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Those who seek revenge should first dig two graves.
Chinese proverb

There are a lot of reasons to presumably hate USC. The effeminate white outfits their male cheerleaders wear (I have seen poodles look more masculine in white). That's reason enough right there. The Trojan fight song that they play endlessly during games. "Hey, we just did--something. Trojan fight song!" Ugh. Talk about annoying. Or, the way USC grads talk endlessly about how their band is the best because it was used in the recording of the Fleetwood Mac song, Tusk. As if anyone in Fleetwood Mac was sober enough at the time to tell the difference. We can only imagine the exchange:

R&R Guy: "Mick, the Trojan marching band is here."
Mick Fleetwood: "Fantastic." (THEN) "Who are they?"
R&R Guy: "They're the band we're using for Tusk."
Mick Fleetwood: "Brilliant." (THEN) "What's Tusk?"

As much as USC rubs me the wrong way, though, I would never give them the satisfaction of me hating them. Besides, I do greatly respect their tradition. Five Heismans is impressive. Eight national championships--also impressive. Not to mention, John Wayne was a Trojan football player. The Duke. That's pretty cool. Additionally, I greatly respect what Pete Carroll (USC's fourth or fifth choice for the job) has done with the program. Turns out he and his staff are top notch coaches and recruiters.

Still, despite the fact that Trojan followers would love nothing more than to hear how we loathe them, some Irish fans still insist on hating Southern Cal. Especially after last year's lopsided contest. Many of us complain that they ran up the score. They were blitzing until the very end. They wanted to humiliate us. They need to pay. Well, here is what I have to say to that.

We played like crap, deserved to get clobbered, and were fortunate it wasn't worse.

So, I say no to avenging last year's loss. The best thing would be for our Irish to beat them without revenge being a factor at all. I would love to see reporters asking ND players post game questions like, "You beat USC today--revenge must have been a factor." And, having our guys calmly reply, "It was just another day at work punching the 'ol clock," or "I actually think those USC guys are good dudes." I would love to see ND's equipment manager asking a male USC cheerleader, with sincere fascination, how they get their whites so bright.

Our focus should be "getting even" alright, but not in regard to hatred or revenge.

If we can get to 3-3--and "get even"--then suddenly it's a six game season. With six highly winnable games left. What we need is a huge push to the end of the season that transcends any one game or opponent. It's when teams and fans start talking about revenge that things like let downs happen. Just ask Michigan what can happen after a revenge win (after paying us back for last year's 25-23 loss, the Wolverines were manhandled and upset at Oregon the following week).

So, this weekend, when you find yourself contemplating feelings of revenge, try and focus on 3-3. Because "getting even" in the win-loss column is so much more important than "getting even" with a USC team that never did anything to us other than play their best, and enjoy a moment they deserved.

However, it would be perfectly acceptable if, while shunning the negative emotions associated with abhorrence and vengeance, we were able to kick the ever loving crap out of Southern Cal on general principle.

Send questions or comments for Todd Carr to nddomehome@hotmail.com