At the bottom of the post, readers can vote to select the most classless act. One vote per IP address, so give it careful consideration.

Let's get to the finalists:

1. Chip Kelly, Oregon

Oregon leads punchless Washington State, 45-0, in the third quarter of an Oct. 3 game at Eugene, when the Cougars recover a fumble at the Ducks' one-yard line. It takes three plays, but quarterback Marshall Lobbestael sneaks in for a touchdown, cutting Oregon's precious lead to 45-6.

Kelly should have other things to worry about — like keeping his players out of trouble. Instead, he decides to challenge the touchdown call. Although he loses the challenge, the Ducks somehow hang on for a 52-6 victory.

Washington State's Paul Wulff says afterward, "We'll have plenty of motivation moving forward, believe me."

2. Randy Edsall, Connecticut

Connecticut defeated Syracuse, 56-31, on Nov. 28, but the Orange won't forget what happened in the final minute. The Huskies led, 42-31, and were facing fourth and 11 at the Orange 28 with 53 seconds remaining. Syracuse was out of timeouts.

Instead of calling a run play to help bring this to a merciful end, Edsall calls for a pass. Zach Frazer throws a touchdown to Marcus Easley, putting Connecticut ahead, 49-31. The Huskies would return a fumble for another score with eight seconds remaining.

Syracuse's Doug Marrone didn't comment afterward, but his postgame handshake with Edsall was described as being "uncomfortable." Orange safety called Frazer's pass "a little cheap shot."

3. Lane Kiffin, Tennessee

The first-year Volunteer coach's body of work was a classless act, from accusing Urban Meyer of cheating to his one-minute farewell press conference, featured above. But with his 4-4 team entertaining an overmatched Memphis on Nov. 7, Kiffin made several jackass decisions.

After taking a 14-0 lead less than six minutes into the first quarter, the Volunteers tried an onside kick.

Leading 35-0 late in the first half, Tennessee called a timeout when Memphis faced a third-and-eight play at the Tigers' 14.

The Volunteers went for it three times on fourth down in the first half.

The take-no-prisoners approach paid off. Tennessee built a 49-7 lead and held off a late Tiger charge for a 56-28 victory.

A smug Kiffin said afterward: "It came to me during the week that I had to make sure they felt my intensity — we're really going after this thing."

4. Jim Harbaugh, Stanford

The Nov. 14 "double nickels" game. The Cardinal were steamrolling USC, 42-21, when Toby Gerhart rumbled into the end zone. Instead of kicking the extra point, Harbaugh decided to go for two — probably because he couldn't go for three. The try failed, but Stanford tacked on one more score for a 55-21 bludgeoning of Pete Carroll's Trojans.

Carroll was not happen with Harbaugh, asking him in the postgame handshake, "What's your deal? What's your deal?"

Harbaugh retorted, "What's your deal?"

Carroll, when asked about Stanford's try for two, said: "I don't know what they were thinking with that."

Harbaugh offered this: "I thought it was an opportunity, the way we were coming off the ball, the way our players were playing — that it was the right thing to do."

5. Pete Carroll, USC

One would think Carroll would have learned a lesson about being a good sport after what Harbaugh did to him, but USC's coach failed to rise above it in his team's next game on Nov. 28. With the Trojans holding a 21-7 lead over UCLA with 52 seconds remaining, Carroll decided to stick it to the Bruins, calling for Matt Barkley to throw deep to Damian Williams. The play worked for a 52-yard touchdown and Carroll celebrated like a 13 year old at a Miley Cyrus concert.

The benches emptied and the teams nearly went at it. When things settled down, USC held on for a 28-7 victory.

Carroll and USC said afterward that Rick Neuheisel and UCLA deserved it because they were using timeouts with the verdict already decided. Of course, Carroll didn't feel the same way two weeks earlier when Stanford rolled it up on USC.

6. Max Hall, Brigham Young

The Cougar quarterback let his feelings be known after a 26-23 overtime victory over rival Utah.

"I don't like Utah. In fact, I hate them. I hate everything about them. I hate their program, their fans. I hate everything. It felt really good to send those guys home."

