Mitch Mustain's favorite Spice Girl is Sporty Spice, because she hails from Widnes, England, originally a marshy area that reminds him of his native Arkansas. She also happens to be my favorite Spice Girl because she wears a Liverpool jersey.

The two freshmen with the best chance to start are defensive end Everson Griffen and tailback Joe McKnight. McKnight probably would start later than Griffen simply because of the tailback logjam.

I hear Dallas Sartz wishes Natalie Nelson and Ryan Kalil well and is not upset or jealous about the circumstances. He prefers being single. I'm not sure he's going to attend the wedding because the wedding is quite a ways off.

Carmen Trutanich continues to represent USC players because he is a big USC fan and has a soft spot in his heart for the Trojans. He doesn't hold it against Pete Carroll but instead has a conflict with Michael Jackson, the vice president of student affairs, not the singer, although they often seem to make statements that are equally bizarre.
His daughter goes to college in the Bay Area and currently is not planning to transfer.

John David Booty is not fat and out of shape. He's never been chiseled and is not as big physically as Mark Sanchez, and maybe he's enjoyed some beer this summer, but I wouldn't worry about his physical condition for the fall.

Mustain looks lean, which isn't a bad thing. He just didn't look physically imposing, and remember, I said that was an observation made by some high-profile observers.

Mark Sanchez's speed is not related to his size. He's never going to be a swift quarterback. But then neither was Matt Leinart and he did OK. At least before he got ManBoobs.

The thin Aaron Corp is working out on campus but will need at least a year to get bigger.

Who has better athletic dept. sources, Petros or Wolfie? If you want to know who's eating rack of lamb in San Pedro on Saturday night, Petros. If you want to know if Mitch Mustain suffered a hangnail, me.
You said that Petros said only football players are qualified to be football coaches. You mention Charlie Weis. Even Pete Carroll would acknowledge his skills as a coach, no matter how abrasive his personality. Ask Tom Brady if Weis can coach. Or Bill Belichick.
I'm not really sure why this is worthy of discussion, except that someone thought it was a witty one-liner for a TV or radio broadcast.
As for Petros’ (or is it Petro) legacy, if media people weren't pushed by former asst. SID John Tamanaha to interview him when he was just another player on a bad team at USC, he'd be the most well-read waiter in San Pedro, Calif.

Michael Coleman has not transferred to another college yet. I'll address Josh Tatum's transfer shortly.

Martin Coleman and Damian Williams will not play this season because of shoulder injuries. Everyone who had minor injuries should be ready for camp.

I addressed silent commits in last week's Open Forum.

I would say Pete Carroll's still having fun coaching at USC and I also believe he feels more challenged right now than in the past 2-3 years, so that is making things more intriguing for him. I also believe he evaluates his feelings after every season, so I don't make pronouncements about how long he will remain as coach. My relationship with Carroll is excellent and I speak to him very often. Sorry to those of you (Internet geeks) who hate to hear that.

My all-time team? So many positions. I'd say Chris Claiborne, Mike Williams, Reggie Bush are definitely three players I covered that belong on it. I also wonder how different Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart's careers would be if they switched offensive lines for their USC careers.

USC's basketball lineup will change but I'd say O.J. Mayo, Dwight Lewis, Taj Gibson, the raw Davon Jefferson and Daniel Hackett would be one look. But something tells me the litte-discussed Mamado Diarra and sometimes maligned RouSean Cromwell will get their chances.
If USC gets to the Sweet 16 again, I'd say it's an extremely successful season. But who knows what the bracket will look like and who USC plays.

The Mitch Mustain jersey saga involved someone within the program screwing up and assigning No. 13 without checking with Pete Carroll.

Chauncey Washington returned because he was not ready to turn pro and he can also get his degree in the process. He's considered turning pro the past two years but knew it was not wise to do so. Every player wants to turn pro early and most at USC do if they have any chance of getting drafted.

I don't really care about how many five-star recruits USC signs. Most of those rankings are a joke anyways except for the biggest superstars. Remember the celebrations when Whitney Lewis signed with USC. Or wide receiver Stan Guyness in the mid-1990's. They were considered as good as anyone in the country. Walker Lee Ashley was the top player in Minnesota as a senior.
Where was Lofa Tatupu ranked? Troy Polamalu? Kenechi Udeze? Scott Ware?
I recently talked to an assistant coach at a well-known school and he said good recruiting involves believing in your ability to develop players, which makes you less apprehensive about getting early commitments.
Jordan Cameron could be a starter one day, especially now that he will play next season at Ventura College.

To followup on the next question, Pete Carroll is taking more three-stars because all college coaches are forced to take players too early, so they are making calculated choices. For example, Crespi tight end Joseph Fauria committed to Notre Dame but neither USC nor UCLA thought as much of him. Tough choices are being made because kids commit earlier and earlier.

I don't think Mustain will know the entire offense by spring, but he'll know enough to compete for the starting job. If he's on the scout team, that will limit his mastering of the offense. I’m quite confident he will have mastered the demi-plie in his ballet class, however.

Emmanuel Moody could be the X factor on the team. He was explosive early than slumped. If he's stronger and more experienced, he might be able to sustain his explosiveness longer. But Joe McKnight might be his biggest rival.

Mitch Mustain should be the scout team quarterback but others (Aaron Corp) will no doubt try that position out too. It's too early to predict who is on the scout team, but I want to see safety Marshall Jones, who was highly regarded and highly anticipated a year ago before Taylor Mays became an All-American.

On to the next Mitch Mustain question. His strengths are that he's experienced a lot of adversity/scrutiny in one year and will not be fazed by being at USC. Of course, he also fled that situation, so maybe it's a weakness too.
He's a quiet kid, and my spies tell me he doesn't act like a big man on campus, so that's a good quality to have to gain the respect of his teammates.

