Last Thursday when the NCAA Committee on Infractions levied stiff penalties against the University of Southern California, coach Lane Kiffin assured Trojans’ fans that the football program would fight on.
With a two-year postseason ban, a reduction in 30 football scholarships over the next three years and reports of further recruiting violations looming on the horizon, Kiffin and athletic director Mike Garrett seemed unfazed by the NCAAs action.
USCs biggest problem at present aren’t the rule violations they’ve been found guilty of, it’s the arrogance they’ve exhibited in addressing them.
Kiffin and Garrett made headlines after the penalties were announced suggesting the NCAA had a vendetta against USC.
On Friday during the Trojans’ team meeting, Kiffin sounded like he was using reverse psychology by suggesting anyone thinking of transferring out of the program was being foolish.
“We talked about a lot of stuff in our team meeting, talked about where we’re going from here,” Kiffin said. “If someone wants to leave the best place in the country to play football, we won’t stop them.”
The NCAAs report said the governing body was troubled by the culture around the athletic department, but USC has vowed to fight the sanctions.
While all of the infractions took place during Garrett’s watch, the embattled athletic director hasn’t backed down.
A reporter from The Los Angeles Times attended a USC booster club meeting in San Francisco on Thursday night where the central topic was the NCAA penalties.
“As I read the decision by the NCAA … I read between the lines, and there was nothing but a lot of envy,” Garrett reportedly told the Bay Area boosters. “They wish they all were Trojans. … Today I really got a purpose for wanting to dominate for another 10 years.”
Garrett is obviously attempting to rally the troops around the football program, but needling the NCAA isn’t the best course of action considering the forthcoming appeals process.
At this point it’s doubtful any football program in the nation is envious of Southern California, despite what Garrett believes.
With each school limited to signing 25 scholarship players each year, losing 30 of those scholarships over the next three years will severely hamper USCs ability to maintain the high level of talent they’ve enjoyed for a decade.
Not only will there be a reduction in talented players on the Trojans roster, there will be millions in lost revenue as a result of the postseason ban.
Southern California will most assuredly fight on, but it will be a fight to keep their heads above water.
And if the recent allegations against Kiffin misleading at least one recruit regarding potential NCAA sanctions are proven to be true, it could come down to a fight for survival.
[...] Arrogance, Not Cheating USC’s Biggest Problem [...]