USC history for sale

-- “Turning of the Tide: How One Game Changed the South,� by Don Yaeger with Sam Cunningham and John Papadakis ($24.99, Center Street Publishing, 272 pages).
Not to get ahead of ourselves, but at least three groups of people are trying to get this 1970 game made into a movie -- this is one of them. The key to anyone wanting to do a script and get it into the right people's hands is the contribution of Sam Cunningham, and that's where this book has the edge. Warner Brothers have also bought the movie rights to this book.
This is a game that has always intrigued us, especially since it had such wide-spread importance, even today. To hear it told by an accomplished author by the two key players in that contest has us spellbound from the first page.
The interest especially is in Chapter 10, "Postgame Myths," where Yaeger tackles the story about how Alabama coach Bear Bryant took Cunningham into his locker room after USC's 42-21 victory and told his team: "This is what a football player looks like." Much of the story appears unfounded, Yaeger writes, mostly because no one can verify it. Cunningham himself says: "I was so overwhelmed that night just because I got to play. ... There's alot I don't remember about some of those early days. I've been tackled more than once since then. It was 35 years ago, I remember. But I really think I would remember if it happened." Cunningham gained 135 yards on 12 carries and scored two touchdowns -- not 230 yards and three TDs as the Washington Post wrote in a 1978 story on the game. Chapter 11 on "The Media" is also important to note how those instant historians saw this at the time. "Los Angeles' papers reported and commented on the game as if it were about race, and race alone," Yaeger writes. "Alabama's papers saw the contest being about football, and football alone." Either way, it was important enough to warrent an entire book, even if some thought it wasn't important enough to include in some of the top games in USC history (see below).
Our ranking: A Sam Bam dive-into-the-end-zone touchdown.

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-- “Fight On: The Colorful Story of USC Football� by Steve Bisheff and Loel Schrader ($24.95, Cumberland House Publishing, 384 pages)
Bisheff, of the Orange County Register, and Schrader, retired from the Long Beach Press-Telegram, have about 80 years experience between them covering USC, and it shows in this collection of chapters, lists and reprinted stories that could go to another 380-plus pages.
In one chapter, they rank the top 10 games in USC's history (another author tries the same thing later by expanding that into a book, but we'll get to that), and decide it's the Trojans' 21-20 win over UCLA in 1967, famous for O.J. Simpson's electrifying run. They also create a list of the top 50 players in the post-1950 era -- meaning, both Bisheff and Schrader saw them play. You may be stunned that they decided on Matt Leinart as No. 1 player, ahead of Simpson, Marcus Allen, Ronnie Lott and Bush. The fact that three other Heisman winners couldn't crack their top 5 (they all made the top 10, but that's not a given) says alot for the point they've made here, and their argument for Leinart holds plenty of juice.
John Robinson, Jaguar Jon Arnett and Marcus Allen all endorse the book, that includes indepth profiles on all the Heisman winners, stories rarely told about some rivalries between coaches and schools, and a trip back to the beginning when the program started.
The rich writing and indepth knowledge these two authors have in having recorded this history comes through.
Our ranking: A Haden-to-McKay touchdown.

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-- "The Trojan Ten: The Ten Thrilling Victories that Changed the Course of USC History" by Barry LeBrock ($22.95, New American Library publishing, 257 pages).
It was Petros Papadakis who mentioned on his 1540-AM radio show the other day that while flipping through a couple of chapters in this one, errors kept jumping out at him -- enough to where he just had to stop reading.
LeBrock, the former Fox Sports Net West reporter currently working on the cable network’s nightly update show, is ultimately responsible for the misinformation. But even these, an editor who knows his stuff could have caught it.
LeBrock first notes that after USC’s historic victory over Notre Dame in 1931 in South Bend, Ind., the Trojan band “blasted out a joyous rendition of ‘Conquest'� as the players rode in a ticker-tape parade to City Hall. Problem is, the song wasn’t written until the late 1940s and wasn’t bequeathed to USC by its composer in 1950.
Later, when describing the 2001 USC-UCLA game, LeBrock writes that Troy Polamalu was named one of the three captains because it was his final game at USC. Polamalu actually played one more season and then appeared in 2003 Orange Bowl.
Then there's the recap of the 2005 Orange Bowl, the national title game against Oklahoma. LeBrock notes that ABC analyst Bob Griese, "who was working the game with announcer Keith Jackson," commented that ... Brad Nessler was the play-by-play guy on that game, if it really is that important to get the facts straight.
Trojan diehards on the lookout for these kinds of rehashed history books with very little in the way of photograph inserts really need to consider the source.
While LeBrock did cover the team on a somewhat regular basis between 2000 and 2005 and was probably able to attend a couple dozen games in person, the highlight during that time was the 2005 Orange Bowl when he was denied media entrance. Seems the name on his drivers’ license, Barry Hochberg, didn’t match up to the stage name on the credential, which is how FSN submitted the request.
Oh, as for the top 10 games he picked: Only five are on the list that Bisheff and Schrader included in their Top 10 (see above). LeBrock doesn't include the 2005 USC-Notre Dame game at South Bend, or the Trojans' loss to Texas in the 2006 Rose Bowl -- perhaps because his deadline had passed? Or maybe they haven't "changed the course of history" as his title states. If that's the case, why wasn't the 1970 USC-Alabama game included?
Our rating: A Ryan Killeen field goal.

