Oregon Ducks wrestle with fans' changing views of success - The Oregonian
Entering Monday's Rose Bowl, the Ducks' evolving fan base has cast a been-there, done-that attitude around a program that historically has done neither...

Holt, Mills, Cox fired - Seattle Times
The University of Washington has indeed made a major shakeup on its defensive coaching staff, announcing this morning that coordinator Nick Holt, linebackers coach Mike Cox and safeties coach have all been fired.

Matt Barkley helps put USC, as a university, in a new light - LA Times [Dwyre]
...little did anybody know that a college junior with good grades, a rifle for a throwing arm and a pot of gold beckoning him would stand up in Heritage Hall and, in a two-minute speech, do more than almost anybody or anything else in recent time to validate what USC wants to be and has become. Now, high school freshman football players who wanted to be Mark Sanchez want to be Matt Barkley first. Every university professor who despises the amount of money and energy used on football at the expense of his or her program despises football a tad less. It is easy to imagine college presidents around the country, upon viewing a snippet of Barkley on the evening news, sitting down in a big easy chair, lighting a pipe and muttering: "Thank God."...

Trojans team to beat in 2012 - OC Register
A few moments after 1 p.m. Thursday, USC became the team to beat for the 2012 BCS national championship.Trojan quarterback Matt Barkley’s decision on Tuesday to return to USC for his senior season guaranteed that the road to next year’s national title game in South Florida will start at 3911 South Figueroa Street. Barkley’s return is the final piece to Trojan formula that has all the ingredients for a run at another national title, scholarship reductions and all...

USC v. UCLA - LA Daily News
Is Norm Chow going to try and steal a UCLA commitment? Here is what tailback Steven Lakalaka told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. ``I would give it a thought. I'm still committed, but open-minded with my family," Lakalaka said. "I guess it does make a difference because he's a great coach.''...

A Well-Known Figure Passes - LA Times
A beloved figure within the USC football program, Xavier Suazo, passed away early this morning. Suazo served as a security coordinator for football and could often be seen escorting Larry Smith off the field. He was close to every coach from John Robinson to Lane Kiffin...

Matt Barkley, the greatest Trojan of them all? - LA Times
If the quarterback returns for his senior season, wins the Heisman and leads USC to a national title, some say he would be at the top of the heap...

Chow’s move to Hawaii good for him, bad for Utes - Salt Lake Tribune [Kragthorpe]
Norm Chow’s apparent departure from the University of Utah to become Hawaii’s head coach certainly raises some questions about the future for the Utes and what motivated him to look beyond a position that seemingly would be the last stop of his career. Yet anyone’s initial reaction should involve good feelings for Chow, who waited a long, long time for an opportunity like this...

PeteCarroll: very sad to hear of the passing of xavier "X-Man" suazo, a truly great trojan. condolences go out to his family and friends

Ohio State? Nothing to see there USC fans! - ESPN
Breathe, USC fans, breathe.
In fact, I'd suggest you ignore what happened Tuesday with Ohio State and its slap on the wrist from the NCAA for a massive systemic breakdown and a coverup by head coach, Jim Tressel...
...But here's the thing: Being outraged will accomplish nothing.

Graham gets $2 million a year - Football Rumor Mill
Graham gets $2 million a year at Arizona State
http://t.co/XbVj1EH7

Hawaii hires Utah OC Norm Chow - Football Rumor Mill
Hawaii hires Utah OC Norm Chow as head coach
http://t.co/pDyuSRE7

Chow poised to become Hawaii’s next coach - Salt Lake Tribune
It appears Utah offensive coordinator Norm Chow could finally have his shot at a head coaching position if he wants it. The Honolulu Star Advertiser is reporting the University of Hawaii administration has authorized athletic director Jim Donovan to negotiate a contract to hire the 65-year-old Chow to make him Hawaii’s next football coach...

NCAA Pulls Out Toy Hammer Against Ohio State - Lost Angeles
Really, guys? I’m tired of the media and the NCAA trying to explain how USC’s penalties and OSU’s are apples to oranges... ...Today, the NCAA ruled that Ohio State would serve a one-year bowl ban and add 4 scholarships to the 5 they “self sanctioned”.  And they hit Jim Tressel in the nuts with the NCAA equivalent of the scarlet letter (how appropriate...).
So, for USC’s crimes:  30 schollies, 2 year bowl ban.
For Ohio State’s crimes:  27 schollies, 1 year bowl ban.
This is just the latest in the NCAA’s final stand to claim any sort of control over their business that they still won’t admit is a business...

Pac-12 attendance down in 2011 - ESPN
Only four Pac-12 teams had better attendance in 2011 than 2010, and the conference's average attendance also was down, continuing a two-year trend. USC and Washington are the only conference teams that rank in the nation in the nation's top-25 for attendance, but both dropped from their numbers last fall. USC ranked 19th with an average of 74,806 this year...

Report: Ohio State to receive bowl ban - Orlando Sentinel
The NCAA has reportedly hit the Ohio State football program with a postseason ban for the 2012 season that according to The Columbus Dispatch. The move means the Buckeyes are automatically out of the running for any postseason bowl game next season......A postseason ban would be a huge blow for a program that is trying to rebuild under new head coach Urban Meyer. The former Florida coach was hired earlier this month and is already making recruiting waves...

