What is the likelihood of Marc Tyler redshirting?

I noticed Mitch Mustain came up to personally greet you after practice on Friday, what was up with that? Is he appreciative of all the attention this blog is getting him among the internet geeks?

What do you see being the most interesting position battle & how do you see it playing out?

Scott, your humor and insight make this blog a daily must-read, and that is really saying something in today's blah-blah-blah world of sports journalism. Keep up the splendid work, young man. That being said, if you had to give up your day job for a new profession from the list below, which one would it be, and why? 30 seconds - ready, go ...

1) Full-time sports copy desk editor/food-run dude with disgustingly huge lop-over belly
2) Kevin Modesti's favorite Tip Sheet guru at Hollywood Park and/or Santa Anita
3) Guy who stuffs all those Double-A batteries into the Coliseum clock before each USC home game
4) Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's social planner
5) Sports Editor at Downtown L.A. newspaper in charge of making sure readers nod off in the middle of each story
6) The guy who used to be Michael Vick's veterinarian
7) Kobe Bryant's marriage counselor
8) Realtor who will sell Karl Dorrell's house after this season when he "changes" jobs
9) Guy who "picks up" after Traveler
10) Matt Leinart's spiritual advisor

Scott:

Will Mitch Mustain be playing at the August 22nd scrimmage at the Coliseum or will be not be allowed to participate this year under NCAA rules?

Thanks in advance.

Since Aaron Corp has overtaken Michael McDonald on the quarterback depth chart, where does that leave Garrett Green? I was under the impression that Green was above McDonald in the depth chart.

Keep up the good work on this blog, young man. You truly are a credit to USC and the journalism community.

Scott,

In the Long Beach Halloween beatings (the case where a group of black girls attacked three white women), one of the girls who was charged and, subsequently, convicted was offered a track scholarship to attend USC. Do you know the status of that offer of an athletic scholarship to USC? Does it still stand and will she be attending USC this year or in the near future?

Are you aware that Mitch Mustain is the only quarterback on the USC roster who has beaten a top 5 team? He scored a 27-10 win over No. 2 Auburn last year. Not even Booty has ever beaten a top 5 team.

Isn't the real story in Trojan athletics over Memorial Day weekend not the football game against Idaho, but OJ Mayo making his debut in Mazatlan, Mexico? Why is this not getting more press coverage?

SCSPILK...My guess would be at WR. I think there may be @3guys that may challenge VH1. Imho Turner is the only guarantee currently. I'm excited about RoJo, Ausberry and Holland, every bit as much and possibly more than Hazeltine who seemingly had a struggle just learning the playbook and fitting in at big boy football all of last year.

Goliathtrojan

Any concerns about the pass rush considering it was poor last year and reports are that it continues to be weak?

Scott-

Just where do we stand, as of today, on Pedalgate? From what I can gather, these are the facts we know so far:

1) A bicycle believed to have belonged to Mitch Mustain had its pedal mysteriously broken.

2) No culprit was "publicly" identified (hmmm....).

3) The bicycle apparently belonged to Martin Coleman, not Mitch Mustain.

4) You mentioned that you saw a bicycle on a wall at Heritage Hall that was "identical to Mitch Mustain's bike," but it had two perfectly working pedals.

So the questions are, does Mitch Mustain actually have a bicycle? Is it in good working order?

Just what is the missing link to the great mystery of Pedalgate and are you working on figuring it out? Is this the key to "Mitch and Me"? Could the missing link be Sanchez?

Scott, Pedalgate is what will make you this generation's Woodward and Bernstein, so don't waste your time on anything else. We need the missing link to Pedalgate! We need to be able to understand this madness that is the broken bicycle pedal incident.

Will the full title be "Mitch and Me: The Mysteries behind Pedalgate"?

How many games does ole miss win this year? Does Ed Ogeron keep his job? Does Arkansas have a steroid problem?

Scott, which away game do you believe could be the biggest hurdle for the Trojans this year? Do you consider the Notre Dame game this year to be much of a challenge or is it pretty much a down year for the Irish?

I think you've addressed it before but from reading posts lately it seems to be a hot topic again. I was hoping you could settle it before it blows up like talk of the guy who came with Damian Williams.

Here goes:

Stafon Johnson - whether it's true or not, there is a public perception of him being in the "dog house." Has it affected the local views and recruiting of the USC Football Program in the long and/or short term, if at all?

Is it true Mitch Mustain was originally going to enroll at USC this past January, but Houston Nutt deliberately delayed granting his transfer release and, subsequently, the necessary paperwork was not sent to USC in time, so Mustain had to re-enroll at Arkansas for another semester?

Are you aware of any talk at U.S.C. about unretiring No. 32? I think U.S.C. has handled the O.J. Simpson matter about as a well as could be expected. However, with the now limited numbers available I was wondering if anyone ever mentioned the idea of using number 32 as a special number, like 36 at Mississippi or 44 at Syracuse?

Are you able to provide an in-depth report yet of Mitch Mustain from what you have seen of him in practice? is he all that he's cracked up to be?

Thank you, Scott.