The West Coast offense is one of the most incorrectly applied terms ever. It originally referred to Don Coryell’s offenses with the San Diego Chargers before being mistakenly applied to Bill Walsh’s San Francisco 49ers offense.
But I digress. There are too many versions of the West Coast offense and the only real one was used by 49ers assistant Bobb McKittrick in the 1980’s. He taught the complex blocking schemes for the offense while all of you watched Joe Montana drop back to pass.
But for USC fanatics, Norm Chow ran a relatively simple offense and Paul Hackett featured one of the largest playbooks in football, but they both ran the West Coast offense. The one constant is that it seems to take a year at least to get it running smoothly at the college level.
Lane Kiffin took Chow’s offense but preferred more deep passes and less runs on second down. Hue Jackson didn’t really call plays at USC, Hackett did. Mike Riley, uh, who cares, all I remember is he beat USC last season. Riley runs a more conventional scheme and often tries to tailor things to his talent. He is known as a pass-happy coach but featured some of the best backs in recent Pac-10 memory (Ken Simonton, Stephen Davis).

I don’t know yet which freshman has the fastest 40 time.

The NFL Europe players (Tom Malone, Justin Wyatt, John Walker) are going to try to make NFL teams this summer. If that doesn’t work, they might try Canada.

Jeff Byers is currently healthy and expected to qualify for a sixth year of eligibility, if he wants it. He will probably play guard instead of center, unless there are injuries at center.

I don’t think Everson Griffen will start the season opener. Sometime around Game 4 seems more realistic. But Kyle Moore will have a lot to say about it.

LenDale White was an amazing combination of speed and power, when properly motivated. If he stayed, USC should have breezed to the national championship game. Remember USC lost to Oregon State with fumbles by tailbacks and to UCLA because it could not convert short-yardage situations. White solved those problems. No one on the current team compares to White. Chauncey Washington is similar in size but has yet to play at White’s level.

Lawrence Miles has been injured and battled academic problems since arriving at USC. This could be his make-or-break year. Averill Spicer might contribute this year at NG and then maybe Alex Parsons. Among freshman, DaJohn Harris might but is also a redshirt candidate.

USC needs defensive linemen, linebackers and a fullback in its 2008 recruiting class.

Damian Williams should be ready for spring but who knows right now.

Mitch Mustain might not start in two years, so I can’t say he will turn pro early.

Batted down passes will continue to be an issue for Booty, which is why the shotgun is being used this season.

Norm Chow was a very relaxed and laid-back coach, but also liked to follow his routine without too much interference. He never got too excited and approached things calmly and maturely. He was extremely likable in one-on-one situations as a reporter. In group situations, he became more uptight and disliked speaking to groups.
For future reference, I prefer not to speak to groups or individuals. Or to answer questions.
Those who worked with Chow would admit he had some personality flaws but was always professional and often worked more hours than anyone else on the staff.
His problems getting a head job revolved around poor interviews, where he doesn’t project a lot of enthusiasm. Also, group speaking and working the community are often required and something Carroll excels at. And recruiting also involves salesmanship. So another concern. And I would bet my last dollar that Chow’s age worked against him in job interviews too.

There was a follow-up question to last week’s Chow-Carroll answer, asking if Chow resented not being a head coach or Carroll made his life hell. Chow was angry over the way Stanford treated him during the interview process, mainly because the AD never called him to say he did not get the job. He was prideful and some critics might say a little paranoid.
However, the truth is that he was losing his job title (offensive coordinator) and also not expected to call plays if he remained at USC. So maybe you’d be a little paranoid too. Again, this was about two talented coaches who drifted apart and eventually the head coach has more power and wins those battles.
Remember, Pete Carroll encourages assistants to interview for jobs. He didn’t mind when Steve Sarkisian and Lane Kiffin were interviewing (together!) for the Raiders.

Among recruits, USC would love to have cornerback Patrick Johnson, who is officially committed to Miami at the moment. They also wouldn’t mind athlete Will Hill and wide receiver Deion Walker in a perfect world.

Regarding Mustain (again and again and again), he will spend time on the scout team. Remember Justin Fargas was a scout team star when he redshirted. But Mustain will get some reps with the regular squad so I wouldn’t worry about it. Oh wait, it’s Mustain. So worry. Be very worried.

After watching Joe McKnight, I’m impressed enough to say his receiving skills are way above average for a tailback. Among other receivers, an unexpected impression was that Brandon Carswell seemed better than expected.

I believe USC could lose two games and still possibly qualify for the championship. But when they lose them is the key. More likely, one loss is the maximum.

Someone asked about all the safeties. First, Garrett Green is back at QB. Second, there’s a couple that I really don’t consider serious contenders. Third, Josh Pinkard might play CB. So that’s why USC already has commitments from several safeties. Besides, it’s one of the most important positions to recruit. Taylor Mays should be gone after his junior year.
But I admit I like the idea of making a T-shirt that says, ``10 safeties on scholarship but no punter!’’

Marc Tyler is enrolled in summer school and working out. He said he is fully recovered. We shall see in about one month.
Broderick Green is also here. He is physically imposing but he will need to mature if he is to play regularly.

We did ban a poster a few weeks back who made some tasteless comments. But we will monitor again. It’s a thankless task however. Remember, if I’m monitoring comments, how am I supposed to follow Mitch Mustain around all day?

I will answer any questions, as long as they are tasteful. If you prefer, you can always email me at scott.wolf@dailynews.com, which I check about as often as Pete Carroll throws to the fullback.

Well, folks, another week of questions, it's hard to believe. Wasn't it fun? Let's see what we'll talk about next week. I'm still waiting for a Dale Thompson question.