00:00USC, I've never seen empty seats like this.
00:03And you just got through saying in the break here,
00:05you think that USC football under Lincoln Riley has lost their identity.
00:09Why?
00:11Well, they're soft.
00:13This is pretty seven-on-seven football, wide open.
00:18I mean, it can be really entertaining,
00:20but it's not what USC's brand was for 60 years.
00:25You know, even going back before John McKay, this is power football.
00:29You know, they invented student body right.
00:31Now, they're not the only power football team in the history of the league,
00:35and times do change.
00:37But they don't play tough guy football.
00:39They don't play football where it's clear they're trying to dominate
00:45the other side physically and intimidate.
00:48And that was what USC was so used to, and that's what they were trained on.
00:52And he's come in, and it's like, let's play wide open with Caleb Williams
00:56and have fun and run around.
00:58And it's just not very effective.
01:00So people don't trust it.
01:01People don't believe in it.
01:02It's not what they're used to.
01:03It's not what they grew up on.
01:06USC was a symbol of power in college football,
01:10the same way that Michigan and Ohio State and even Alabama were power football.
01:17You know, I'll say this.
01:18Back in the day, the stars of the football team at USC used to be the old linemen.
01:24To your point, Chase, I mean, hey, look, Marcus Allen and, you know,
01:29all those guys, White, who won Super Bowl, won national championships
01:32and also won Heisman trophies.
01:34But the power guys on that team and the superstars were the Tony Baccellis.
01:39Where are those guys like Anthony Munoz?
01:41Anthony Munoz, Roy Foster.
01:45Bruce Matthews.
01:46They had an offensive line.
01:48Bruce Matthews.
01:49They had an offensive line one year.
01:52It was three first-round picks, a second-round pick, and a third-round pick.
01:56Like, it was, yes, to be an offensive lineman at USC was a badge of honor.
02:05You were considered one of the all-time greats if you were good enough
02:10to play offensive line at USC.
02:12It was special to be there.
02:14And, yes, the running backs were great,
02:16and they would get by with guys like Paul McDonald or Pat Hayden,
02:20the quarterback, because it was all power.
02:23And, yeah, they had some other stars like Lin Swan out there
02:26and, you know, some other receivers along the line.
02:29But it was power football, and it was power defense, too.
02:34It was rugged Junior Seau, Ronnie Lott, guys who came up and hit you, right?
02:42Defensive linemen all over the place, like Georgia Chica.
02:45You know, guys like that, you know, they just ran deep with guys
02:49who were monster players who came in to beat you down,
02:54and that is not Lincoln Riley football.
02:57And to a man, every time I talk to a USC guy,
03:01and he gives me his private thoughts,
03:03it's more of those shake of the head, like, we are not USC anymore.
03:06For more.
