08-08-2011, 05:06 PM
The damage of the sanctions might not be felt for another two years. They have enough talent currently on the roster that IF they are well coached, they can contend for the P12 South championship. They haven't really been damaged yet when it comes to putting talented players on the field. What eventually might hurt them is not having elite back-up players and having the first stringers practicing against not-so-good players over time.
Psychologically, I think they have a healthy Us-Against-The-World mentality this season. It will take some key losses for cracks to appear. That might not happen until next season or the season after. Then, they might get a boost from being bowl eligible again. I hope they collapse both mentally and physically, but there's no guarantee. Best case scenario, USC loses some key games this season, key people leave early, it's apparent that Kiffin can't hold the thing together and then they bring in limited classes with some (for them) Plan B players and those Plan B players start to be a significant part of the roster. Here's hoping.
Psychologically, I think they have a healthy Us-Against-The-World mentality this season. It will take some key losses for cracks to appear. That might not happen until next season or the season after. Then, they might get a boost from being bowl eligible again. I hope they collapse both mentally and physically, but there's no guarantee. Best case scenario, USC loses some key games this season, key people leave early, it's apparent that Kiffin can't hold the thing together and then they bring in limited classes with some (for them) Plan B players and those Plan B players start to be a significant part of the roster. Here's hoping.