Video later surfaced of Hall landing a cheap shot to a Utah player after his winning touchdown pass.

7. Mike Leach, Craig James and Texas Tech

Plenty of blame to go around. Leach allegedly put receiver Adam James in an electrical closet off the press room at Jones AT&T Stadium. That resulted in a complaint by James' dad, Craig, an analyst for ESPN. Leach was suspended and eventually fired, a day before he was due an $800,000 bonus. Leach then said Adam was a slacker and that Craig was a always calling and acting like a LIttle League dad.

Craig said he was merely protecting his son, but documents suggest he threatened the university with a lawsuit for improper treatment of a student-athlete, i.e. his son, who was recovering from a concussion. The only winners here are Tommy Tuberville, the new Tech coach, and attorneys. The fans? The heck with them! Tech just announced a hike in ticket prices for 2010!

Leach's appearance on "Friday Night Lights" was filmed in Austin on Sept. 18, the night before his team played Texas and lost, 34-24. No wonder he lost control of the team in midseason.

8. Rich Rodriguez, Michigan

You can't do this list without Rich Rod, who continues to drag this storied program to new, embarrassing lows.

No stranger to litigation (see West Virginia), Rich Rod was sued for allegedly defaulting on a real estate loan to build condominiums near Virginia Tech's Lane Stadium. One of his business partners in the failed venture is facing five felony counts and possibly 50 years in prison.

Michigan has gone to 33 consecutive bowl games until Rich Rod arrived. Now they've missed the postseason two years in a row. If that's not bad enough, the NCAA alleges that Rich Rod's program committed five potential major rules violations. Somehow, he's still the coach.

9. Mike Locksley, New Mexico

Nothing quite like punching your receivers coach in the face after a coaches meeting. That's what Locksley did, landing a blow to Jonathan "J.B." Gerald in September.

Locksley showed more fight than his team, which finished 1-11 and ranked near the bottom in nearly every NCAA offensive and defensive category.

In the meantime, here's a refresher course on the most high profile, longest-running college football scandal of the decade:

• The Charges: Documents and numerous sources have connected Bush to more than $300,000 in improper benefits from competing camps attempting to woo one of the nation's biggest stars as a client during his sophomore and junior seasons in 2004-05. Between marketing pro Mike Ornstein (an ex-con for whom Bush interned in 2005) and fledgling partners Michael Michaels and Lloyd Lake (another ex-con), Bush was reportedly funneled airfare, limo rides, clothes, expensive hotel stays, $13,000 to buy a Chevrolet Impala and weekly payments of at least $1,500. There was also the infamous 3,000-square-foot home in Spring Valley, Calif., purchased by Michaels, where Bush's mother and stepfather allegedly lived for a year, amounting to about $54,000 in free rent they promised to repay when Bush turned pro.

Michaels and Lake raised reporters' eyebrows after Bush chose Ornstein as his agent in 2006, evicting Bush's parents from the home and preparing multimillion-dollar lawsuits against Bush for fraud. Michaels eventually settled out of court for $300,000; Lake's case against Bush is still creeping forward through a thicket of appeals and depositions reportedly halted by gun-wielding goons.

The most stinging charge the NCAA can levy against USC itself is "lack of institutional control," which became a very real possibility when investigators reportedly combined the Bush probe with their investigation into former Trojan hoops star O.J. Mayo, whose already-notorious handler was caught so red-handed in alleged cash exchanges with ex-coach Tim Floyd that the school went ahead and preemptively flogged itself with a self-imposed postseason ban in exchange for (they hope) leniency from Big Brother. Combined with the program's unusual openness to celebrities and outsiders of all stripes under Pete Carroll, the longstanding innuendo about its generally cozy relationship with agent-type life forms, the fishy rent arrangement between Bush teammates Matt Leinart and Dwayne Jarrett and its own investigation into a suspicious SUV driven by outgoing tailback Joe McKnight (who forebodingly arrived at SC labeled as "the next Reggie Bush"), it's not hard to come to the conclusion that the athletic department is (or was) something of an open market.

