Trojan Record Seems to Be Total Team Effort

I am a tired Trojan fan.

I’m tired of the dropped balls, holding calls and missed assignments. I’m tired of moral victories. I’m tired of my quarterback fumbling the ball away in the fourth quarter. I’m tired of my coaches passing blame on to the players. I’m tired of not being able to score from the one-yard line. I’m tired of crossing my fingers when I see our kicker stretching on the sidelines. Most of all, though, I’m tired of the bad decisions made by those in charge that have dogged this program for the past decade.

Now, I don’t have a Heisman Trophy to my name, which apparently is the only qualification one needs to be athletic director at USC, but I do know it’s time to call this Pete Carroll experiment a failed one.

Jim Patton

Hermosa Beach

*

Forget the bad decision by the punter. Forget Carson Palmer’s late fumble. If the loss to Notre Dame showed anything of note, it showed again that Palmer cannot throw long.

Receivers who’ve beaten the defense have to come back to balls that die in the air. The other guys make the catch. Palmer’s weakness probably cost USC two touchdowns in that game. He throws bullets for 25 yards. Maybe the Trojans should stick with that.

The record may be depressing, but this team is better coached than any in recent memory.

David Rankin

Torrance

*

Memo to Carson Palmer:

Because Coach Carroll is not smart enough to bench you and you won’t do USC the favor of declaring early for the NFL draft, I would like to inform you of one thing.

When you drop back to pass there is a third option open to you besides your usual two choices of forcing a pass or taking a sack: Throw the ball away!

Tim Jensen

Los Angeles

*

USC’s come-from-ahead loss to Notre Dame was the last straw. Despite numerous coaching and philosophical changes, the Trojans are no better than they were back in 1992 when they brought John Robinson back. USC is still a poorly coached, albeit talented, team without a soul. This is a team that consistently finds ways to beat itself.

Looking down deep, the real problem is Athletic Director Mike Garrett, an incompetent, meddling man whose formidable shadow is everywhere to be seen.

As long as Garrett is in charge, nothing will change for the Trojans. Of course, Mike says that a return to the Trojans’ glory days is possible. But then, dinosaurs felt they’d be around forever too.

Jack Wolf

Westwood

*

This is truly embarrassing. USC’s poor season is a concern for UCLA fans because it lowers the Bruins’ strength-of-schedule rating. If USC continues to lose, and that is a definite possibility, UCLA can kiss the BCS game goodbye.

David Allen Tyau

Pasadena