Too often, many of us have blamed ourselves for things that were beyond our control. “I want closure for myself and hundreds of other Northwestern football players who suffered in silence. “I want justice for all the victims of this horrific hazing,” Yates said. in the coming years.Crump called this college sports’ “Me Too” moment. I’m a Michigan alum, and, listening to him, even I can’t help getting a little fired up about what we’re going to witness here in L.A. I can’t imagine what it must be like for USC fans to read Riley’s words, and that’s why I wanted to share them. I think my appreciation for it has grown more and more having been in it and experienced it a little bit.” “I definitely had a sense of the history before I took the job and that was a part of taking it. I asked Riley if this feeling was something he felt when he took the job or something he’s realized since being here. The Trojans rising to national power status is the fastest path to evening college football’s balance of power - only this time it will benefit the Midwest way more than the West Coast. Let’s not forget that once USC dropped off from playing for national championships in 2006, the SEC immediately began its reign. Now, I can’t honestly say that a revved up Coliseum atmosphere is on the level of a Saturday night in LSU’s “Death Valley” or an Ohio State-Michigan game at the “Horseshoe” or the “Big House.”īut he’s absolutely right about USC’s importance to college football. He sounds like a college football fan just as much as the caretaker of one of the sport’s crown jewels. When I listen to him talk like this, he sounds more like that wide-eyed boy from the barren plains of West Texas than a millionaire football coach 10 times over. But hey, there’s a reason Riley is coaching USC and not Louisiana State - and we can assume it isn’t because LSU preferred Brian Kelly to the most coveted young coach in college football. And I think if we’re not paying attention to that, we’re missing the point a little bit.”Īnd now I can feel the eye rolls from Tuscaloosa, Ala., to Athens, Ga., to Baton Rouge, La. “For all those reasons, it’s important to the history of the game. Whether people love them or hate them, it’s great for the NBA, because you can go watch a game at Crypto and you can’t go find a better atmosphere or scene like that anywhere else on the planet, and I think USC football is kind of that for college football. “It’s like going to a Lakers’ game when the Lakers are good. “It’s just something new and unique and different. “What it creates when it’s good is such a unique atmosphere and setting, and it’s so good not just for USC and the West Coast, but the sport in general,” Riley said. Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff tried to project confidence at football media day amid concerns about defections and the absence of a TV deal. Sports Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff tries to quell concern with no announced TV deal So I’m not quite sure that part of Riley’s sentiment means exactly what it once did. The Big Ten’s doors aren’t open to Oregon and Washington, at least not any time soon, it seems. Of course, the rest of West Coast football - other than UCLA - won’t be allowed to come where USC is going after this season. “I just see the responsibility because I think West Coast football is always going to go as USC goes.” “Every job is good and is important, but this job is just so … I don’t know if there’s another job that’s as important to its region and its part of the country and moves the needle quite like this one,” he said. When I spoke to him later, I was interested to find out exactly what he meant by “important.” It was interesting how willing Riley was to romance about the deeper meaning of his life as a Trojan and how special his new home is during USC’s swan song appearance at Pac-12 football media day. You could feel eyes rolling from Norman to Eugene. Like I said, not only do we get a chance to do it, but we get a chance to do it at one of the most important programs in our sport.” “To get a chance to be a part of that, embrace that, it reinvigorates you. “There’s no story in life or sports better than a comeback and a rise,” he said. Later, again unprompted, he came back to that theme. Lincoln Riley, on the importance of USC football
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