• The Defense: The hitch in the "prosecution," from the NCAA's perspective, has always been less about proving Bush was on the take -- almost no one at this point would even attempt to make that argument with a straight face -- than making the crucial leap from innuendo to proof against the university itself. Both Carroll, as he was leaving the school to take over the head coaching job at Seattle, and new coach Lane Kiffin (Bush's offensive coordinator in 2005) have recently pleaded ignorance; Kiffin, attempting to quell the doubts of top recruit Seantrel Henderson earlier this month, reportedly told Henderson's family the program should be fine "because there was no knowledge of anything going on by the staff." New Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott, who can presumably cite the results of the conference's internal investigation in his sleep, said earlier this week he doesn't expect serious sanctions.

If the NCAA is able to tie the Bush and McKnight cases to the more brazen Mayo hijinks under a single, "lack of control" umbrella, it may not have to charge USC with anything except negligence -- i.e. not knowing that ex-cons are buttering up star players is as bad as ignoring or facilitating it -- to justify a heavy-handed response. If not, the burden is much tougher; as NCAA Executive Director David Price reminded Don Yeager for Yeager's book on the scandal, Tarnished Heisman, the NCAA wasn't able to go after Michigan when it learned former Heisman winner Charles Woodson had accepted money from an agent while playing for the Wolverines because it couldn't prove anything against the program: "We had no information that there was any institutional knowledge; therefore, we did not take any action against the institution or even bring charges."

On that front, the most damning claim against USC is Lake's allegation in Yeager's book that he was in the room with Bush's stepfather as he discussed the sketchy housing arrangement with Carroll over the phone. Other evidence is similarly vague and circumstantial, such as various rumors that coaches and administrators (including Carroll and athletic director Mike Garrett, another former Heisman winner) were tipped off about Bush's arrangements, were well-acquainted with the sleazier elements on the fringes of the program and were often in position to notice Bush and his family spending well above their means. Running backs coach Todd McNair (twice convicted himself on suspicion of breeding dogs for fighting during his NFL career) has been accused of socializing with sketchy characters who wanted access to players and with Bush during at least one of his high-priced hotel stays.

Even if you could prove that kind of chatter, it doesn't amount to much in the way of a smoking gun. So far, there is no firm evidence in any published reports to date that anyone at USC had direct knowledge of improper benefits to any football player, which probably means the NCAA doesn't have it, either.

• The Fallout: Long-held visions of white-gloved men marching out of Heritage Hall with Bush's 2005 Heisman Trophy and/or the 2004 BCS championship trophy are misplaced, not least because the NCAA has no control over either. BCS power brokers or the Downtown Athletic Club of New York may confer later to dole out their own brand of justice, but the worst the NCAA will do in the way of that kind of symbolism is "vacate" wins from the wildly successful 2004-05 seasons -- a popular punishment lately, employed against Oklahoma, Florida State and Alabama in the last four years, but a relatively empty one when it comes to deterrence. If this case is about anything from the NCAA's point of view, it' has to be preventing a dozen more like from breaking out across the country.

As pointed out earlier this week, and the L.A. Times chronicled on Wednesday, significant sanctions -- postseason bans, television bans, aggressive scholarship reductions -- are almost unheard of against Division I-A football programs, Florida States and Central Floridas alike, over the last decade. After 20 years of consistent, meaningful probation against powerhouse programs (outstanding teams from Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Miami, Texas A&M and Washington were all held out of bowl games in the eighties and nineties, to name only a few, and SMU's program was famously disbanded for two years at the height of its success), the heavy hand disappeared almost entirely under late president Myles Brand, who came into office in 2002 with two major teams (Alabama and California) serving bowl bans and oversaw the administration of exactly zero over the next seven years. If the Infractions Committee finds USC guilty of any serious infraction, it could easily look to make an example of the Trojans to rebuff that increasingly soft image. There's no evidence it's prepared to do that.

