10th Loss to the Irish Seems to Be Last Straw for USC Football Fans

More than in any other area of the game, Larry Smith’s contributions to the deterioration of the USC football program appear to be his inability to win the recruiting wars in the Los Angeles area and Southern California in general. Watch televised games involving Washington, Stanford, California and Arizona and you will be amazed at how many of their players are from Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties. With the history and glamour that are part of USC’s program, why would talent from these communities want to play anywhere else?

The most notable example is Russell White’s tale of how he wanted to play in his uncle’s shoes at USC, but the coaching staff botched the recruiting job. What would the offense have been like with White at tailback for four years?

DAVID BARBER

Escondido