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Tuesday Travel Photo (No. 257)

Here's one of my most peculiar travel shots. I never figured out exactly what was going on here, but this is a fire surrounding an airplane along a runway at Salt Lake City International Airport. There were only a couple of units working or maybe even just observing the fire. Perhaps it was just a drill. We looked for stories about it in the newspaper the next day. In any event, it seemed strange to zip down a runway at top speed while another plane was burning practically right next to us.

Anyhow, if you are traveling this weekend, we hope you don't see any sights like this.

UCLA Week 2009 - Tuesday (Why The Game's So Great)

There are many other great rivalries in college football: Michigan & Ohio State, Auburn & Alabama, Florida & Florida State, Harvard & Yale, Army & Navy, Stanford & Cal, and so on and so on and so on. But there are no two strong rivals in college football who share the same city. USC-UCLA is unique in that regard. What makes it so great?

The Thrill of Victory: The prize for this game is the Victory Bell. The winner keeps the Victory Bell for a year and paints it their team's colors. Since 1942, the Victory Bell has awarded to the winner of this game. The bell originally rang atop a Southern Pacific locomotive. It was donated to the UCLA student body in 1939 and it was used to proclaim each UCLA touchdown for two seasons. In 1941, six USC fraternity men heisted the truck that was taking the bell back to Westwood, and it was hidden away for more than a year. A series of retaliatory pranks ended with a badly needed truce, in which the student body presidents signed an agreement to make the bell a trophy given to the annual winner of the football game. It now traditionally comes out only for the first three quarters of this game. This year, the Victory Bell is painted cardinal and gold.

The Agony of Defeat: Despite the loss to the Ohio State University, Michigan fans can still wear Wolverine gear around Ann Arbor and face little ridicule from Buckeye fans. But the loser of the USC-UCLA game can't wear their colors around town without somebody popping off. Win in basketball season don't ease the pain. A College World Series title doesn't absolve you. Volleyball? Water polo? Tennis? Track? Fuggedaboudit. The winner of this game can have their fans openly dig their team for the next year. The loser and its fans are losers for the rest of the year, at home and abroad. For eight long years, we were up to our necks in Bruin crap, for seven years, Bruin fans have had to put up with the same from the Trojans. Bruins fans are still basking in the glow of their 13-9 upset in 2006, but the Trojans have a two-year winning streak working.

The Glory of Pac-10 Titles and Bowl Berths: For the last 7 seasons, this game had an impact on the Pac-10 championship, a BCS bowl bid or a national championship. When UCLA last beat the Trojans in 1998, they were atop the BCS standings and finishing off just the 4th perfect 8-0 conference record in Pac-10 history. (They lost to Miami the next week in a hurricane postponed game that was supposed to have been played in September.) In 2002, USC went to the Rose Bowl and won, 52-21, to set the stage for their Orange Bowl-sealing win over Notre Dame the following week. In 2003, the Trojans beat UCLA, 47-22, to clinch the Pac-10 title and set up their move to the top of the polls the following week. In 2004, a 29-24 win at the Rose Bowl sent the Trojans back to the Orange Bowl for the BCS title game. In 2005, a 66-19 victory clinched USC's 30th Rose Bowl appearance. In 2006, UCLA dropped the Trojans from the BCS championship game to the Rose Bowl. In 2007 and 2008, Trojan wins secured their place in the Rose Bowl. This game has no (meaningful) BCS bowl implications, but it could affect who goes to the Holiday Bowl, the Sun Bowl, the Vegas Bowl or any number of other bowls.

Ten Movies I Recently Watched on DVD (No. 24)

Here are another ten recent pulls from the Netflix queue, with my one-to-five plus rating, and the IMDB users' score.

1. Gran Torino (8.4) +++++ Great performances, interesting story, compelling ending. 
2. The Wrestler (8.3) ++++ Great performances and interesting characters, no ending.
3. Milk (7.9) +++ Sean Penn is a truly remarkable actor, even if he's a jerk
4. Marley & Me (7.1) +++ The dog gets it in the end
5. Lost in Austen (7.9) +++ More of a chick thing, so I was lukewarm on it, even with the time travel
6. Knowing (6.5) +++ The solution to the mystery was creepy, the big discovery was contrived
7. Jonas Brothers: The 3-D Concert Experience (1.3) + It was a concert, but I was there, so ...
8. The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice (6.5) + Bad, even for a made-for-TV adventure movie.
9. The Librarian: Quest for the Spear (6.0) + Worse, even for a made-for-TV adventure movie. 
10. The Librarian: Return to Mines (5.8) + Even worse, even for a made-for-TV adventure movie. 