If they get off scott-free, or with just a token slap on the wrist, well, I'll be getting a lot of infuriated comments about the miscarriage of justice, and the NCAA's credibility as a consistent, potent enforcer of its own regulations -- rightly or wrongly -- will be at an all-time low. That's not a comment on anyone's innocence or guilt; behind closed doors, the actual facts may not warrant a significant punishment. But when a case is allowed to sprawl and flourish for this long as the exemplar of open, arrogant defiance in the eyes of fans and media, anything less than a sledgehammer is inevitably going to be greeted like the O.J. verdict. Even if it wins in front of the NCAA, I don't think there's any way SC can come on top of the PR battle.

"Speaking for the people I served on the committee with, we wouldn't go through the time, effort and sacrifice we go through with this procedure and do it for number of years if there was one sliver of a different set of standards for one institution versus another," Yeager said. "The whole process would fall apart. That's completely out of there. That doesn't happen.

"There are institutions that do a better job with their cases. But if there was any hint of (bias), people would close their books, walk out and never come back."

Cynics will make of that what they will, but the record over the last 10 years backs up Yeager's insistence on consistency: Since 2000, the NCAA has treated practically everyone with a light touch, regardless of size or influence. The last teams to face a television and postseason ban in football -- a staple of major sanctions throughout the '80s and '90s -- were Alabama (a repeat offender) and California in 2003. Over the last five years, the Association's once formidable wrath has amounted to scholarship losses so minor they can often be applied retroactively to less-than-full recruiting classes, or "vacated" wins, a purely symbolic slap on the wrist. (And in Oklahoma's case, one that was later revoked; Alabama is hoping for a similar reversal in its textbook fraud verdict.) Central Florida and Texas Tech -- hardly powerhouses even within their own states -- were treated with kid gloves when the NCAA announced probation ("i.e. don't screw up again") against both schools for various recruiting sins earlier this month. The next program that's significantly affected on the field or in the coffers will be the first in a very long time.

Even if the copious media reports into the Bush case are only half true, the allegations USC will be defending itself against this weekend are more serious than the charges in any other recent case, not least because they cross multiple sports and potentially implicate the entire athletic department -- one of the reasons SC preemptively flogged itself with a self-imposed postseason ban in basketball in response to the pay-for-play allegations against former hoops star O.J. Mayo and since-fired coach Tim Floyd. But if the Trojans get off light -- or even scott-free, as unlikely as that seems following a four-year investigation -- it seems far less likely to be because of any kind of "bias" or profit motive than just another case of general toothlessness.

Pacific 10 Conference commissioner Larry Scott's announcement that the league is "very seriously" looking at expansion in the next 12 months has created a buzz in cyberspace, and for good reason. A raid of another conference would alter the playing field in college football for years to come. A look at some of the reaction:

Dennis Dodd, CBS Sports.com: Expansion would boost the Pac-10 but leave a wake of disruption. Plus a look at potential winners and losers and how a reconfigured Mountain West, Big 12, Big Ten and Pac-10 might look.

Jay Drew, Salt Lake Tribune: A former BYU athletics department official who had knowledge of the Pac-10's expansion talks in the 1990s told the Tribune he believes that Utah and Colorado are at the top of the conference's wish list (assuming Texas isn't interested in leaving the Big 12).

Addicted to Quack: Pac-10 expansion will happen, but only if Colorado wants to play.

Dirk Facer, Deseret News: BYU and Utah have not been contacted about the possibility of joining the Pac-10.

Ray Ratto, CBS Sports.com: This could be messy, and it will be bloody. Ratto also wrote a piece for the San Francisco Chronicle in which he says, "Scott clearly sees the Pac-10 as no longer the defender of the status quo, but as a victim of it."

Dick Harmon, Deseret News: The closest treasure bonanza for the Pac-10 would be Colorado and Texas. The most logical rivalry, travel partner and football package for the league would be Utah and Brigham Young.

Matt Hinton, Dr Saturday: A user's guide to hypothetical conference expansion.

Nick Daschel, Buster Sports: Expansion is as much about self-preservation as anything.

Ken Goe, Oregonian: Expansion? It's not going to happen tomorrow, and maybe not ever.

