USC Report: California Coach Sonny Dykes calls the Golden Bears’ schedule a ‘disaster’

California Coach Sonny Dykes was already exhausted by the time he got on a teleconference with reporters Tuesday morning. His team had grinded through a grueling two-overtime game against Oregon last Friday. He didn’t have a good night’s sleep to look forward to before Thursday night’s game against USC either.

So when asked whether California’s short week of preparation, compared with USC coming off a bye week, would give the Trojans an unfair advantage, he was blunt.

“The schedule has just been a disaster,” Dykes said. “It’s been a mess. It’s been incredibly hard on our kids from an academic standpoint.”

Dykes has also called the scheduling “a travesty” and opined that “it’s absolutely nuts that we have to go to USC in six days to play a team that’s had [11] days off.”

USC came into Thursday’s game well rested. It hasn’t played since Oct. 15, a period of time that USC Coach Clay Helton said allowed the team to rest battered bodies and construct a robust game plan.

Before Thursday’s game, Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott said television deals mean at least one conference team plays consecutive weekday games in most seasons. Usually, though, that team’s opponent isn’t coming off its bye.

The conference’s schools agree on a set of parameters for when and how games must be scheduled, Scott said, and “we haven’t done anything in this case that’s not within an agreed parameter with all of our schools.”

Television obligations leave “not a lot of flexibility,” Scott said.

Helton empathized but said the quick turnaround is just part of the deal in modern college football.

“TV runs the monster,” Helton said. “Sometimes you’re going to get an advantage. Sometimes it’s going to hurt you.”

USC faced a similarly taxing week before its fourth game, against Utah. The Trojans played a late Saturday game against Stanford before playing the Utes. Both of those games were on the road — while California played last Friday’s game at home — but Utah wasn’t coming off a bye week.

California’s discomfort was compounded by its academic schedule. The Golden Bears played two consecutive weeknight games at a time when many players are taking midterms.

Conference members can raise issues with such academic scheduling conflicts, but it “hasn’t come up in any of our discussions,” Scott said.

Goff sighting

Rams quarterback Jared Goff, who played at California last season, was in attendance Thursday, wearing a California pullover.

During the game, he assumed his usual position on the Coliseum sidelines.

Goff’s last regular-season game at the Coliseum was two season ago, with the Golden Bears. He completed 29 of 46 passes for 279 yards and three touchdowns in a 38-30 loss to USC.

In his most recent Coliseum appearance for the Rams, in an exhibition game, he completed six of 16 passes with one touchdown and one interception.

The dozen endures

Scott said the Pac-12 monitored “closely” the Big 12’s conference expansion aspirations. The Big 12 announced less than two weeks ago that it would not add any new teams for the time being.

The Pac-12, Scott said, “loves being 12,” and wasn’t seriously considering making any countermove had the Big-12 expanded.

“It was pretty clear early on that they weren’t going to do anything or add anyone that was going to trigger any action from us,” Scott said.

Icing times three

Before USC lined up to attempt a 33-yard field goal at the end of the first half, Dykes called a timeout — the usual tactic to ice the kicker.

When play resumed, USC muffed the snap, but Helton was able to call a timeout before time expired.

When play resumed again, California called timeout again.

Finally, after all the timeouts, Matt Boermeester missed the 42-yard attempt.

Quick hits

A 22-yard kickoff return in the second quarter gave Adoree’ Jackson USC’s all-time record for kick return yardage. … Penalties emerged as a trouble spot again for USC after several clean games. The Trojans accumulated seven penalties for 70 yards in the first half alone. ... Former USC safety Mark Carrier, the 1989 Jim Thorpe Award winner, led team out of the tunnel before the game.

zach.helfand@latimes.com

Follow Zach Helfand on Twitter @zhelfand