Most Initial Reaction Is to USC, BCS and UCLA

Being a staunch UCLA follower and supporter, even I had to feel bad about what the New York Times and its computer did to USC. Demoting the Trojans from third to fifth, enabling Ohio State to hopscotch to second in the latest BCS standings, can mean only one thing:

Still a little miffed about us taking the Dodgers away from you guys in ‘58, huh?

Mark J. Featherstone

Windsor Hills

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Bill Plaschke’s Nov. 18 diatribe about USC’s being more deserving of playing for the national championship over Ohio State boggles the mind. Both teams have one loss, and Ohio State has beaten five teams with winning records, while the Trojans have beaten only three. Just because USC can beat Arizona, 45-0, a team Chris Dufresne calls “the Rutgers of the West,” does not mean the Trojans deserve to go the Sugar Bowl.

Jack Wolf

Westwood

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Plaschke insinuates the absurd notion that USC would have whipped Ohio State by two touchdowns in last year’s Fiesta Bowl (had they earned the right to play). Too bad USC didn’t save those two “what-if” touchdowns for their games last year against Kansas State and Washington State.

Joe Keating

Sierra Madre

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Ohio State plays its first five games at home against the likes of San Diego State, North Carolina State and Bowling Green, then the Buckeyes lose their first road game to Wisconsin. Back at home, they beat a poor Iowa team, then squeak by a horrible Penn State team by one point. All told, they play eight of their first 11 games at home. This is a tough schedule?

Michigan will take the BCS off the hook and whip Ohio State, but if it doesn’t, the losers at the New York Times may want to stay up a few more hours and watch the Trojans and realize that they would destroy Ohio State.

Geno Apicella

Burbank

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Clearly, Oklahoma is helmet and shoulder pads above all the other college football teams. So let’s give the Sooners a postseason bye and send a nice championship trophy to Norman. Then USC and Ohio State can meet in the Sugar Bowl to answer the critical question: Who’s No. 2? Even better, the game could be moved to the Rose Bowl.

What a concept: The best of the Pac-10 versus the best of the Big Ten in Pasadena on New Year’s Day.

Al Fels

Laguna Hills

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Dear Dan Guerrero,

I represent 10 UCLA season-ticket holders. We would like to be refunded half our money, seeing as how you only fielded half a team (defense).

Jerry Brockett

Glendora

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Is there, by any chance, an East Coast offense?

Wes Wellman

Santa Monica

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Bob Toledo’s last team with Drew Olson and Matt Moore as freshmen scored points and won eight games. Natural maturation dictates a hugely improved offense. What has transpired is almost unthinkable. Karl Dorrell and his staff have destroyed what was a very promising young team. The future looks like Coach Dorrell’s face -- blank.

Vito Scattaglia

Palmdale

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Mike Penner, in his Nov. 15 column, takes a strange slap at Carson Palmer’s Heisman Trophy credentials. He questions whether it was Palmer or “the system” because Matt Leinart is also posting some pretty impressive numbers.

By that faulty analysis, we must question 49er quarterbacks Joe Montana, Steve Young and Jeff Garcia, as well as the Dallas Cowboys’ Roger Staubach, Danny White and Troy Aikman. Was it their talent or was it the systems that Bill Walsh and Tom Landry put in place?

Gene Cofsky

Tarzana

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So UCLA has a quarterback controversy? What’s the controversy? Who can run the offense into the ground faster, Olson or Moore?

Why not give John Sciarra Jr. a sniff, Karl Dorrell? He couldn’t be any worse than the two slugs you have been enamored of all year.

Thomas Rollins

Oakland

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It is crystal clear now that the scouting team of John David Booty made a horrible mistake. Or is it possible that Booty was dropped off at the wrong campus?

Booty would have started today’s game against the No. 2 team in the country. And, chances are, he would be UCLA’s starting quarterback until he decided to play on Sundays.

Sam Castelo

Irvine

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It might be sacrilege for a Bruin fan to wish for good things for USC, but I hope USC does end up in the Sugar Bowl against Oklahoma. Because once the Sooners crush them, that will shut up some of the Trojan fans who thought they could actually win.

Brian Musgrove

Moorpark