IBinParadiseValley:

JDB beat #3 ranked michigan in last year's rose bowl. michigan did not drop to #8 until after the loss.

Michigan was ranked No. 8:

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/boxscore?gameId=270010130

Final
2006-2007
College Football Season
BCS Standings
Released: 12/3/06

1 Ohio State 12-0
2 Florida 12-1
3 Michigan 11-1
4 LSU 10-2
5 USC 10-2
6 Louisville 11-1
7 Wisconsin 11-1
8 Boise State 12-0
9 Auburn 10-2
10 Oklahoma 11-2
11 Notre Dame 10-2
12 Arkansas 10-3
13 West Virginia 10-2
14 Wake Forest 11-2
15 Virginia Tech 10-2
16 Rutgers 10-2
17 Tennessee 9-3
18 California 9-3
19 Texas 9-3
20 BYU 10-2
21 Texas A&M 9-3
22 Oregon State 9-4
23 Nebraska 9-4
24 Boston College 9-3
25 UCLA 7-5

Can't people do research before posting stupid facts?

Undefeated Michigan and Ohio St. played each other in Week 11. They were ranked #1 and #2 at the time. USC was ranked #4 with one loss (OSU).

Ohio St. beat Michigan and Michigan stayed at #2 (fell to #3 in ESPN) in week 12 polls.

Michigan was off the rest of the season and USC jumped them to be ranked #2 in week 13 (Michigan fell to #3 in both polls).

USC lost to UCLA (yes 13-9) the following week and Florida jumped Michigan into #2 (again Michigan was not playing).USC fell to #8 (#7 ESPN).

Going into bowl season Michigan was #3 in both polls (remember the discussion about Michigan having a chance to jump back into the BCS NC game?)

USC beat #3 ranked Michigan in the Rose Bowl and Michigan fell to #8 in the final polls.

So yes, Booty has beaten a top 5 team. Do some research. Mustain, Schmustain.

Hey Scott, thanks for all of your work with this blog.

What type of role does religion play within Trojan football? Are most of the players openly religious, or does the team keep their beliefs to themselves and stick to football? I'm sure the players grow quite close as a team, but do Pete Carroll and others use faith/religion before or during games?

Scott,

We’ve heard Pete Carroll say this will be his last coaching job, but we’ve also heard him say he’ll entertain the pros if the right opportunity comes along (full, absolute, dictatorial control). However, you as well as others have pointed out his professional shortcomings. I guess he’s branded as a defensive guru, a top-notch college coach, but an NFL failure.

What’s your over-under on the number of wins Coach Carroll will accumulate during his SC tenure? 65 in 6 seasons thus far. Another 6-year run like this and he’ll pass legendary coaches Jones (121) and McKay (127). Of course it can happen, but is it likely?

how does carswell look? what will his role be this year?

Tyler:
It was great you stood-up to the MM usual suspects kissy-kissy BS.
Thank you

Hey Scottie boy,

I just left practice and I noticed that Broderick Green was just running over guys like Chris Gallipo and others
do you think his future is at tailback I would hate to see that power used blocking.

Secondly I noticed alot of people walking around with rosters and so forth, are you ever annoyed by these groupies who have no idea of the players are, for example I was next to a guy calling every one the wrong name, granted players like Gable and Mays switched numbers but buy no means does Chauncey Washington look like Patch.

Hey Scottie boy,

I just left practice and I noticed that Broderick Green was just running over guys like Chris Gallipo and others
do you think his future is at tailback I would hate to see that power used blocking.

Secondly I noticed alot of people walking around with rosters and so forth, are you ever annoyed by these groupies who have no idea of who the players are, for example I was next to a guy calling every one the wrong name, granted players like Gable and Mays switched numbers but by no means does Chauncey Washington look like Patch.

Scott,

What's your opinion re the receivers thus far? Who is looking good and if the opening day roster came out today, who would be the starters. Thanks!

Hey Scottie boy,

I just left practice and I noticed that Broderick Green was just running over guys like Chris Gallipo and others
do you think his future is at tailback I would hate to see that power used blocking.

Secondly I noticed alot of people walking around with rosters and so forth, are you ever annoyed by these groupies who have no idea of the players are, for example I was next to a guy calling every one the wrong name, granted players like Gable and Mays switched numbers but buy no means does Chauncey Washington look like Patch.

Wow sorry about the triple post Scott!

Scott,

As a Trojan fan traveling to Cali this week, I was wondering if the practices were open to the public? Thanks for the great info, as it's not always easy to get info on the Trojans here in Sooner nation.

Im a firm believer in the fact that USC has been so dominant in the last 5 years, has as much to do with Coach Carlisle as it does Coach Carroll. What kind of impact and how much control does Coach Carlisle have in fall camp?

Hi Scott:

Thanx for the weekend forum.

Quick note to readers jj and dp--let's keep our rum thread going.

