Golden Nuggets: USC Post-Mortems

Football

• In “The Novel” Nam reminds us all about the potential to beat Stanford.

The only good – a word here I am using incredibly generously -- that comes out of that is knowing that this loss doesn’t have too many long term implications; there are still two meaningful games left to play, both of which are eminently more winnable on paper than this one was. Winning the Axe – against what is the weakest Stanford team in a decade -- could at least make eligibility for a low-tier bowl seem sweet. Qualifying for postseason play with an ugly slugfest in front of an apathetic Rose Bowl crowd, much less satisfying.

Knowing the way things have arced downward this year, though, you’re probably kind of expecting to get a 3-point win over UCLA – if you’re expecting anything at all -- rather than the catharsis of a celebratory field-storming against Stanford, which is a result many would take begrudgingly, but not happily.

• With injuries and a brutal blowout happening, DeShawn Collins made the most of his chances on Saturday.
• Cal’s path to a bowl game is nearly identical to the 2017 situation...
• Things like the injury to Evan Tattersall are stark reminders that in the end, football is just a game.

Volleyball

• Last Friday I posted three of the six Dear Volleyball videos done by the Cal VB Seniors, here are the other three including an emotional one from Savannah Rennie.