The Librarians were the kids' idea. Each one was worse than the one before. Jonas Brothers was in the queue because the girls wanted to see it; I watched to see if we were in the crowd footage, since we were in the third row on the floor.

UCLA Week 2009 - Monday (Records, Rankings, Odds, Streaks, Upsets and Heroes)

Once again, it's UCLA week aka "Troy Week". It's time for our annual cross-town rivalry game against the Bruins. The City Bowl. The Bell Bowl.

Less than usual is on the line in this game. USC remains in the running for the Holiday Bowl, but could end up in the Vegas Bowl or worse with a loss here. UCLA can assure itself of a bowl appearance with a win, but will have to hope for an at-large bid as a 6-6 team if they lose. Here are a few details about the game.

Starting Time: The game Saturday at the Coliseum will be broadcast live nationally at 7:00 p.m. PST on ABC. It's the last game of the night involving a ranked team.

Records: USC is 7-3. UCLA is 6-5. USC's 4-3 conference record is currently fifth best in the Pac-10. UCLA sits in 7th place in the Pac-10. This is UCLA's regular season finale. USC plays Arizona next Saturday.

Rankings: USC is ranked 24th in the AP Poll, 22nd in the Harris Interactive Poll and the USA Today/ESPN Coaches Poll and 20th in the BCS rankings. That's USC's lowest ranking in 7 years. UCLA is not ranked.

Odds: USC opened as an 10½ point favorite. The line has moved to 13 already.

Coliseum Streak: The last four games at the Coliseum were won by USC:
• 1999: USC 17, UCLA 7
• 2001: USC 27, UCLA 0
• 2003: USC 47, UCLA 22
• 2005: USC 66, UCLA 19
• 2007: USC 24, UCLA 7

Historic Upsets: In the past 20 years, there have been several huge surprises:
• 1989: UCLA, 3-7 and unranked, ties 8th ranked and Rose Bowl bound USC 10-10.
• 1992: UCLA, 5-5 and unranked, defeats No.15 USC 38-37.
• 1994: UCLA, 4-6 and unranked, defeats No.13 USC 31-19.
• 1995: UCLA, 6-4 and unranked, defeats No.11 Rose Bowl bound USC, 24-20.
• 2001: USC, 5-5 and unranked, defeats No. 20 UCLA 27-0.
• 2006: UCLA, 6-5 and unranked, defeats No. 2 Rose Bowl bound USC 13-9.

Unlikely Heroes: The series is known for having superstars carry the day with big games, but it is also known for lesser known players having big games, e.g.,
• 1992: Senior walk-on John Barnes, the fifth-string QB for UCLA, leads the unranked Bruins (see above) to a 38-37 win on a 90-yard TD pass to J.J. Stokes with 2:04 left. Barnes threw for 384 yards.
• 1993: UCLA avoids the come-from-ahead loss when safety Marvin Goodwin intercepts a pass in the end zone on a 3rd-and-goal play in the final seconds of the game.
• 2000: USC's third-string placekicker, David Bell, who had missed all three field goal attempts that season, lined up for a a 36-yard field goal with nine seconds to go. It barely cleared the crossbar.

My College Football Top 25 Going Into Week 13

If I had an AP vote, here is what my ballot after week 12 would look like:

1. Texas (1)
2. Alabama (2)
3. Florida (3)
4. TCU (4)
5. Cincinnati (5)
6. Boise State (6)
7. Georgia Tech (7)
8. Pitt (8)
9. Ohio State (9)
10. Oregon (10)  
11. Oklahoma State (12)
12. Penn State (13)
13. Virginia Tech (15)
14. Iowa (17)
15. Clemson (19)
16. BYU (18)
17. USC (20)
18. Oregon State (21)
19. LSU (11)
20. Miami (22)
21. Utah (24)
22. North Carolina (25)
23. Cal (NR)
24. Mississippi (NR)
25. Nebraska (NR)

I dropped: Stanford (14), Wisconsin (16), Rutgers (23)

I almost went with: Stanford and Houston

They're higher than they belong, but who should be higher? Pitt, Ohio State, Georgia Tech

I knew it!: LSU

I can't believe anyone gave votes this week to: Nevada, Kentucky, Central Michigan

My College Football Results, 2009 Week 12

My picks this week were 14-8, but I only went 5-4 on my nine money picks - and it was the Pac-10 games that busted me. Stanford tore through USC and Oregon, both of whom destroyed Cal, so naturally, Cal beats Stanford at the Farm, right? Go figure. On the season I am now 112-121-1 against the spread overall, and 47-41 in games I actually thought were worth wagering on. Here's how I did.

