USC's loss is all Pete's fault: 'I was cocky'
That's Arbogast, not Carroll. Taking the blame for USC's loss last week at Oregon State.
Stupid new Hawaiian shirt. Ate at the wrong place ... Not on his A-game...
You know, all the usual stuff a self-absorbed broadcaster thinks that, because he does it, it must have a karmatic affect on the outcome of every game he works.
Maybe the emotional investment was just too much last week for him. Sad.
But, having a few days to let it sink in, consider really what happened, we decided to excerpt the Trojans' football and basketball play-by-play man's assessment of Oregon State 27, USC 21 last Thursday at Corvallis, Ore., thanks to his blog posting on WeAreSC.com (which, as we've said, is now only accessable through a $9.95 monthly subscription fee, buried in the "Publisher's Forum" link, rather than it was free and easy to get before ... but still worth the price of submission):
(and, yes, he's written this in all caps, complete with typos):
IT'S ALWAYS A SHOCK. ALWAYS. I NEVER GO IN EXPECTING A USC FOOTBALL TEAM TO LOSE. I WORRY ABOUT IT SOMETIMES. I WORRY ABOUT IT A LOT TO BE HONEST. BUT I NEVER GO TO THE GAME THINKING LIKE WASHINGTON STATE FANS AND BROADCASTERS MUST THINK "WE'RE GONNA GET CLOCKED TODAY".
AND AS IT UNFOLDS, AND YOU KNOW IT'S UNFOLDING IF YOU'VE SEEN ENOUGH SPORTING EVENTS TO UNDERSTAND THE DYNAMICS OF AN UPSET WHEN THEY ARE PRESENTED TO YOU, YOU WATCH THE DANCE HELPLESS TO STOP IT.
LIKE YOU, I TRIED EVERYTHING TO STOP IT, BUT THE TRUTH HURTS ...
AND I FELT LIKE THE TEAM PLAYED, AS IS SO OFTEN THE CASE. I DID MY PREPARATION WORK BY ROTE. NOT EXACTLY "PHONING IT IN" BUT MAYBE JUST GOING THROUGH THE MOTIONS A BIT. I WAS COCKY. CONFIDENT IN MY ABILITIES.
AND REAL LIFE KNOCKED THE COCKINESS RIGHT OUT OF ALL OF US.
WHAT DID I DO WRONG--THE SILLY SIDE: I ATE IN THE HOTEL AGAIN. WHEN I GO OUT WITH THE ADMIN PARTY, IN OREGON, WE WIN. THIS TIME I HAD ROOM SERVICE, AS I WAS FEELING CRUMMY AFTER HAVING THE DOCTOR ROOT AROUND IN MY NOSE AGAIN LAST WEEK. IT WAS STILL PAINFUL AND I DIDN'T FEEL LIKE EXPENDING ENERGY THAT WAY.
NEXT YEAR--ELECTRIC COMPNAY HERE I COME!
THE HAWAIIAN SHIRT I WORE WAS A NEW ONE. I HAVE TO KEEP REMINDING MYSELF NO MATTER THE GOOD INTENTIONS OF THE GREAT FANS WHO LOVINGLY AND PLAYFULLY GTIVE ME HAWAIIN SHIRTS THAT THEY AIN'T NO GOOD UNLESS THEY ARE BOUGHT FOR A YARD SALE OR SECOND HAND SHOP, OR ARE WELL WORN BY THEMSELVES. EXTRA LARGE ONLY OF COURSE, CHEAPER AND MORE GARISH THE BETTER.
I WORE A NEW ONE, STORE BOUGHT AND FOOFY FROM THE GREAT BAKER FAMILY COLLECTION. BUT THE NEW ONES DON'T WORK.
WHEN THE GAME ENDED I TOSSED IT OUT THE PRESS BOX WINDOW INTO THE EMPTY STANDS BELOW. AAAARGH. OH YEAH, AND APPARENTLY I CAN'T BUY THE USED AND ABUSED SHIRTS, THEY HAVE TO BE GIVEN TO ME BY SOMEONE. AND SOMEONE OTHER THAN MY FAMILY. ...
AND I CAME OUT ANGRY ON FRIDAY, READY TO GO FOR THE NEXT GAME, READY TO REDOUBLE THE EFFORT AND REALLY GET AT IT. NO MORE OF THE OLD WAY, BRING 'EM ON!
In related news:
UCLA play-by-play man Chris Roberts (not his real name) did not take blame or credit for the Bruins' loss to Fresno State on Saturday, did not blog about it, and, if you were to ask him, might have been disappointed by the outcome but didn't lose any sleep over it. And he won't get cited for littering by throwing a shirt out the press box window.
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CLASSIC! ArBLOW is such a loser.