At a W hotel in New York City on Tuesday night, the Pacific-10 Conference unveiled its new logo, philosophy and direction. Years of apathy about marketing disappeared in a literal cloud of smoke - at a reception, the Pac-10's new logo was projected on a wall of smoke at the Whiskey Blue lounge.
But amid the optimism, uncertainty hung in the air.
All the revamped branding cannot change the league's new on-field reality - it will have to thrive this season and beyond with a watered-down version of its flagship program, sanction-riddled Southern California.
The new USC football news media guide perhaps summed that up best, showing a picture of Lane Kiffin, the Trojans' first-year coach, staring at a cloudy horizon. On the inside, a flurry of asterisks - about 100 overall - tried to erase many of the core accomplishments of the Pete Carroll era.
As the Pac-10 tries a bold makeover, USC is lurching into a meek new era. Seemingly doomed for a long period of mediocrity in the wake of a two-year bowl ban, the loss of 30 scholarships and a flurry of attrition from the ranks of their recruits, the once-mighty Trojans are contemplating life as one of college football's have-nots.
"They have an us-versus-the-world mentality right now," Kiffin said about his players. "Everyone is counting SC out a little bit."
Until recently, considering USC an underdog would have been like lumping the Yankees with the Kansas City Royals or worrying that LeBron James was being hindered by a lack of exposure. The Trojans had cornered the market on sideline celebrities and national cachet, and had become one of football's premier pipelines of talent into the NFL.
But the NCAA's scathing report about USC has raised suspicions that the university's success could be tied to its lack of compliance with NCAA rules. As Kiffin tries to lead the program out of its probationary wilderness, he is likely to be held to the unrealistic standards set by Carroll in an era when the Trojans seemed to have engaged in widespread cheating.
"No one likes to see sanctions, especially the magnitude that have been handed down," said Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott, who along with Kiffin pointed out that the sanctions are under appeal. "In the long term, USC is still USC."
USC was already 15 scholarships short of the NCAA maximum of 85 before the reduction of 30 scholarships began. Kiffin said USC would be unable to exceed 75 scholarships in the next three years.
Kiffin said that USC had brought in just three offensive linemen in its past two recruiting classes. Eight to 10 would have been ideal, and he is feeling the numbers crunch.
"The margin for error is very, very small for me," Kiffin said. "If we're going to sign classes of 15 guys and other people are signing 25, the last thing we can do is sign three guys who don't make it academically or two guys who end up getting kicked out of school."
USC still has tradition, a fertile recruiting base and plenty of recent success on its side. But as Kiffin's first Trojans training camp starts next week, the long-term prognosis is not good as he stares at an emaciated roster and impending sanctions.
