Zach Smith of Atherton, Calif., agreed to attend USC as a preferred walk-on. Freshman Peter McBride was USC’s long-snapper on punts and kicks until late in the season when he just handled punts.

The Wildcats played like a team that were upset in their previous game, which was bad news for the Trojans.

ESPNU flashed a list of West Coast assistant coaches — Bob Cantu, Rick Croy (St. Mary’s), Ray Giacoletti (Gonzaga), Joe Pasternack (Arizona) — that it said could be good candidates for the USC job.

But doesn’t USC merit a more ambitious plan than looking at assistant coaches? Why not pursue St. Mary’s head coach Randy Bennett instead of Croy?

The defensive end, who may or may not be committed to USC, is visiting Kentucky today according to this report.

Who is up? Who is down? Time for our weekly status check.

Winners

Clancy Pendergast: Asserted power within program by removing secondary coach Marvin Sanders and also gets to hire his own linebackers coach.

J.T. Terrell: Although Kevin O’Neill put him back in starting lineup he’s definitely playing better past two weeks.

Continue reading →

Here’s a look at the seven players that USC announced enrolled for the spring semester, including the last one, defensive lineman Kenny Bigelow.

Continue reading →

USC is currently No. 7 and UCLA No. 9 in the Rivals.com rankings. Scout.com, which rewards having more commitments, has the Bruins No. 6 and USC No. 10.

So here is the question: Which ranking is more important and does the fact USC is restricted mean there is validity to Scout’s formula, which I’ve previously discounted because of its quantity ove quality emphasis. Does quantity matter in the era of NCAA sanctions?

The ramifications of a 7-6 season could continue. Some believe Marvin Sanders’ firing is not expected to be the last move. There is buzz inside Heritage Hall (check that, the University Village food court) that either defensive line coach Ed Orgeron or offensive line coach James Cregg might not be back.

I’ve heard there was a thought of hiring an offensive line “consultant” to help Cregg out next season or that he could switch over to tight ends.

Defensive end Kylie Fitts, defensive tackle Eddie Vanderdoes and defensive end Torrodney Prevot visit Notre Dame this weekend. Prevot is expected to decommit from USC but it looks like defensive end Jason Hatcher might commit again after an in-home visit with Ed Orgeron.

Here’s a Senior Bowl update featuring safety T.J. McDonald.

USC played Arizona State tough before falling in OT, 98-93. Jio Fontan missed a 3-pointer with five seconds left in the extra period and the Trojans down three points.