Here is my question, Great Scott:
Suppose it is July '08, and at a Trojan camp, Billy Bob Bells,the #1 quarterback prospect, by far, in the nation, from Poly High in Miami,comes over to Carroll, and says, "It is 100% sure that I am coming to play for the Southern Cal Trojans next year, but everyone thinks I am a lock for Miami, so please be sure and keep this quiet until Jan. '09 when I will graduate and enroll here--it is extremely important to me that this be kept secret."
Carroll says sure, and it is great you are coming here.
So, only Carroll and the recruit know about this--except, Carroll doesn't notice you were standing three yards behind him, and, with your razor-sharp ears, heard every word.

Are there any conditions under which you would leak this info prematurely? Like, would you feel any obligation to your readers to leak it--or, supposing your sports editor calls you into his office in mid-Nov., and says, "Hey Scott, this is the second year in a row that the Trojans haven't brought in a freshman at the QB spot, and it's like they aren't even looking. You don't suppose that they have a silent commit from anyone, do you, like that guy from Miami?" How do you answer him, Scott?

Of course, what I am really asking you is: How do you think any good, honest, ethical sportswriter, who realizes he has different obligations and responsibilities to different sets of people would handle the above.

I don't mean to put you on the spot or anything, but you've always said no question is too tough for you--and I have often wondered how a good ethical sportswriter feels what his priorities are in a situation such as the one above.

Thanx in advance for your answer--this is one I'm really looking forward to!

Great Scott:

In my question just above re Billy Bob,I assumed you found out about him by pure accident. I meant to include--would your answer be any different if you happened to learn of his true situation by hours of shrewd detective work on your part--instead of just by pure accident?

Thanx again!!

Scott,
I was told by several very well-placed people that Mark Sanchez's visit to the University of Colorado a few months ago was far more than merely "visiting a friend," which is what he told you, and there have been discussions about a possible future transfer. Are you able to elaborate? If not, I understand.

Have you heard any news regarding the manner behind Danelo's death? I know his brother believed he was killed by some people he associated with and discussed the unusual circumstances behind the death, but I haven't heard anything for several months, with the last word from the police saying that the manner of death was "undetermined." Has there been any new leads in the investigation or is it now closed?

How do you do?

Has Pete Arbogast remarried yet and, if so, did you attend the Venice, CA shindig?

How is newcomer center, Kristoffer O'Dowd from Tucson doing at center?

How do you do?

Has Pete Arbogast remarried yet and, if so, did you attend the Venice, CA shindig?

How is newcomer center, Kristoffer O'Dowd from Tucson doing at center?

Where is Mitch Mustain in his development as a quarterback at this same stage of his college career as our last freshman starter, Carson Palmer? Does Mustain have the tools to lead us to a national championship?

Scott:

Is there concern in the athletic department with the basketball team's APR? A lot of players left this year without graduating and OJ Mayo is a one and done. Won't this affect SC in the very near future?

Scott,

Within the same week, you first said that time in the system was what determined who started at QB, then a few days later you said that seniority and time in the system does not matter to Pete Carroll and it is based purely on competition, nothing else, and everything is open.

So which is it, seniority or open competition for a position?

Honestly, with the way Mike McDonald has been totally jobbed this week by having Aaron Corp jump right over him, I can't imagine how Pete could possibly care less about how long someone has been in the system. He did this before with Matt Cassel and it looks like he's doing it again.

Scott, I always thought the "red zone" began at the 20 yard line, but I heard an announcer a couple of weeks ago say that it begins at the 16. Which is it?

Thanks for the opportunity.

28th Street:

Aaron Corp is a very, very good quarterback and I am not surprised he has overtaken McDonald on the depth chart after less than one week of practice. Corp is a Vince Young-type of quarterback, who runs a lot with the ball instead of simply throwing it, which none of the other SC quarterbacks do. He has far more upside than Sanchez, but is not as polished or experienced as Mustain.

I can't imagine anyone beating out Mustain in 2008, because he simply is that good and talented, so if Sanchez chooses to remain at SC rather than transferring next year, I would not be surprised if Corp overtakes him as No. 2 on the depth chart, with Sanchez dropping to No. 3.

So don't underestimate young Mr. Corp, he is very talented and is the real deal. I saw him play at Orange Lutheran and he really is that good. He has significant potential and I don't feel Michael McDonald got "jobbed" in any way. Whoever is better should play, otherwise no one new would ever come into the program.

Scott,

Would you feel duped and disappointed if the shroud of enthusiasm on your blog over Mitch Mustain lifted and was revealed to come primarily from a single, immature, infatuated poster?

If Aaron Corp is now the #3 QB, does that mean Michael McDonald will no longer travel with the team to away games?

I didn't see much complaining when Reggie and Lendale beat out a lot more experienced guys in their freshman years to see the field. McDonald knows what his role is. I doubt he expects to be the #3 QB above 3 5 star guys. If they're out performing him they'll sit below him on the depth chart. Copr for all his inexperience is a very accurate QB with the most mobitilty of anyone USC has ever had at the position. Not a surprise he's listed at #3 early on. It may not stay that way when the final depth charts come out though. Remember, we're only 1 week into fall practice.

So, Scott, when do you get around to answering all these questions?

Trojan Pal:
Either ask or join BoscoH who is the official gossip/tabloid witch. You know how it will sound like if you change the W for a _ee! A female dog has the same consonant! OOPS!