Officially, it is the annual Pacific-12 Conference Football Media Day.
In reality, it has become a dog and pony show, much to the delight of Larry Scott, commissioner and lord high manipulator of the operation.
Enterprising journalists dig up what they can, such as USC coach Lane Kiffin's reaction to a positive video by athletic director Pat Haden and the focus at Oregon for Mark Helfrich following Chip Kelly as coach.
On the local front, attention is paid to UCLA linebacker Anthony Barr, USC's wide receiver Marqise Lee and linebacker Hayes Pullard, Colorado wide receiver Paul Richardson, Cal wide receiver Bryce Treggs, and Washington safety Sean Parker along with Husky coach Steve Sarkisian. Each graced media day with his presence.
Lee and Richardson were Serra High teammates. Parker is from Narbonne. Pullard played at Crenshaw and Treggs at St. John Bosco; they grew up in Inglewood. Barr played at Loyola; he's from San Pedro.
For Arizona, this season commences with a quarterback search, which begins with lanky (6-foot-3, 173 pounds) senior B.J. Denker, the former North Torrance star.
"B.J. was the top guy coming out of spring," Wildcat coach Rich Rodriguez said. "When we take the first rep of the first day, it will be B.J. Then the competition will go on.
"I expect B.J. to be pretty good. I think he understands our system, and he's a competitive guy. And he was pretty good last year when he got his chance."
The competition includes redshirt freshman Javelle Allen, incoming freshman Anu Solomon and a wildcard, well-traveled Jesse Scroggins, former blue chip prospect out of Lakewood High, USC and last season El Camino College before moving to Tucson, where he missed spring practice because he was in the shop getting a foot repaired.
Denker's 2012 chance was a start against Colorado, a 56-31 victory in which he completed 12 of 14 passes for 136 yards and two touchdowns; he also ran nine times for 46 yards and a touchdown.
Scroggins had a rough season at El Camino following two years as a spectator at USC, prompting surprise when Arizona reeled him in.
Asked about his Scroggins decision, Rodriguez said, "I don't think he was healthy at JC. I think there were a lot of situations that came up ... weren't ideal for him. Also, I thought he was hungry."
The measure of how strong Serra's passing attack was in 2010 is in the fact that Heisman trophy candidate Lee, then a junior, was a defensive back and only a distant afterthought on offense for the Cavaliers. Robert Woods and George Farmer were quarterback Conner Preston's primary receivers with, an additional measure here, Richardson his third option.
Woods, now with the Buffalo Bills, is USC's career receiving leader (252), Farmer is on the shelf at USC following knee surgery and Richardson, after a year off for his knee injury, will be a focal point of Colorado's offense.
Anthony Barr is UCLA's most honored returning player. He grew up in San Pedro but attended Loyola High in Los Angeles. He was a second-team All-America selection as a junior in his first season as an outside linebacker after bouncing around on offense as a mostly-ignored hybrid tight end-running back.
Barr, who is 6-foot-4, said he has bulked up from 235 pounds last season to 255. UCLA lists him at 248. Shades of legendary Red Sanders, coach of the lone Bruin national championship team, in 1954. Sanders prompted the originally sarcastic "Gutty Little Bruins" tag by listing his players at lower than their playing weights.
There was a question about the famous/infamous, depending on if you are a Bruin or a Trojan, hit that ended quarterback Matt Barkley's career at USC.
Barr's candid response: "I want to know why the tackle just let me go, for whatever reason. He should be standing up here and talking to you guys, because he's the reason why I was able to make that play."
That was a big-time shot across the bow of Aundrey Walker, USC's invisible left tackle.
Parker, a true senior, has been joined at Washington by another Narbonne product, freshman quarterback Troy Williams.
"Troy's got a real chance," said Sarkisian, a quarterback at West Torrance and El Camino as well as an assistant coach at El Camino and USC. "He can throw the football. He's as competitive as any of the guys I've been around. You see why Narbonne was as good as it was."
Williams enrolled early to start his college career in spring practice.
"He's still just a puppy running around out there," said Sarkisian. "He makes some mistakes. But I really like his future."
His first play in high school, in relief of injured Chad Dashnaw, was a bomb for a touchdown at Mira Costa.
"I believe it," Sarkisian. "He's got it in him."
And how about a quick scouting report on Parker?
"He's earning his degree," Sarkisian said. "I'm really proud of him."
That's reality beyond football.
Clearing out the mini-notebook:
Classic OB: Asked about Coco Crisp, the Oakland center fielder from Peninsula, Westchester and Inglewood plus Pierce College, former Harbor College baseball coach and athletic director Jim O'Brien said: "I don't remember him. I don't think we played them when he was there. I do remember Barry Zito pitching for Pierce and losing to the Hawks. Tony Bloomfield was coaching us then." ...
Opinion: MLB commissioner Bud Selig's denials to the contrary, his late push against performance enhancing drugs after years of keeping his head in the sand is about what he perceives will be his legacy. ...
Top receiver list: Lee and UCLA's Shaquelle Evans (Inglewood High) are on the Biletnikoff Award watch list, as is USC's Nelson Agholor. ...
Bottom line: Sarkisian stuck around a couple of days after media day for a more important event, his mother's birthday.
Mwsptcol@aol.com
Source: http://www.dailynews.com/sports/ci_23765379/mike-waldner-pac-12-football-has-strong-local?source=rss
Steam Summer Sale 2013