The Wiz: A reminder that his money was on Utah and Colorado way back in 2006.

This year's offensive line class has many play makers. While USC grabbed highly touted lineman in their 2008 class, a couple were busts and now Khaled Holmes and Matt Kalil must be able to step up as it seems they will be starting next season.

USC suffered major blows at the linebacker position last year with the de-commits of Manti "I was a Trojan the day before signing day" Te'o and Vontaze "Best LB in the Pac-10 in 2010" Burfict.  They recovered with commitments of Jarvis Jones, Frankie Telfort, and Marquis Simmons only to later discover of Telfort's rare heart condition during practices and ultimately ruling out Telfort from future play.  The 2009 class somehow kept its anti-linebacker disease through the 2010 recruiting class.

Having said that, USC will have one of the best classes it will ever have... On the offensive side of the ball.

Lets take a look at our commits after the jump...

This year's offensive class is incredibly incredible.  It's filled with play-makers in nearly every position and can be quite a force in the seasons coming.  Lets take a look at these wonders: (NOTE: I hate the star system, but eff it, I'm going to implement my own star-system the way I want it to be.)

Already Enrolled:

Kyle Prater (WR)*****:

This player should be dubbed "The next #1" (He's wearing #85).  Make no mistake about it, Prater is a tall, lean, ball-catching machine.  At 6-5, Prater has the size and vertical jump to catch anything that is heaved at him.  His hands are freakishly large and catching one-hand grabs is not rare; Just check out this video.  He wont out-run you, but with the proper conditioning drills that he will do over the next seven months, you better pre-order your #85 jersey now because they will sell out.

Dillon Baxter (RB)*****:

A man among men. Dillon is an emotional leader and will rub some of it all to others.  Baxter opened his recruiting (as did most) when Carroll left the program, but a week later solidified his commitment to USC and enrolled on Monday.  His running back skills are as good as anyone's, but he can add a few more pounds.  He also played QB for his school and was excellent at the position, even out-performed other quarter-backs in the Army Bowl All-American practices.  Having said that, watch out for the wild-cat play.

Committed:

Robert Woods(WR)*****:

Woods and Prater are the top two wide-outs in the nation.  With Woods, you get speed and great ball- catching skills. Don't be fooled by his size (6-1, 185), his leaping ability will kill corners (40 inch vertical).  His route-running abilities is what breaks away from all the other wide-outs in the nation, he will confuse the heck out of corners and safeties. I project him to be RoJo 2.0.

Xavier Grimble(TE)*****:

Has the size (6-6, 245) to be a small lineman, just to athletic to be one, though.  Xavier Grimble has soft hands and will punish linebackers once he receives it. Top tight-end in the nation.

DJ Morgan(RB)*****:

Probably the fastest out of the bunch.  Morgan's juking abilities are un-matched.  He was invited to the Army All-American Bowl Game but could not participate as he had a devastating knee injury.  Once recovered, look for him to return punts and more.

Randall Telfer(TE)*****:

With Xavier being the most physical, Telfer is the most athletic.  Very tall and lean, Kiffin is going to be a very happy kid when he implements his top two tight-ends.

Jesse Scroggins(QB)*****:

The 6-2 quarter-back is known for his accuracy and athleticism.  What he's not know is his arm, but he proved everyone wrong when he showed scouts he could throw the ball 70 yards down the field.  No people, that was not a typo.  Matt Barkley may be the QB for now, but Lane's "clean slate" speech will bring Barkley the competition.

Giovanni Di Poalo(OT)*****:

Mid-size offensive lineman who has terrific blocking abilities on the running game.

Matt Darr (K)*****:

Punter who regularly kicks 50-yarders at ease.

DEFENSE:

George Uko( DT)*****:

A defensive tackle who will bull rush you with top effort.  Top three defensive-tackle in the nation. Watching Uko play is very similar to that of Sedrick Ellis.  He has terrific size and should see a great amount of playing time at the defensive tackle position. If only Uko played in the Stanford game...

Dion Bailey (DB)*****:

A real ball hawk.  Will have a field day when his time comes in the tampa 2.  He's a safety that lacks top-speed, but his strength will over power mid-sized receivers.