L * Colorado @ #12 Oklahoma St. -15½
W #6 Boise St. @ Utah St. +24
W [#25] North Carolina @ Boston College -3
L * #9 Ohio St. @ Michigan +12
W * Minnesota @ #15 Iowa -10
W Duke @ #21 Miami (FL) -17½
W * Florida Intl. @ #1 Florida -41½
W * Memphis @ #24 Houston -24
W * #4 TCU @ Wyoming -31
L Air Force @ #19 BYU -8
W #25 Rutgers @ Syracuse +8 (straight up!)
W #17 Wisconsin @ Northwestern +6½ (straight up!)
W N.C. State @ #16 Virginia Tech -20
L #13 Penn St. @ Michigan St. +3
W #10 LSU @ Mississippi -3½
W * Virginia @ #18 Clemson -28½
W San Diego St. @ #23 Utah -18
L * #20 Oregon St. @ Washington St. +31
L Kansas State @ [#25] Nebraska -16½
L * California @ #14 Stanford -7 (straight up!)
L #11 Oregon @ Arizona +6
W Kansas @ #3 Texas -26½

In the only game involving unranked Pac-10 play, I picked it:

W Arizona State @ UCLA -4½

The Trojan Fan's Rooting Interests for Week 12

Last week was a brutal week for USC's rooting interests. Technically, USC is just four spots below where they need to be in the BCS rankings for them to be eligible for a bid. In fact, technically, USC could still go to the Rose Bowl as a 6-way co-champion of the Pac-10, at 6-3. But in reality, USC fans' rooting interests now focus on enjoying upsets, hoping that the teams from #7 to #22 lose, giving USC a chance to work themselves back into the top ten, and, of course, getting into the best bowl possible. Oh, and we want Charlie Weis to stay on as Notre Dame coach, although that would probably require the Irish to beat Stanford, as well. So here are a few outcomes to root for this weekend, in order of my preference, starting with:

Games USC needs to keep their almost impossible Rose Bowl hopes alive:

• Washington State over Oregon State
• Cal over Stanford
• Arizona over Oregon

Games USC fans would like to see break against the teams we could jump in the polls tomorrow:

• Colorado over Oklahoma State (that already didn't happen)
• Michigan over Ohio State
• Minnesota over Iowa
• Duke over Miami
• Memphis over Houston
• Virginia over Clemson
• San Diego St. over Utah 
• Air Force over BYU
• Northwestern over Wisconsin
• N.C. State over Virginia Tech
• Michigan State over Penn St.
• Ole Miss over LSU

Games where I'll probably root for the upset, without thinking it'll happen, or really caring:

• Florida Intl. over Florida
• Chattanooga over Alabama
• Kansas over Texas
• Utah State over Boise State  (that already didn't happen)
• Wyoming over TCU

Rivals' games:

• UCLA over Arizona State (so UCLA will already be bowl-eligible)
• Notre Dame over U.Conn (so Charlie's head will not roll)

Next week, I'll have a better idea of how to root in the Pac-10, since USC's chances at the various bowls will be a bit clearer.

College Football 2009: 10 Games I Look Forward To In Week 12

USC is off this week, and the Trojans are essentially out of the running in the Pac-10, so I'm less intrigued by this week's slate of college football games. Nonetheless, there are a few that pique my interest. Here are the ten I find most interesting:

1. #25 Cal @ #14 Stanford: If Stanford wins this game, USC is likely to be headed to the Sun Bowl or Vegas Bowl, so I have to root for the Bears here. Stanford knocked off the Trojans last week, and so far this season, both teams that beat USC suffered a hangover the next week and lost. In fact, since 2003, that has happened to almost all of the teams that upset USC in the regular season. If the trend continues, USC has a shot at the Holiday Bowl. If not, USC's only chance at the Holiday Bowl is for Stanford to beat Notre Dame soundly and have a few losses ahead of them in the BCS so that the Cardinal get into the Fiesta Bowl. That's unlikely. Go Bears!
   .
2. #9 Ohio St. @ Michigan: I feel for Michigan fans, and for Rich Rodriguez. They've lost 5 straight to the Buckeyes, and I think they are going to lose a 6th straight. But maybe not, and I wouldn't mind seeing the Buckeyes drop a game so USC could move back ahead of them in the standings. I'm not going to root for anyone here; I'm just going to watch.
   .
3. #11 Oregon @ Arizona: The winner of this game controls its own fate in the Rose Bowl race. If Oregon State somehow loses to Washington State, I'm going to root hard for the Wildcats in this one, but I doubt that will happen, so I'll probably prefer to see the Pac-10 leader looking strong and getting back into the top ten.
   .
4. #10 LSU @ Mississippi: I'd love to see LSU fall and remain the victor over absolutely nobody decent. They should have called this one the Overrated Bowl. Now that Ole Miss, Oklahoma and USC have been exposed as overhyped teams, I'm hoping and thinking that it's LSU's turn. Ole Miss is actually favored, so I'm not the only one who thinks this. I took LSU and the points, but only because I expect this to be a close, low-scoring affair. Of course, if LSU loses, that's probably enough for Ole Miss to get back into the rankings, so LSU fans can say "but all three of our losses were to ranked SEC teams." Bah. Go Rebels!
   .
5. Connecticut @ Notre Dame: Charlie Weis needs to win his last two games to have any hope of keeping his job. Notre Dame was a 6-5 school when they fired Ty Willingham and brought in Charlie Weis, specifically because the Irish do not think of themselves as a 6-5 school. If they lose this, they will be 6-5. I want Charlie to keep his job, even if it means the Irish upsetting a Pac-10 school in their season finale. So as much as I feel for the U. Conn players, who've been through such a rough season already, I'm thinking ... Go Irish! Beat Huskies!
   .
6. #20 Oregon St. @ Washington St.: Technically, this is the first of several games that control USC's Rose Bowl fate. I say technically because there is no way Oregon State loses this game unless they suffer devastating injuries, in which case they'll get clobbed by Oregon in their season finale, so either way, USC finishes behind one or more Oregon schools. Is it even worth it for me to say "Go Cougars!"?
   .
7. Florida Intl. @ #1 Florida: Florida ended its SEC schedule last week, so it gets to tune up for the conference championship by beating up on two weak sisters down the road. This one will be even easier than Florida State, and it's a good bet that we'll see Tim Tebow's heir-apparent, John Brantley early. The only real suspense is whether Florida will break 70, or FIU will break ... 0.
   .
8. Arizona State @ UCLA: UCLA is USC's next opponent, and our most hated rival, so I'll be watching this one, but not necessarily rooting against the Bruins. I'd love to see 7 Pac-10 teams play in bowls, and a 5-5 UCLA has a better shot now than 4-6 Arizona State, who would need this, plus a win against rival Arizona just to be eligible. Also, I don't want the Bruins to have the extra motivation of needing to beat USC to get to the Humanitarian Bowl or wherever. USC sits at home and I'm rooting for the Irish and the Bruins. I can't remember the last time that happened.
   .
9. Minnesota @ #15 Iowa: For my pie-in-the-sky hopes for USC to go to a BCS bowl, I need, among other things, another Iowa loss and another Penn State loss. Neither is likely, but Iowa did almost lose two pathetic games to two pathetic visitors this season. Minnesota is almost pathetic enough to fit the bill. Go Gophers!
   .
10. #13 Penn St. @ Michigan St.: For my pie-in-the-sky hopes for USC to go to a BCS bowl, I need, among other things, another Iowa loss and another Penn State loss. Neither is likely, but Michigan State did beat Michigan when we thought Michigan was good. Go Spartans!
     

I'll probably also check the scores of Duke @ #21 Miami, Chattanooga @ #2 Alabama, Memphis @ #24 Houston, TCU @ Wyoming, #17 Wisconsin @ Northwestern, N.C. State @ #16 Virginia Tech, Virginia @ #18 Clemson and Kansas @ #3 Texas.

Twilight New Moon

Because I have daughters, I know about this being the release date for New Moon, the second movie in Stephanie Meyer's popular Twilight Series. I'm not staying up to catch the midnight opener, but my daughter is. The scene outside the theater tonight was a zoo. I don't even remember the Star Wars and Star Trek geeks being this geeky or geeked out over a movie.

.
 
That red carpet was there for a group of (high school?) kids who rolled up in a white stretch limo and emerged dressed as their favorite, or most closely resembling characters. The dude on the left holding the apparent glass of wine was one of the vampires. He reminded me of a strange D&D/hacker type guy I knew back in the day.

