Lane Kiffin and Jim L. Mora Begin L.A. Rivalry With Foot-In-Mouth Contest
By Kyle Kensing
Lane Kiffin and Jim L. Mora have yet to face on opposite sidelines in the Crosstown Showdown, the annual meeting of Los Angeles-area rivals USC and UCLA. But nearly four months before their teams face off on the gridiron, the two head coaches were engaged in a dubious bout of verbal one upsmanship neither would want to win. Think of Chubby Bunny, but using feet rather than marshmallows.
Arizona head coach Rich Rodriguez publicized his vote of Pac-12 conference mate USC as No. 1 in the USA Today Coaches Poll, which Kiffin downplayed. The USC coach reportedly said, “I would not vote USC No. 1.”
Host of the poll USA Today begs to differ. Reading the full USA Today report is a must, as it explains interesting policies on the confidentiality of ballots.
Common criticism of the Coaches Poll is with time dedicated to game planning, monitoring players’ classroom and off-field activities, glad-handing boosters and administrators, a coach doesn’t have the insight to submit a well-researched ballot. Perhaps Kiffin could have saved face by admit what many speculating, that sports information offices handle these ballots. After all, that would mean Kiffin didn’t vote the Trojans No. 1.
Instead, Kiffin went into damage control mode. Via the same report, he said:
"“We have less players than everybody else,” Kiffin said. “So looking at it from the outside, I wouldn’t (vote USC No. 1). Did I? Yeah, I did. That’s not based off of 75 vs. 85. That’s based off of (USC players) Matt Barkley, T.J. McDonald and Robert Woods and Marqise Lee. When everybody has the same record, I can’t go into a meeting with our players and have them say, ‘You put that team and that team ahead of us.’ That’s why I did that.”"
If you can get past some of the more confusing verbiage, or took an Ibuprofen to deal, Kiffin does set forth an underlying message with which most would agree. At season’s onset, all teams are 0-0. Every coach preaches buying in to his team. What better way to earn their belief than such a bold vote of confidence? Of course, if every coach followed this mindset there would be dozens of programs voted No. 1, and since polls have bearing on championship standing, would further invalidate the postseason. But that’s a whole different matter.
Kiffin’s greatest folly isn’t voting his team No. 1. Had he defended the vote with a Usain Bolt kind of swagger, he may have won over converts.
Mora bested Kiffin in the foot-in-mouth competition and it wasn’t close. UCLA’s first-year leader appeared on the radio show of Roger Lodge (he of Blind Date fame) and said:
"“When you’re talking about UCLA, it’s one of the great schools in the world — not just America, but in the world. It’s a safe, beautiful campus in a great area of town. I mean, we don’t have murders one block off our campus.”"
In April, students Ying Wu and Ming Qu were killed in a carjacking gone wrong near the USC campus. Their tragic and untimely passing really should not be used as fodder for local recruiting competitions.
Mora later said the comment was not intended as a dig against USC, or Cal State San Bernardino where his Bruins are currently working out for pre-season camp. He told The Los Angeles Times‘ Chris Foster he was unaware of the students’ murders, but also went on the offensive.
"If anybody, whether USC or Cal State San Bernardino, is offended by the statement, then that’s their insecurity, not mine."
Well, it’s true he never specifically mentioned USC. Call it insecurity if you will, but there has been a longstanding contention that the USC campus’ location south of downtown L.A. is unsafe, which
.
Giving Mora the benefit, assume he was not specifically USC. In that context, it’s just a strange pitch to sell a university’s worth. I don’t envision UCLA brass abandoning mention of its award winning scholars in commercials during football broadcasts for a counter that reads “__ DAYS SINCE THE LAST MURDER NEAR CAMPUS.”
Now, if Mora does indeed have Trojans on the brain, it’s because there is a cardinal-and-gold cloud that lingers prominently over the head of any Bruin coach. Some reporters tried goading Mora into talking USC at Pac-12 Media Day, unsuccessful. It was an exercise in the omnipresence of USC football that has put UCLA at a disadvantage.
One method of breaking up some of those clouds is to beat the cross-city counterpart. Next time though, Mora will want that win to be on the gridiron and not a demonstration of how far one can stick his foot in his mouth.