Pelini to Penn State? - Football Rumor Mill
Bo Pelini will likely continue to find himself in the thick of Twitterverse coaching speculation, as he did Monday. [From The Harrisburg (Pa.) Patriot-News:] “Nebraska’s Bo Pelini talked to people at Penn State but is not in the mix, I’ve heard from two highly placed sources.” Pelini told me after practice Monday that nobody from Penn State has approached him or his agent about the head coaching vacancy. “You hear rumors, but … no, there’s been nothing,” he said. Said Osborne: “I’ve not heard anything from anybody at Penn State. And Bo has not mentioned anything about Penn State to me.” So, case closed? Well. … A gut feeling — OK, an informed gut feeling — tells me to keep an eye on this thing.
http://huskerextra.com/sports/football/article_66dbb885-4646-5e91-94de-2c5fc55927fa.html

Penn State coaching vacancy - Football Rumor Mill
Penn State coaching vacancy is ‘toxic situation’
http://t.co/9kESlqzV

Five Pac-12 teams in recruiting top 25 - ESPN
On the field, the Pac-12 of late has produced elite teams but not a lot of depth in the top 25. The current ESPN Recruiting rankings are exactly the opposite. No conference team ranks among the first 15, but five rank between 18 and 25.x USC is 18th, California is 19th, Stanford is 20th, Arizona State is 24th and Oregon is 25th. Of course, recruiting rankings before the first of the year are not unlike the AP rankings in October: It's nice to be noticed but where you finish is what matters.

Rose Bowl tickets are still available from Oregon's allotment - The Oregonian
The tickets originally had been set aside for the university's internal use...

Top 10 college football bowl games of BCS era - The Oregonian
Sporting News picked the 10 best bowl games of the BCS era.
1. 2006 Rose Bowl
Texas 41, USC 38
The background: USC (12-0), led by two Heisman winners, quarterback Matt Leinart and running back Reggie Bush, entered the Rose Bowl on a 34-game winning streak...
...The game: OK, so all Young had done was rush for 192 yards and pass for 267 more when the Longhorns faced fourth-and-5 at the USC 8 with under a half-minute to play. Which guy are you going to focus on? Which guy can you absolutely … not … let … beat you? Yet it's more a tribute to Young than an indictment of the Trojans' defense that he bounced on his toes, momentarily looking for an open receiver, before scrambling untouched along the right sideline for an 8-yard touchdown run with 19 seconds remaining...

History Lesson - LA Daily News
I mentioned this on twitter last week but new UCLA coach Jim L. Mora already faced USC when he was a graduate assistant at Washington. The then-No. 1-ranked Huskies were upset by USC, 16-7 at the Coliseum. How big an upset was it? Well, Ted Tollner coached the Trojans...

Can the Pac-12 get into better bowls? - ESPN
Larry Scott has worked magic in many areas since taking over as Pac-12 commissioner, but one of the next key areas for him to wave his magic commissioner's wand doesn't offer any obvious solutions: Conference bowl contracts. It's one of the most popular complaints among Pac-12 fans: Why are the conference bowl tie-ins so mediocre? Why can't the Pac-12 play the SEC in a bowl game?...

New coaches must win - Football Rumor Mill
New coaches must win right away
http://t.co/Z7oJTHvo

Norm Chow could be emerging - Football Rumor Mill
Norm Chow could be emerging as the favorite for the Hawaii job...
http://t.co/LnM3DVz7

Lane Kiffin wishes Nick Perry well in NFL draft - LA Times
"We counseled Nick throughout his decision-making process and we stand behind him on this decision," Kiffin said Saturday in a statement. "His career progression at USC continued climbing to a point where he was ready to make the jump to the NFL. "He was an awesome pass rusher for us and he created havoc throughout the Pac-12 this year in a league that featured many of the nation's most dangerous passing offenses. He will be a valued addition to any NFL team...

USC defensive end Nick Perry to enter NFL draft - LA Times,
USC is hoping that quarterback Matt Barkley and safety T.J. McDonald, both juniors, will return next season after Matt Kalil and Nick Perry decide to leave for the NFL...

Notre Dame's Rudy Used Sports Drink Company To Scam $11 Million - Deadspin
Daniel "Rudy" Ruettiger, the former Notre Dame walk-on whose life became the basis of one of the greatest sports films of all time, has been sued by the SEC for his involvement in a "pump-and-dump" stock scheme for his sports drink company, Rudy Nutrition...

Lane Kiffin backs Matt Kalil's decision to turn pro - LA Times
USC tackle Matt Kalil, who told The Times on Thursday that he would forgo a final season and enter the NFL draft, has the support of Trojans Coach Lane Kiffin...

Fairly Quick Decision - LA Daily News
When USC offensive tackle Matt Kalil announced he was going pro he said, ``I love this university. That's why it took a while to decide.'' The decision actually didn't seem to take so long. Underclassmen have until mid-January, so he could have waited...

USC's Matt Kalil forgoing senior season to enter NFL draft - LA Times
Kalil, an All-American left tackle, is projected by some to be the first lineman taken in the April draft. "It's time to move on," he says...