For those who are curious, USC’s opponent in the Emerald Bowl is Boston College, which technically will be a participant at San Francisco’s AT&T Park on Saturday evening.

Joe McKnight is hoping to play in the Emerald Bowl -- Associated Press photo by Mark J. Terrill

But the Eagles are sort of like the out-of-town opponent brought in to face the rising local boxing star.   Sure, the opponent has a chance to win, but the story and the focus is on the hometown kid, whose status will be measured by how well he does in this bout.   The other guy could be anybody from anywhere with any record.   Whatever happens, the headline in the next day’s paper will read: Local Boy Wins or Local Boy Loses.

So it is with the Trojans.   The headline Sunday morning will be USC Wins or USC Loses.   The inferences from either two-word headline will be many. 

If the Trojans fall, they obviously were not excited about playing in something other than a BCS game in January, as they have the past seven years and fully expected to do again this year .   And they are just as bad as their disappointing 8-4 regular-season suggested.   And maybe the USC reign is over and the decline has started.  And the Pac-10 was not a very good conference this season, since the conference lost its first two bowl games decisively.   And the personnel issues surrounding the team got to them (three players are academically ineligible, and leading rusher Joe McKnight joined the team Thursday but as of Friday it was still uncertain whether he would be cleared to play pending an investiagtion whether he violated rules by using an SUV that did not belong to him).  And freshman quarterback Matt Barkley just doesn’t have it.

If the Trojans win, then the players showed character by getting focused despite a disappointing season and a disappointing bowl berth.  And the Trojans were really better than they showed during the season.  And the Trojans are still a national heavyweight that will rise again.   And the Pac-10 must be pretty good if USC, in its current fractured state, can still take out an Atlantic Coast Conference team.   And the Trojans are still so loaded with talent that they can overcome the loss of several key players and the surrounding distractions to beat a decent foe.  And Barkley will be fine next season and could be a start eventually.

Folks in Boston may see BC as relevant player, but every other part of the country, and particuarly the West Coast, sees only USC on the field, making snide comments whenever something does not go the Trojans’ way, and nodding at the Trojans’ supriority when something does go their way.

So Boston College is indeed participating in the Emerald Bowl, but you may not be aware of it now and may not be made aware of it when the game is reported afterward.