USC captured the Lexus Gauntlet last week. Want to know what the
clincher was?
It came when their men’s tennis team lost in the
semifinals of the NCAA Tournament. Seems kind of fraudulent,
doesn’t it? It was really just a fitting end to a race where
a kinder, big brother spots his younger sibling a head start.
For the past three years, Lexus has promoted the USC-UCLA
rivalry by awarding points for every sport in which the two schools
compete. Five or 10 points are given to the winner in each sport,
and in case the teams split their season series, the points are
divided equally. The winner gets a big, shiny trophy and bragging
rights.
I’m not going to complain that football and men’s
basketball are worth 10 points each while all but two other sports
are worth five. Being the two most high-profile sports, they
deserve to be worth twice as much.
But for some reason, women’s volleyball also got swept
into the mix of sports worth 10 points. That sport makes less news
than T.J. Cummings’ report card.
Fortunately for the Trojans, they have swept the Bruins in
women’s volleyball every year since the Gauntlet’s
conception. Those five extra points are the only reason Heritage
Hall has ever seen the Gauntlet.
(Well, except that UCLA hasn’t won a basketball or
football game in the rivalry series since … well … )
So why was women’s volleyball given additional weight?
Apparently, the committee that organized the points race wanted a
women’s sport to counter the additional weight given to
football.
But what about softball? UCLA’s tradition is one of the
richest in the nation, Easton stadium is packed for home games, and
most of the Women’s College World Series is televised
nationally. Why isn’t this sport worth 10 points? Better yet,
why isn’t it worth five?
Although the Bruins have now won consecutive national titles,
they have not been able to pick up a single Gauntlet point.
Want to know USC’s secret? They don’t have a team.
As far as the Gauntlet is concerned, softball does not even exist.
Rather than put up a fight they would undoubtedly lose, the Trojans
don’t even show up.
Softball isn’t the only sport the Trojans are too scared
to field. They also lack a women’s gymnastics team.
But can you really blame them? It would be pretty intimidating
to start up a program that would just end up getting crushed by the
Bruins, a team that has won five NCAA titles.
The Trojans’ “˜white flag’ strategy isn’t
limited to women’s sports. On the men’s side, they
can’t seem to field a soccer team. Southern California is the
nexus of soccer popularity in this country. So even though UCLA
went undefeated in conference play this past season and won the
national championship the year before, it can’t score a
single point in this race.
Trojans might complain that Title IX restrictions prevent them
from forming a team. They say their team total shouldn’t be
discounted for something that is out of their hands.
After all, UCLA does not have a men’s swimming and diving
program, and it is not penalized.
But drawing an analogy between Trojan swimming and diving and
UCLA soccer would make even SAT whizzes cringe. You might as well
compare Steve Lavin to John Wooden.
By this time, you might be wondering if there are any sports USC
dominates other than football, basketball and women’s
volleyball.
Actually, there is. The Trojans swept the Bruins in
women’s tennis during the regular season and were awarded
five points.
But it’s a good thing for the Trojans that NCAA matches
aren’t given any special consideration. When the season was
on the line, the Bruins beat them 4-2. The Trojans were heading
back to the airport as the Bruins made their way to the finals.
What was this victory worth?
Absolutely nothing.
As the year came to a close and all the points were added up (or
not added at all), USC laid claim to a 57.5-to-52.5 lead.
The only way the Bruins could have tied the score would’ve
been if the two men’s tennis programs that split their season
series met in the finals of the NCAA Tournament.
The Bruins did their part, but the Trojans came up short ““
both their men’s tennis team and in their effort in the Lexus
Gauntlet.
Good thing they have a big brother to boost them up.
E-mail Finley at afinley@media.ucla.edu.