Demetrius Wright (S):

My favorite recruit of the class.  Wright showed everyone on national television that recruits should enroll at a school not for the coach, but for the school itself.  The day Carroll departed, Wright did not flinch and wanted to be a USC Trojan.  Has very similar skills and build like Bailey, but has more upside and a larger frame that may even put him as an outside linebacker.

Anthony Brown (ATH):

Position player who is able to do parts of everything. He is a great tackler, great ball catching ability, great speed, lacks size.

Dak Smith (DT):

An overweight lineman who will probably see playing time at goal line.  That's a compliment.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now for some rumors and visits from recruits:

Kiffin came to USC and quickly began his first mission, to have the best recruiting class in the nation.  He kept all but one of the recruits intact, which is an incredible feat, and him and coach Orgeron are on a tear.  Markeith Ambles (WR) visited USC last weekend and from the quotes I've read, he's all USC.  Why should you get excited? This per scouting Director Greg Biggins:

Honestly, I would put Prater, Woods, Ambles as the top receivers in the nation in that order.

Like I said before, this year's linebacker class is thin, but that wont stop Kiffin from getting top linebacker in California, Josh Shirley.  Kiffin told him he will put him at WILL, which is his natural position. Shirley had a great visit to USC and Kiffin had an in-home visit with Lane yesterday, which he said "went great".  Most of the top linebackers are in the East and we have virtually no shot at any of them. Christian Jones (Top 5 outside linebacker) was going to visit USC this weekend.  But it appears that he's going to cancel. He has FSU written all over him, though.

Top lineman Seantrel Henderson is getting blitzed by Kiffin and Orgeron.  Lane Kiffin is probably talking with him at his house as we speak as his in-home visit is today.  Most scouts say Ohio State is the leader, but in recent days, they get a feel that it is USC.  Baxter and Henderson are close friends,they met last at the player of the year award ceremony and were teammates at the Army Bowl Game. Henderson's father, Sean, even got to say that they hung out with Baxter's parents.Henderson is regarded as the best player this year.

Chaz Green is not far from Henderson.  The second best lineman in the nation has been recruited hard by Florida in recent days, but is visiting USC this weekend and has USC "high" on his list.  Fans worry that Green wont join USC because of Henderson. Henderson plays left tackle, Green plays right. Get that cleared people.  Arie Kouandijo is also a regular 4-star lineman that will visit USC this weekend, if only our coaches will be this focused on the linebacker position.

As if we're not already stacked in the safety position, USC offered scholarships and are currently recruiting Latwan Anderson (S, Ohio) and Eddrick Loften (S, Texas), and Demar Dorsey (S, Flo).  Latwan Anderson is a top-five player in the state of Ohio, regarded as the best defensive-back.  He is currently committed to West Virginia, but told sources that USC is his "dream school". Watch his video, you will wish he commits.  Loften is a hard hitting, ball hawk safety.  He was recruited by Willi Mack Garza.  Demar Dorsey is the fastest safety in the nation.  A ball hawk that was clocked at 4.32 on his 40.  Both will be visiting this weekend.

Second rated tight-end Christian Thomas (Cali.) will also be visiting this weekend.  He has high-interest in USC and participated in the Under Armour Bowl Game.  If USC gets his signature, USC will have the top tight ends in the nation.  Like I've said, best offensive class in the nation.

Corner-back Nickell Robey is getting serious looks from Monte Kiffin.  He will officially visit USC this weekend. Robey is the top corner for the state of Georgia, the school he is currently committed to.  The Atlanta Journal Constitution blog said he wont be committing to Georgia and is open-game.

The drama with Dietrich Riley continues.  He said he will make a decision after signing day.  He's a safety that has a wide frame to add muscle.  He isn't the fastest safety but a hard hitter and has higher upside than most safeties. It's a USC-UCLA battle for Riley. 

Sean Parker is the most physical safety in the nation that has high-interest in USC.  Only problem is that Michigan wont quit on Parker and that is the school most scouts think he's leaning on.  Michigan - SC battle.