 

My College Football Picks, 2009 Week 12

On the season I am now 98-113-1 against the spread overall, and a barely profitable(#) 42-37 in games I actually thought were worth wagering on. Here are how I would pick against the spread this week in the games involving ranked teams. Nine games I would put real money on are marked by an asterisk:

Thursday, Nov 19
* Colorado @ #12 Oklahoma St. -15½

Friday, Nov 20
#6 Boise St. @ Utah St. +24
 
Saturday, Nov 21
[#25] North Carolina @ Boston College -3
* #9 Ohio St. @ Michigan +12
* Minnesota @ #15 Iowa -10
Duke @ #21 Miami (FL) -17½
Chattanooga @ #2 Alabama OFF
* Florida Intl. @ #1 Florida -41½
* Memphis @ #24 Houston -24
* #4 TCU @ Wyoming -31
Air Force @ #19 BYU -8
#25 Rutgers @ Syracuse +8
#17 Wisconsin @ Northwestern +6½
N.C. State @ #16 Virginia Tech -20
#13 Penn St. @ Michigan St. +3
#10 LSU @ Mississippi -3½
* Virginia @ #18 Clemson -28½
San Diego St. @ #23 Utah -18
* #20 Oregon St. @ Washington St. +31
Kansas State @ [#25] Nebraska -16½
* California @ #14 Stanford -7
#11 Oregon @ Arizona +6
Kansas @ #3 Texas -26½

In unranked Pac-10 play, the fourth conference game this week is:
Arizona State @ UCLA -4½

This week, #5 Cincinnati, #7 Georgia Tech, #8 Pitt, #22 USC have byes. Alabama has a virtual bye against Chattanooga.

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/odds

## Betting 110 to win 100, if you'd taken all my money picks this year, you'd have wagered $8,690, and you would now have $8,820.

My 2009 Bottom 10 After Week 11

We lost a team from the ranks of the winless last week, with Rice pulling off the shocker against mighty Tulane. It wasn't enough for them to lose their Bottom Ten ranking, however. Here are my *ten rounding out the bottom:

1. Western Kentucky [1] (0-10) Coach fired. Can't even beat La-Monroe. Next loss: Bye
2. Eastern Michigan [2] (0-10) Haven't held any opponent under 24. Next loss: @ Toledo
3. New Mexico [3] (0-10) Achieved amazing 5 point loss to BYU. Next loss: Colorado State
4. San Jose St [5] (1-8) Still winless against the FBS. Next loss: Hawaii
5. Miami (OH) [6] (1-10) Season ends mercifully early tonight. Final loss: Buffalo
6. Washington St. [7] (1-9) By losing, can knock USC out of Rose Bowl. Next loss: Oregon St.
7. Ball St. [8] (1-9) En route to one of the worst one-season turnarounds ever. Next loss: C. Michigan
8. Rice [4] (1-9) Beat Tulane. Next loss: UTEP
9. Vanderbilt [9] (2-9) Only wins: Rice and something called Western Carolina. Final loss: @ Tenn.
10. North Texas [10] (2-8) Only wins: Ball St and W. Kentucky. Next loss: @ Arkansas State
11. * USC's 4th quarters. Trojans outscored 52-14 in last five 4th quarters

Dropped out: None

Not far ahead:  Akron (2-8), Maryland (2-8), Memphis (2-8), Arkansas St. (2-7)

Crummy Game of the Week: Utah State 24 San Jose State 9

Shocking Redemption of the Week: Rice over Tulane

Next week's Crummy Games of the the Week: North Texas @ Arkansas State

Next week's Blowouts of the Week: Washington State @ Oregon State

Remaining Unbeatens After Week 11

We started the eleventh week of play with 6 undefeated teams in the NCAA's FBS. There are still six.

• #1 Florida - won @ South Carolina. Next game: Florida International
• #2 Alabama - won @ Mississippi State. Next game: Chattanooga
• #3 Texas - won @ Baylor. Next game: Kansas
• #4 TCU - beat up Utah. Next game: @ Wyoming
• #5 Cincinnati - beat West Virginia. Next game: bye (Illoinois Nov. 27)
• #5 Boise State - beat up Idaho. Next game: @ Utah State

I don't expect anyone to drop from the ranks next week.

