From the Daily Trojan’s list of reasons to hate Notre Dame:

If fan bases were mainstream religions, Notre Dame’s would be a fundamentalist cult. You wonder if freshman orientation involves being strapped to chairs and watching “Rudy” looped for 24 hours, followed by another day of mind-numbing videos preaching Irish supremacy, with a leprechaun-led, ritualistic sacrifice of a virgin sprinkled in once every few hours.

Heh.

The game can’t start soon enough. I can’t wait!

Injured Trojan fullback — and blogger — Brandon Hancock is excited too:

Hey Folks! Today is the match-up we’ve all been waiting for. With national title implications on the line, the Irish look to come into our house and derail our dreams of returning to the big show. It ought to be a great game. Check in afterward. Fight ON!

Lex icon is also excited, and he offers some “fun details about the game.”

I’ll be watching the game on Becky’s parents’ big-screen TV in Gold Canyon, Arizona. My half-dozen separate attempts to get tickets for a halfway reasonable price all fell incomplete, as it were, and my suggestion of going to the USC alumni gathering in Scottsdale was batted down at the line by Becky. Not that I mind — watching the game while relaxing on the Zaks’ comfy leather couches is not exactly a hardship. :)

BEAT THE IRISH!!!

South Florida 24, West Virginia 19, final. At Morgantown. Wow.

So now Louisville (which is playing Pittsburgh now and plays UConn next week) is the only realistic possible at-large team from the Big East. That would require Rutgers (which crushed Syracuse today) to beat West Virginia at Morgantown next week, thus winning the conference title, and Louisville to win out, thus possibly earning an at-large berth. Otherwise, the only Big East team in the BCS will be the conference champion (Louisville, if they win out and Rutgers loses to WVU; the highest-ranked team in the BCS standings among Louisville/Rutgers/WVU, if Louisville loses one of its final two games and Rutgers loses to WVU; West Virginia, if Louisville loses both of its last two games and Rutgers loses to WVU). And even Louisville, if they’re in the running for an at-large, will probably lose out for a BCS berth to LSU… assuming Cal doesn’t get back into the Top 14, in which case both the SEC and the Big East will get only one team apiece (unless Boise State loses).

In other Big East news, UConn and Cincinnati are tied at 23 in the closing seconds of the fourth quarter. A win would keep UConn’s slim bowl hopes alive. (The Huskies would then need to beat Louisville next week.) But Cincy looks to be in prime position for a game-winning field goal.

UPDATE: Cincy hits the field goal. Darn.

Meanwhile, in the ACC pillow fight of the year, Duke’s last chance for its first win of the season hang in the balance as North Carolina leads 45-44 with 2:49 left. A real defensive battle! :)

UPDATE 2: Duke loses and finishes 0-12. They’re the first major-conference team to go winless since… Duke, in 2001. Prior to that, the previous winless major-conference team was… Duke, in 2000. Complete list here.

Florida International (0-10) will join the Blue Devils in being 0-for-the-season with a loss to Florida Atlantic (4-7) today and Troy (5-5) next Saturday.

UPDATE 3: Florida wins, 21-14, in spite of Urban Meyer’s best efforts to invoke the Tommy Tuberville curse. So the Gators remain possibly alive for the BCS title. The SEC title game will be between the 11-1 Gators and the 10-2 Razorbacks. Go Hogs!

UPDATE 4: Now underway, a game with enormous BCS implications: Boise State at Nevada. If the Broncos win, they’re in. If they lose, someone else is in. Simple as that.

Intriguingly, a Nevada victory would actually cost the university a sizable chunk of money, since if Boise State goes to the BCS, its fellow WAC teams get a share of the booty.

Ladies and gentlemen… boys and girls… friends, Trojans, Domers, countrymen… the long-awaited day has finally arrived. It’s time for the “Game of the Century of the Week.” (Heh.) Are you ready to rumble???

vs.

With the second annual battle of wits between Charlie Weis (left) and Pete Carroll (right) mere hours away, I figured this would be a good time to annoy my fellow Domers with a bit of fight-song heresy…

Ara is gone, and Dan was Devine
But Pete’s boys will kick Charlie’s behind
When the Irish take the field,
Their blood runs cold and they get killed.
The golden dome is made out of brass
The marching band just sits on its ass
And the leprechaun is queer
In heaven there is no beer!

…and to take a look back at Weis-Carroll I:

(Hat tip: Displaced Trojan. Eight minutes long, but seriously a must-watch for USC fans.)

Here’s another look at that last Irish-Trojan battle, from the perspective of this particular Irish Trojan, in the ND student section, cheering USC on to a most improbable comeback victory. This is a more than seven-minute clip, combining various videos that I took at the game, including the Irish fans prematurely rushing the field and the stunned reaction to the game’s incredible ending:

Fight on!

Texasyank gives us an in-depth look at another big rivalry game that’s being played today: Arizona vs. Arizona State.