More to come...

View full size photo »

Ed. Note - Joey and I collaborated this piece together...P

Norm Chow is not going to be the USC offensive coordinator next season. Relax, deal with it, and let’s move on. It’s time to start focusing on rounding out the rest of the staff instead of constantly thinking about what could have been with Chow calling the plays.

Still, in all honestly, it would have been nice to be able to poke a finger in the eye of some UCLA fans by stealing Chow, but in the grand scheme of things, it is not the end of the world for this program.

In retrospect, it is perfectly understandable as to why everyone was clamoring for Chow. His return to USC would have given Kiffin and the Trojans instant credibility in the living rooms of five-star recruits and in press rooms nationwide. It would have smoothed over some of the perception issues and calmed the worries of the many of us who remain tentatively nervous about this latest hire. But the deal never took place, and, that doesn’t necessarily mean the program is in bad shape. In fact, it could even be better in the long term.

There is no question that Chow is an icon in college football. He knows how to use personnel and he is a tremendous developer of quarterbacks. But you can say that his play calling has had some ups and downs. There are many who will continue to pine for the old days, but really, I think that people treat Chow's past history at USC like wine (it gets better with age).

In the meanwhile, it’s essential for us to take a step back and reflect. Do your accomplishments six years ago guarantee success now? When it’s all said and done, perception isn't reality, especially when in regards to Chow.

We have to be realistic. As great as it sounded to have the "band back together," it is a lot simpler that Chow did not return as well. That was a disaster waiting to happen. Chow has a huge ego. I am sure that he was not pleased to hear that Kiffin wanted to call the plays (although, it is rumored that Neuheisel pulled play calling duty from Chow at one point in the season). We all need to come to terms with the fact that Chow's better days are likely behind him. He has procured a lot of mileage on his good name, but his NFL stint with the Titans was a failure and the jury is still out on his current endeavor across town (it isn’t looking too promising). That doesn't diminish his accomplishments at all, but in recent years, he has not been overly impressive. His name creates more buzz and hype than his recent accomplishments. In Chow’s two seasons in Westwood, the Bruins have ranked over 80 nationally in total offense. Not exactly a group that has been garnering a wealth of offensive awards.

But nevertheless, Chow’s fingerprints are all over the program, even if he never calls another play for the Trojans.

Kiffin tutored under Chow after all. He was taught by the guru. Didn’t he learn something?

Of course he did. He does have his fair share of career accomplishments.

When Chow bolted for the NFL in 2005, how were John David Booty and Mark Sanchez both able to make it to the NFL? Isn't that the benchmark as to the success of a college quarterback? Sanchez was the fourth overall pick. Booty while going in the later rounds at least got a shot – most don’t. Lane Kiffin and Steve Sarkisian developed both of those guys with Chow having very little if any input in either player’s development.

Go back and look at the 2006 BCS Title game against Texas. That night, ‘SC put up 38 point on the best defense in the country. That game was lost by a decimated defense and few bad calls - not the offense. The offense, short of two plays, had that game won. Lane Kiffin called that game; he was the offensive coordinator and the play caller. We can argue all we want about not having Bush in the game on 4th and 2, but ‘SC had successfully run that play all night so there was little to no reason for them to change anything dramatically. Both Kiffin and Chow had the disposal of Reggie Bush – arguably the most explosive player in college football up to that point. Bush bailed out Chow as much as he bailed out Kiffin.

As much as the next guy, Chow goes as the talent goes. The better it is the better he is. Chow doesn't turn scrap into metal. He needs talent for his schemes to work like anybody else. What separates him from other coordinators is his ability to maximize the talent available. It’s what good coaches do, but he like anyone, has his limits.  At UCLA, with limited talent, we have yet to see the explosive Chow offense come to life. Sure, Neuheisel is a great recruiter, but he still has yet to live up to his name in reeling in talent. As a result, he and Chow have had their fair share of difficulties in instituting a prolific offense.

Kiffin isn’t perfect, but he brings a lot of positives. Aside from being a great recruiter he is an exceptional passing coordinator. Working with a fantastic talent, this should shine through.