Looking at 2009 Bowl Scenarios

A few weeks ago, I might have guessed that the bowl lineups for the BCS and Pac-10 look something like this:

BCS Championship: Florida v. Texas
Rose Bowl: Oregon v. Iowa
Sugar Bowl: Alabama v. Cincinnati
Fiesta Bowl: Penn State v. USC
Orange Bowl: Georgia Tech v. TCU

Holiday Bowl (Pac10 #2): Arizona
Sun (Pac10 #3): Cal
Las Vegas (Pac10 #4): Oregon State
Emerald (Pac10 #5): Arizona State
Poinsettia  (Pac10 #6): Stanford

Now? Florida and Texas still look good, but Ohio State is in the Rose Bowl and Oregon is hanging on by a thread. Alabama is still solid, and headed either to the Sugar Bowl or the BCS championship, but Cincinnati looks vulnerable. Georgia Tech still looks good, as does TCU, but Penn State and USC do not look BCS worthy, even though both could end up in the top 14.

I'm now more interested in Pac-10 bowl arrangements than anything. Here are the Pac-10 standings, with games remaining:

Oregon (11) @ Arizona, Oregon State	6-1	8-2
Stanford (14) Cal	6-2	7-3
Oregon State (20) @ WSU, @ Oregon	5-2	7-3
Arizona  Oregon, @ ASU, @ USC	4-2	6-3
USC (21) UCLA, Arizona	4-3	7-3
California @ Stanford, @ Washington	4-3	7-3
UCLA ASU, @ USC	2-5	5-5
Arizona State @ UCLA, Arizona	2-5	4-6
Washington WSU, Cal	2-5	3-7
Washington State Oregon State, @ Washington	0-7	1-9

There isn't a team in the Pac-10 that USC can't at least tie at 6-3, but is it even mathematically possible for USC to go to the Rose Bowl? Leave it to Brendan Loy to find a scenario:

"[T]here would have to be a 6 way tie for the conference lead (with 6-3 records) among Oregon, Arizona, Stanford, Cal, Oregon State and USC. Under that scenario the first tie-breaker is the record against those teams and USC, Oregon State and Arizona would have the best records at 3-2 against those teams. Then USC would get the nod because it would have beaten both Oregon State and Arizona. So what is the likelihood of such a tie? Oregon would have to lose to Oregon State and Arizona. Arizona would have to lose to USC but beat Oregon and Arizona State. Stanford would have to lose to Cal. Cal would have to beat Stanford and Washington. USC would have to beat UCLA and Arizona. Oregon State would have to beat Oregon, but lose to Washington State"

That's not happening. Not a chance. It's so remote, it's not even fun to think about. Here's what's most likely: Next week, Oregon beats Arizona, UCLA beats ASU, Oregon State beats Wazzu, Stanford beats Cal. On November 28, Washington beats Wazzu, Arizona beats Arizona State, USC beats UCLA (Stanford also host Notre Dame). On December 5, Oregon beats Oregon State, USC beats Arizona, Cal beats Washington

That would leave the standings looking like this:

1. Oregon 8-1 (Rose Bowl)
2. Stanford 7-2 (Holiday Bowl)
3. USC 6-3 (Sun Bowl)
4. Oregon State 6-3 (Vegas Bowl)
5. Cal 5-4 (Poinsettia Bowl)
6. Arizona 5-4 (Emerald Bowl)
7. UCLA 3-6 (bowl eligible)*
8. Washington 3-6 (not bowl eligible)
9. Arizona State 2-7 (not bowl eligible)
10. Washington State 0-9 (not bowl eligible)

Final standings that looked like this would make the entire season make sense. I'm hoping for a little luck and a higher finish for the Trojans, though. If Cal upsets Stanford, USC could still finish tied for second with the Cardinal. The Holiday Bowl does not have to take the #2 team, much less the team with a tiebreaker for the #2 spot, and perhaps, for TV ratings, the Holiday Bowl would be interested in a USC/Oklahoma matchup, but I think the Sun Bowl is a more likely destination. Arizona, who I think will end up in the Emerald Bowl, is the only team other than Oregon to control its own Rose Bowl destiny.

* I've heard that the Pac-10 has seven bowl arrangements, and I've read various places that the Pac-10 #7 might go to the Hawaii Bowl or the Armed Forces Bowl, but ESPN says otherwise. If not, a 6-6 Pac-10 #7 could get into some other bowl as an at-large team to fill a spot left open by a conference that didn't have enough bowl-eligible teams to fill all of its bowls, but only if no at-large teams with winning records are available.