I don’t have strong feelings about either team, but since Becky got her Master’s at ASU, I suppose I should root for the Sun Devils… and besides, there’s something wonderfully entertaining about the possibility of a five-way tie for fourth place in the Pac-10 among a quintet of teams with 4-5 conference records. ASU needs to win (and then USC needs to beat UCLA next Saturday) to make that happen. So… go, Sparky, go!

I love Arizona.

Here’s the Blue-Gray Sky’s preview of tomorrow’s game.

Here’s USCfootball.com’s preview.

And again, here are my long-winded thoughts on the game, including:

Assuming both teams bring their “A” games, I think the difference is that USC will be able to run the ball on the Irish, whereas Notre Dame will not be able to run the ball on the Trojans. We have a seemingly endless pool of talented backs who can come through the revolving door as needed; you have… Darius Walker. More importantly, we have an offensive line that doesn’t, um, suck. And you have a defense that gave up three touchdowns in three quarters to North Carolina, and has not looked truly dominant against anyone except Army. Both teams have good quarterbacks (yours is better and more experienced, yes, but ours will get more protection, so in the end I think it at least balances out), both teams have great receivers, and both teams have somewhat shaky secondaries, which is why many people are predicting a shootout. But I think our defense will stuff your running game — if we could do it to Cal, we can certainly do it to Notre Dame — and that will force you to become one-dimensional, at which point your pass attack will become much less effective.

If your offensive line has improved more than I think it has, that would change things considerably, but I’m betting they’ll be exposed (again) on Saturday, and your offense will struggle. Our offense, on the other hand, will come out firing. You’ll probably score a touchdown or two on defense or special teams, and/or on some trick play that Charlie has up his sleeve, but it won’t be enough to make up the difference. As long as Booty, who has been maddeningly inconsistent, has at least a decent, workmanlike performance, we’ll score enough points to beat you. Both teams will score a fair number of points — it won’t be an SEC game — but it won’t be a Ohio State-Michigan type shootout, either. Trojans 31, Irish 21.

And if I’m wrong in that prediction, I think I’m more likely to be wrong in the direction of a bigger USC blowout than in the direction of a smaller margin or an Irish win. In fact, let me try and quantify that. Odds of an Irish win by more than 10 points: 5%. Odds of an Irish win by 10 points or less: 20%. Odds of a Trojan win by 10 points or less: 25%. Odds of a Trojan win by 11-20 points: 30%. Odds of a Trojan win by more than 20 points: 20%. Odds that I just made those numbers up off the top of my head: 100%. :) But they feel about right to me.

Bottom line, given the history of what Pete Carroll has done with this team, I am confident that at the Coliseum, in November, against Notre Dame, given the circumstances and the stakes, the Trojans will bring, at worst, their “A-” or “B+” game… and I don’t think the Irish have the talent to beat the Trojans unless USC brings its “B-” game or worse. I’ve been criticized for this sentiment on my blog, on the theory that I’m laying the groundwork for not giving the Irish proper credit if they win, and saying they only won because USC played poorly. But that’s not my intention at all. I’m just giving my honest opinion, based on what I’ve seen of both teams this season. If what I see on the field Saturday proves me wrong, I’ll readily admit it. Moreover, even if the Trojans don’t play up to par and ND wins, the Irish will deserve credit for taking advantage of the opportunity they’re given, and for “helping” the Trojans play poorly, obviously… and I’ll give it to them. But I stand by my basic premise: unless the Irish have improved more since September than I think they have, USC is definitely the superior team, and without the built-in advantages that the Irish had last year (the home crowd, the “echoes,” etc.), the Trojans will win; the only question is by how much.

Read the whole thing.

P.S. What do you think?

Notre Dame may have ended the curse of the green jerseys against Army last Saturday, but today the curse of Brendan’s unlucky Gonzaga t-shirt(s) struck again. The Zags, it is my sad duty to announce, are now 0-2 when I’m wearing this shirt:

As you’d expect from me, there’s a lengthy back-story. :) Details after the jump.

(more…)

I haven’t had time to actually update the standings in the Notre Dame and USC pick ‘em contests, but just a reminder of the scenarios and implications of tomorrow’s game:

Notre Dame pick ‘em contest:
• If Notre Dame wins, Steve C. wins.
• If USC wins, gahrie wins.

USC pick ‘em contest:
• If Notre Dame wins, only Ed and Josh Rubin are still alive to win. Ed would then win if USC beats UCLA; Josh would win if UCLA beats USC.
• If USC wins, only C. Basset, David K., lex icon and Josh Rubin are still alive (assuming USC wins by 19 points or less). Josh would then win if UCLA beats USC; David K. would win if the Trojans beat the Irish and Bruins by a combined margin of 20 points or less; David K. and lex icon would tie for the win if the Trojans beat the Irish and Bruins by a combined margin of between 21 and 24 points; C. Basset would win if the Trojans beat the Irish and Bruins by a combined margin of 25 points or more.

Butler leads Gonzaga, 43-29 at halftime.

