As a few loyal commenters have mentioned to me, I picked a heck of a week to go to fantasy land. I traded emails last night with ESPN’s Bruce Feldman just as he was set to go to a round of TV interviews, and it’s apparent that the USC violations will be announced by the end of the week.
From what Feldman has reported, USC is facing a two-year bowl ban, vacated wins, and a significant reduction of scholarships. The Los Angeles Times reports that the number is around 20, which is a pretty heavy slap from a image conscious NCAA.
You can bet that I’ll sit down for a few hours and read the complete findings when they’re released, and I’ll have more to say in the next day or two when we’re not just guessing what’s coming down on the Trojans.
Expect an open war on California recruits to begin now, with USC never in a more vulnerable position since Pete Carroll took over the Trojan football program and turned it into a national power.