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-- “Game Day: Southern California Football: The Greatest Games, Players, Coaches and Teams in the Glorious Tradition of Trojan Football� by Athlon writers, ($24.95, Triumph Books, 146 pages forward by Manfred Moore)
Such a long, impressive title and glossy cover for something that should include crayons along with it. Books don't get more basic than this without a disclaimer that says "For Children 3 and Older." But it's not meant to be this way, is it? Lots of pictures to look at, simple typeface to read. And not alot of pages to wade through.
Manfred Moore's probably a nice guy, but from his foward (he didn't compile this collection of nonsense) comes this: ""We Are SC" "Once a Trojan, Always a Trojan" "Join the Trojan Family" These are slogans that you hear…slogans that you see…slogans that you can even feel. Because these are slogans that have been, are, and will be repeated for years to come, having been established by a proven winning spirit. Wherever there is a Trojan fan and a need for support, these slogans ring true. "
That's about as much depth as you get.
The truth is, this is just one in a series of "Game Day" books that also includes Texas, Georgia, Notre Dame, Tennessee, Alabama, Michigan, Nebraska and Ohio State. Take it for what it's worth.
Our rating: A photo-op on Traveler's back.

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--"The USC Trojans: College Football's All-Time Greatest Dynasty" by Steven Travers ($27.95, Taylor Trade Publishing, 240 pages).
On the book jacket is a quote from Pete Carroll: "Steven Travers is the next great USC historian in the tradition of Jim Murray, John Hall and Mal Florence." We'll have what Pete's been smoking.
We've finally got a chance to not fully read, but at least get through this in a hunt-and-peck way, and we must say: Stevie probably got an A-plus for this research project at one of our finer JCs, because that's how it reads. Did he actually interview anyone? Every quote seems to be a reference to some other reference. The bibliography alone is four and a half pages (including one of my media columns on the 2004 national championships game which couldn't have provided him with any sort of information other than my crappy opinion about the TV coverage). We'll take his last paragraph as a summation of what went into this thesis: "The battle for collegiate foootball supremacy between Southern California, Notre Dame, Alabama, Oklahoma, Miami, Texas and the other fabulous traditions will continue to thrill the fans and loyal alumni supporters throughout the twenty-first century. May God bless America, and may the Trojans continue ... to 'Fight On!'" Pete Arbogast couldn't have written that one better on his blog. Since we now have no intention of finishing reading, we'll pass on the book synopsis posted on Amazon.com, which says that its Travers' contention that since Carroll took over the program, it has passed Notre Dame as "the greatest ever collegiate tradition." They both have 11 national titles and seven Heisman winners. They have the best bowl record, the most Rose Bowl victories, the most All-Americans, the most pro players, the most first-round draft picks, the most No. 1 draft picks, the most Pro Bowlers, the most Super Bowlers, and the most Hall of Famers. Hmmm. USC fans will surely use this as ammunition in an argument against an Irish fan, but other than hitting them over the head with it, there's not a lot of firepower behind that chest thumping.
Honestly, we're not all that impressed with the author's credentials, nor have we ever. It's only surprising that he's managed to convince someone to get this, and other manuscripts, actually published in very round-about ways. If you believe his bio, then maybe his argument makes a little more sense to you.

Our rating: A wild pitch from Reggie Bush to a walk-in freshman near the goal line.

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Postscript:
Two former USC football players recently published their autobiographies, according to USC sports information director Tim Tessalone:
-- �Autobiography Of A California Pioneer� (Beech River Books), by 1947-48 letterman Jack Kirby. Kirby led the Trojans in scoring in their 1947 Rose Bowl campaign and then played with the Green Bay Packers in 1949. After his playing days, he became a real estate developer (including communities such as Tahoe Donner), golf club manufacturer and inventor (including fairway distance markers for golf courses).
-- “106 Yards� (C&C Publishing), by 1950-51-52 letterman Al “Hoagy� Carmichael. USC’s rushing leader in 1950, he caught the game-winning touchdown passes against UCLA in 1952 and Wisconsin in the 1953 Rose Bowl. He was the seventh pick of the 1953 NFL draft, playing for the Packers (1953-58) and Denver Broncos (1960-61). He was one of pro football’s top returners during his time, setting an NFL record with a 106-yard kickoff return in 1956 and scoring the first touchdown in the newly-formed AFL in 1960. He also appeared in Hollywood movies and was a successful businessman.

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Joe Jares, the former Sports Illustrated writer, Daily News columnist and sports editor and noted USC historian, wrote in "USC Report" that these are must-haves for anyone building a Trojan library (most can be found on used-book sites on the Internet):

-- "Ten Top Trojan Football Thrillers'' by Braven Dyer with Dick Nash (Houlgate House, 1949).
-- "McKay, A Coach's Story'' by John McKay with Jim Perry (Atheneum, 1974).
-- "The Trojans, A Story of Southern California Football'' by Ken Rappoport (Strode, 1974; updated 1981).
-- "Notre Dame vs. USC, A Fifty Year History'' by Cameron Applegate (Fiske/Milne, 1977).
-- "The Trojan Heritage, A Pictorial History of USC Football'' by Mal Florence (JCP Corp., 1980).
-- "Conquest: A Cavalcade of USC Football'' by John Robinson and Joe Jares (Neff, 1981).
-- "60 Years of USC-UCLA Football'' by Steve Springer and Michael Arkush (Longmeadow Press, 1981).
-- "A Century of Troy, 1888-1988, A Salute to USC Football'' by various writers (Four Corners Press, 1988). Sportscaster Tom Kelly, and the late sportswriters Braven Dyer, Florence and Allan Malamud among the contributors.
-- "The Whole Ten Yards'' by Frank Gifford and Harry Waters (Random House, 1993).