If Butler wins this game, they’ll be 6-0 with wins over Notre Dame, Indiana, Tennessee and Gonzaga. The Bulldogs were “ranked” #35 in the AP poll and #40 in the coaches’ poll last week. If there’s any justice in the world, they ought to be in the Top 10 if they win this game. Honestly, can anyone in the country boast as impressive a resume as Butler’s so far, if they win this game? Seriously!

UPDATE: Butler wins, 79-71.

Gonzaga clearly had a letdown from the North Carolina win. But all credit to Butler; they’re clearly a good team, and were definitely the better team on the court tonight.

Oregon State won the “Civil War” today, 30-28 over Oregon, on a 40-yard Alexis Serna field goal with 1:12 left. With the win, the Beavers clinch sole possession of third place in the Pac-10, behind USC and Cal. (Standings here.)

Arizona, which has won three straight games over ranked teams after a disappointing start, can stake a claim on fourth place with a win over Arizona State tomorrow. UCLA could join them with a win over USC next Saturday. If both the Wildcats and the Bruins lose, there will be a massive, five-way log-jam for fourth place: UCLA, Arizona, Oregon, Washington State and Arizona State would all finish 4-5 in conference. There would only be three teams with winning records in conference play!

However, regardless of the outcomes of the remaining games, the top eight teams in the Pac-10 will all finish with at least six wins overall, so the conference could end up getting some “at-large” bowl berths where other conferences don’t have enough eligible teams. Only ninth-place Washington and tenth-place Stanford are bowl-ineligible.

For all the talk about how anyone can beat anyone else on any given day in the SEC, the Pac-10 has been incredibly cannibalistic this season. It will be very interesting to see how these middle-of-the-Pac teams do in the bowl season.

Less than 48 hours removed from a 82-74 loss to Gonzaga, North Carolina beat Tennessee, 101-87 in the consolation game of the NIT Season Tip-Off. This tends to provide further confirmation that Gonzaga is good.

Up next: Gonzaga vs. Butler for the NIT Season Tip-Off championship. Tip-off time: 7:13 PM. Go Bulldogs, beat the Bulldogs! :)

UPDATE: So far, so not good for the Zags. Butler 39, Gonzaga 22 with 2:30 left in the first half. I was afraid they might suffer a letdown like this. Hopefully they’ll wake up in the second half.

In a bit of bad news for USC’s strength-of-schedule rating, Arkansas suffered its second loss of the season Friday, its first since falling 50-14 to the Trojans in September, as the LSU Tigers stormed into Little Rock and defeated the Hogs, 31-26.

Arkansas quarterback Casey Dick completed just 3 of 17 passes for 29 yards, fewer than star runningback Darren McFadden managed on his two passes, both of which he completed for a total of 32 yards. Why Dick wasn’t pulled from the game in favor of freshman Mitch Mustain, who was 8-0 as a starter before becoming Dick’s backup after the sophomore returned from an injury, I have no idea. The game ended with four passes by Dick falling lamely incomplete after Arkansas had 1st-and-10 from their own 27 with 2:04 remaining.

Anyway, the Hogs drop to 10-2, 7-1 in SEC play. They’ll still play Florida in the SEC title game next week, but they’re now “damaged goods,” meaning they definitely won’t get a BCS at-large bid if they lose, and Florida is probably less likely to get one if they lose (even assuming they beat Florida State tomorrow), since they’d be coming off a loss to an Arkansas team that won’t come into the game ranked in the Top 10. The most likely at-large contender from the SEC is now probably LSU, which finishes with a 10-2 record (6-2 in the SEC) and six straight wins.

The race for the final BCS at-large spot (after Michigan, Notre Dame and Boise State — assuming the Broncos win at Nevada tomorrow) is probably down to LSU, Louisville and West Virginia (either of whom could win out and still fail to win the Big East — the latter if Louisville wins out, the former if West Virginia doesn’t). Florida and Auburn are also possible, but less likely, SEC choices. The Big 12 dropped out of the at-large picture with Texas’s loss today; previously, it was possible that Oklahoma could win out, not go to the title game, and merit consideration, but now the Sooners will either win the Big 12 title or lose a game. So they’re out. The Big Ten was already out of contention because one conference can’t have more than two teams in the BCS (sorry, Wisconsin), and the Pac-10 and ACC probably won’t have any eligible teams other than their champions. (Virginia Tech, currently #17, might sneak its way up to eligbility, but would be ranked much lower than the other contenders and probably is not a sufficiently attractive choice to overcome that fact.)

The wild card in all this is whether Cal, currently #19, can make it back into the Top 14 and thus become eligible for a BCS at-large bid. If USC goes to the national championship game, the Rose Bowl would almost certainly pick the Bears, even if they’re the lowest-ranked eligible team, to play Michigan in a traditional Pac-10 vs. Big Ten matchup. A win over Stanford won’t help Cal much in the BCS standings, but attrition could: losses this weekend by #13 Texas and #18 Boston College will presumably bump Cal up to #17, and they could crack the Top 14 if three of the following four teams lose: Boise State (one game left), Oklahoma (potentially two games left), Georgia Tech (two games left) and Virginia Tech (one game left).