Dave Carsley

A few tidbits to ponder this morning:

Former LSU problem child Ryan Perrilloux now has the enviable responsibility of playing at national powerhouse Jacksonville State University. Last year’s SEC MVP was booted off the team after repeated off-field problems, including three suspensions in the past year.

Here’s to Perrilloux joining David Boston and Charles Rogers for a fine career bouncing around the Canadian Football League. He better learn what a rouge is very quickly.

===============================================

Meanwhile, the USC Trojans will spend the next quarter-century in their longtime home, the L.A. “Mausoleum.” The new lease includes improvements to the stadium, including the replacement of all seats. USC has played its home games at the Coliseum throughout its 85-year history.

I love this news because I’m a fan of vintage stadiums. Thank God for college football that keeps its storied squads playing at their venues forever. I’d be one unhappy camper if the Trojans suddenly moved to a Citibank Financial Field. It just wouldn’t be the same.

DC
E-mail: ninersbuzz@yahoo.com

Dave Carsley

I haven’t even had the opportunity to digest the fact that Reggie Bush allegedly accepted more than $300,000 worth of gifts while playing at USC, and this weekend it was revealed that OJ Mayo is accused of doing the same. According to ESPN, one of Mayo’s former associates revealed that the FORMER Trojan (I stress the word former because the prissy prima donna left Troy early for the NBA) accepted $30,000 worth of gifts from a runner for the sports agency that Mayo just recently signed on with.

I’m starting to become embarassed to be a USC fan, seeing as our biggest stars are proving to be the biggest delinquents………allegedly (Jim Rome). Mayo and Bush, two collegiate superstars with more combined talent than 80 per cent of all NCAA football and basketball athletes, couldn’t resist temptation and knowingly broke rules……allegedly (ibid).

So once again, the media are poking fun at USC and rightfully so. ESPN’s Pat Forde even went as far as saying that USC deserves the NCAA’s equivalent of the death penalty in his column.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=forde_pat&id=3390757&sportCat=ncb

Look, Forde is clearly exaggerating because only one former USC star’s name should ever be linked to deserving the death penalty (and whaddya know, his name’s OJ too), but even I think the Trojans need some sort of punishment and soon. The first time a recruit goes bad, the school can reasonably get off with a warning. The second time, the NCAA can’t be so nice, especially with the overwhelming evidence that is likely to come.

With that being said, I still think OJ Mayo is a despicable young man and I only wish the worst for him in the NBA. If there’s a positive that can come of this, then maybe scouts will be less likely to draft him and maybe his life will be ruined, the same way he hurt USC’s reputation.

Well then again, at least he’s not Rae Carruth!

DC

E-mail: ninersbuzz@yahoo.com

Dave Carsley

It’s never a good situation when there are two mediocre players vying for the starting quarterback position of any professional football team.

So you can only imagine how I reacted to this morning’s news that J.T. O’Sullivan is very much in the hunt to start on opening day behind center.

According to the San Jose Mercury News, O’Sullivan appeared to be a step ahead of co-incumbents Alex Smith and Shaun Hill at mini-camp, mainly because he has played under Mike Martz in the past.

Martz told the Bay Area paper, “Sullivan has an excellent arm….He’s very accurate, very quick with the ball. He just needs to play. He needs to develop.”

Personally, this news only reinforces how skeptical I am about this team’s offense because the fact that they have three quarterbacks in the mix means that they have no idea how their offense is going to shape up on opening day. Towards the end of last season, it looked like Hill had unseated Smith as the starting quarterback with his solid performances against Cincinnati and Tampa Bay. Several months later, Smith appeared to be the guy when Nolan gave him his vote of confidence and the team picked up his option through 2009. Now, all of a sudden, O’Sullivan is viewed by the local media and to some degree, the coaches, as being a step ahead of the competition.

The problem this poses is that the player who ultimately wins the starting job doesn’t get nearly enough reps with the first-team offense by the time opening day rolls around. The offense doesn’t have nearly enough time to gel and will likely get steamrolled by opposing defences.

That’s a sobering thought, considering the first half of their schedule includes two games against Seattle and matchups with the Saints, the Patriots, the Eagles and those guys from New York who won the Super Bowl last year.

All I have to say to that is YIKES!

DC

E-mail: ninersbuzz@yahoo.com