George's Potpourri 7/1 - We are more than just a good coach

For many of us, Trojan Football is more than just a game. For football fans, this relatively dead time of the year always leaves them with the feeling that something is missing from their everyday life. In this period before fall camp, many look for football related subjects to hold their interest and so the following discussion is submitted for your consideration.

Take the time to appreciate the long record of success our football program represents. It's more than winning the last national championship and it's more than applauding one excellent coach. I think our program's persona is one of "high-level achievement over a long period". This multi-decade record has required dedication from many people to fight back from occasional adversity. We've been on probation, we've had bad seasons, we've been the victims of losing streaks vis-à-vis our rivals. But we are back - big time! And it is not the first time we've recovered from the type of events that have sunk lesser programs.

For the new fans among us, I can tell you that your Trojan credentials have not really been tested until you've lived through a losing season - the last one being 2000, 5-7-0 or try to visualize 1991, 3-8-0. If you have chosen to walk into the supermarket wearing our colors after a 3-8 season, you know what I mean.

The Table

There are a few special athletic programs in this society that have consistently produced excellence. We have one of those programs - probably the best! In an effort to quantify what I already knew, I decided to evaluate our consistency by looking at our record over several decades. A program like ours is greater than the coach, the current players, the major donors, or how the media evaluates our team. It includes those elements but at its core, is a body of supporters who rally when things go badly and refuse to quit.

In the table at the end of this column, our record of football achievement is recorded by decade. We usually examine our won/lost record by coaching tenures, but I was looking for program achievement which is greater than any one coach. Notice that we have never had a losing record in any decade.

For this study we had to start someplace and I decided to begin in 1920. We played all the way back to 1888 but in those early years it was a different game and the opponents were not genuinely comparable with modern schedules.

Rivalries

In the "Rivalries" column are listed the records for each decade against Notre Dame and UCLA. I don't know of another major program that carries on two major rivalry games like we do. Any nominees you would like to submit are welcomed by this author.

Bowls

We have won more bowl games that any D1 program except Alabama and we are just one win away from their record. Of course, it all depends on what games you count anyway. Some games were called bowls at the time they were played but are not officially recognized as such in the "official" tally today. The bowl record on my table lists everything that was called a bowl at the time they were played regardless of whether they are now counted by the NCAA. Be aware that multiple data sources have different tallies for this category. It turns out to be grist for a good argument.

Personal Note: I was at the University between 1955-59. We went 6-4; 8-2; 1-9; 4-5-1. Try living through a 1-9 season sometime. If you survive, it gives you perspective and appreciation.

Trivia Quiz: Beginning in 1920 we have had 5 seasons in which we were undefeated and untied. How many can you identify by year. For extra credit, since 1920 we've had 5 seasons in which we were undefeated but were tied. How many of those can you identify? The answers can be found below the table at the bottom of this column.

Quiz Answer: