Are Trojans Out of Control?

I can sleep soundly tonight knowing that all is well on planet Earth. The sun came up this morning in the East, the Earth is spinning on its axis and USC gets a free pass from the NCAA.

So Dwayne Jarrett is going to repay $5,352, during his collegiate eligibility, for the slick housing deal afforded him by Santa Claus (a.k.a. Daddy Leinart). Might as well be $5,352,000. It’s insulting to think that Jarrett can come up with that kind of cash before he turns pro (or retains a snake oil salesman ... er, agent).

BILL KAHL

Santa Clarita

*

Bill Plaschke [Aug. 6] made a nice attempt to sugarcoat the long string of misdeeds by USC football players and struck the right note of indignation with the comparisons to renegade programs of the past. Any program that makes headlines for players appearing in the criminal blotter, testing positive for steroids, experiencing troubles maintaining academic eligibility and (allegedly) taking money from agents as USC has recently, sounds to me like a renegade program in the dubious tradition of Miami, Florida State and Nebraska.

Despite Pete Carroll’s moralizing, it would appear that his motto is not “Fight on!” but “Just win, baby!”

ANDREW OSHRIN

Long Beach

*

I appreciate Bill Plaschke’s fuzzy and warm endorsement of Pete Carroll’s mantra, “protect the program.” For USC football to be “a special place indeed,” shouldn’t the mantra be “do the right thing?”

There’s a difference.

JIM ZANT

La Habra

*

So the USC players got a free screening of “Talladega Nights” and Will Ferrell, a USC alum, was present. Are we sure that’s not some kind of NCAA violation? Sounds like an extra benefit to me.

JACK ROSENBERG

Redondo Beach