCLA."  I'm originally from the LA area, and I support my teams.  The only exception to that rule is hockey, where the Kings never will have a chance, but the Mighty Ducks (next door) are pretty good.

OK, I have to go pee, so I will cut this off now.  I hope you enjoy reading my posts, and I promise that they will be interesting, entertaining, informative, and fun.  I hope that you will take the time to read my posts, and comment regularly.

Blogs Away!


Go Trojans, Fight On!
Go Runners!