But most importantly, Kiffin isn’t doing this by himself. The staff he put together even without Norm Chow is the definition of the dream team that UCLA was trying to replicate two years ago. Getting Chow would have been the cherry on top, but the staff is starting to look good nonetheless.

Despite the constant bellyaching from the mainstream press and the folks from across town, ‘SC will likely be better than most want to believe. Provided Kiffin can compete for the Pac-10 title off the bat, I think he will squelch the complaints that we are hearing today.

Today is not the day to use the word "seismic," but there aren't many adjective too strong for the shift in college football over the last three weeks. If you fell asleep on the night that Alabama beat Florida and Texas beat Nebraska to end an unusually uneventful regular season on Dec. 5, and didn't wake up to survey the landscape until sometime next August, you'd think almost 10 years had passed.

Since Christmas alone...

Urban Meyer suddenly retired, then un-retired despite legitimate health concerns that could keep him from returning to the sideline this fall; Mike Leach was suspended and then fired by Texas Tech for allegedly isolating Craig James' concussed son in not one but two separate enclosed spaces; Adam James subsequently released a creepy, dubious cell phone video from inside the infamous closet, and pass-happy Texas Tech hired a coach with an old school philosophy based on running and defense; Jim Leavitt was fired by South Florida for allegedly grabbing and slapping a player who later admitted to lying on his coaches behalf to save Leavitt's job, which Leavitt immediately demanded back; Pete Carroll abruptly resigned to follow his NFL dreams, just days before news emerged that major NCAA sanctions against the program he led for nine years could be mere months away; within a few hours, Carroll had been replaced at USC by the sport's biggest lightning rod, Lane Kiffin, whose departure nearly sparked riots in Tennessee, and who immediately set about reassembling the regime that oversaw the scandal that put the Trojans in the NCAA's crosshairs in the first place.

Somewhere along the way, Bobby Bowden coached his 417th and final game at Florida State, Ohio State ended a decade-long Big Ten losing streak in the Rose Bowl, Boise State completed an undefeated season and Alabama won a national championship in a game in which a two-time Heisman Trophy finalist was knocked out on his team's fifth offensive snap. Lately, that's what qualifies as mundane.

I hesitate to predict an end to the thunderclaps, with the Tennessee and South Florida jobs still open and three frantic weeks to go until recruits officially sign on to their respective schools, but it's certain already that the first season of the new decade will kick off with a landscape reminiscent of the flattened tress following the Tunguska Event. The reigning juggernauts on either coast, USC and Florida, will both be wracked by major attrition, uncertainty and, if Meyer fails to return, a potentially crippling regime change; their mantle of sustained dominance has apparently been assumed by Alabama. The two most unique and consistently entertaining coaches in the country, Pete Carroll and Mike Leach, each vacated his post under wildly different circumstances within days of one another. The most feted quarterbacks of the last three years, Tim Tebow, Colt McCoy and Sam Bradford, will be struggling for respect in the NFL. Notre Dame's latest (and most promising) reclamation project is underway. Boise freakin' State has a significant chance to open the 2010 season ranked in the top five, and to close it at No. 1. So does Oregon, which not that long ago would have seemed every bit as awkward in the frontrunner role as Boise.

Actually, the idea of a Ducks-Broncos rematch for the 2010 title would be all too appropriate: They kicked off last fall with the only moment of the regular season that matched the last few weeks for surprise and sheer unbelievability, and would make it abundantly clear to the world how thoroughly the old order has been overthrown. Maybe we're not there yet -- the other likely favorites will be more familiar powers Alabama and Ohio State -- but the changing of the calendar has done a remarkable job of reminding us to check our assumptions at the door.

You can see exclusive video highlight reels of two of the players who've indicated they may make their decisions today -- the talented wideout Chris Dunkley of Pahokee, Florida (almost surely SEC-bound, but said to be considering USC) and the beast linebacker Jordan Hicks of Lakota West, OH (who's deciding between USC, Alabama, Texas, Florida and Ohio State) -- after the jump.