USC to the Rose Bowl? (as in--home games, 2008?)

The Los Angeles Coliseum is an ancient, crumbling, smelly old husk of a stadium, one that could be saved only with a face-lift that ran into the scores of millions ($100 million would get its foot in the door), which face-lift would include a complete renovation of its restrooms and concessions, a new sound system, a new video system, new entrance gates . . . and a replacement for every one of its 90,000 seats.

It is, also, situated in South Central LA, part of fifty blocks of squalor surrounding the green and pointed USC campus--a locus for the university that, pre-Pete Carroll, served as one of the great recruiting deterrents in the nation. All through the eighties and nineties, potential USC recruits were warned away by rival assistant coaches: "Why you wanna go there? The ghetto? In front of a half-empty stadium?" For it is gospel truth that the USC fan base is, collectively, the biggest group of front-runners in American sports, and not without reason; for if, on a gorgeous October afternoon, one is given the choice between driving into South Central to watch a dreary Sun Bowl-bound team tangle with Oregon State, or heading out to Santa Monica, up to Ventura, down to Disneyland or San Diego--well, did anyone hear the surf's up at Zuma?

So, it is one of the great ironies that these two institutions benefit from one another. The Coliseum is run by the Coliseum Commission, one of those civic institutions in which cronyism, sloth, and ineptitude are forever battling for supremacy. Including the nearby SportsCenter, the CC has run off, at various times, virtually every non-baseball team between San Jose and San Diego. It is left, really, with USC football and nothing else.

(And the Olympics? The Coliseum has hosted two Summer Olympics, dating back to 1932; in 1978, hot on the heels of the '72 Olympics humiliating one country (West Germany) and the '76 Olympics bankrupting another (Canada), the 1984 Olympics was LA's for the asking, and the city was allowed to call the shots, including staging the Opening Ceremonies in a stadium whose construction preceded the Great Depression.

This leads us to another irony: Peter Ueberroth--who created the modern Olympics as much as anyone--demonstrated in LA '84 that the Games could be run at a profit, or at least the break-even point; so now, thanks almost exclusively to Ueberroth, two dozen cities compete for the Summer Games every quadrennial. If Los Angeles were ever to beat out, for instance, Tokyo and Istanbul and Johannesburg for the Summer Olympics--in 2024, say--the entrance fee would be a behemoth venue, the sort of which is being constructed in the tumescent smog of Peking. The Coliseum, in that instance, would be a non-factor.)

As for USC, one of the selling points of autumn Saturday afternoons is the walk across Exposition Boulevard to that crumbling, smelly old masoleum. The band, the beers, Tommy Trojan, the kicking of the light pole (a tradition born only after my graduation), the walk past the rose garden, the view of the field that once featured Gifford, Garrett, Davis, Bell, White, Lott, Allen, Keyshawn, Carson, Leinart, Bush--this is not nothing.

The solution (or solutions) seem simple: Either the CC upgrades its venue, or USC upgrades it by themselves, in exchange for a long-term lease and some say in management. Apparently the CC is content to agree to neither, and allow USC to follow everyone else out the door. This matter was covered first in The Irish Trojan; I wrote this comment:

The Coliseum Commission, in my lifetime, has driven off the Lakers, Kings, Rams, and Raiders, plus UCLA football and USC basketball (albeit that last one was a long time due).

It was said that when one high-ranking Laker official, feeling jerked around by a CC seat warmer, broached the possibility of moving the Lakers to a new venue, and got this as a response (and I quote): "Har dee har-har."

The result was the Forum, and ultimately Staples, a mere few miles from the Sports Center, and everything a rebuilt Sports Center could have been. Har dee har-har, indeed.

Granted, Al Davis is nobody's hero, and moving the Raiders from Oakland was a huge mistake. But the CC did lure Davis to LA with the promise of refurbishments and luxury boxes. It delivered on nothing, and when the Raiders complained, the response was, "Fine. Sue us. See you in court for the next ten years."

The result: your new Oakland Raiders.

The Coliseum is a venue of historic proportions. If the Commission won't do right by the place, it should hand the keys over to someone who will.

Further down, this from hero Mike Garrett, who won USC's first Heisman, and later helped return the Trojans to glory as AD:

November 28, 2007
Dear Fellow Alumni:

It gives me no pleasure to write a letter of this kind, but there are issues facing our university which you need to understand. The University of Southern California has been negotiating diligently for months, trying to renew USC's lease with the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and trying to get guarantees that USC's football team and fans can enjoy home games in a completely renovated and improved stadium.

Unfortunately, talks are at an impasse, and right now we have no lease for the Coliseum next year. As a precaution, USC has negotiated a lease with the Rose Bowl to ensure that we have an acceptable stadium in which to play our home football games for the foreseeable future. But this arrangement is not what we want. We want our football program to remain at the Coliseum. And we want the Coliseum Commission-our "landlords" who manage the stadium-to begin the long overdue rehabilitation of the Coliseum.

You all know the many things which need attention:
Complete replacement of concession facilities to afford modern food and beverage services like those offered at all major stadiums.


Replacement of, and additions to, the currently inadequate restroom facilities.


All new, state-of-the-art video and score boards.


Replacement of the grossly inadequate sound system.


Improved access through renovated and replaced stairs, elevators and escalators.


Repair of crumbling concrete stairs, walkways and infrastructure.


Replacement of all seats.


Reconfiguration of entry gates in order to move fans in and out of the stadium safely and efficiently.
This is not just about people's comfort and enjoyment; it's about the long-term viability of the structure. It's old and worn out. And it is not being used to its fullest potential by the wider community.

USC has been waiting-I believe patiently-ten years for the Commission to do this, but they have not taken the necessary steps, and they will not promise to do so anytime soon. For a decade the nine-member Coliseum Commission has hoped to attract an NFL franchise to the stadium. Their plan has been that the NFL would pay for renovations. There was a clear message from the NFL last summer stating that "notwithstanding all of our best efforts to identify a mutually acceptable solution, we have determined that the Coliseum renovation project, as currently contemplated, would create significant economic risks for the NFL such that we are not prepared to move forward with the project at this time."

The Coliseum Commission asked USC to submit a proposal. So we did. We made to them what I think is an amazing offer. USC offered to spend $100 million to repair and improve the stadium on a ten-year plan, phasing in renovations each year. In return, we requested a master lease that would allow us to play football in the Coliseum for many years. We asked to participate in making decisions regarding the Coliseum and to be given opportunities that would allow us to offset our outlay of money by controlling more of the stadium's revenues. And we'd help make sure the Coliseum has a full life all year round, with entertainment and sporting events, both large and small, not just the six home games for the USC football team.

But the Coliseum Commission rejected our offer.

Our team deserves a great stadium. So do our fans. So do the people of Los Angeles.

The Coliseum Commission is made up of representatives from the city, the county, and the state. They need to know how you feel about this. I believe that our voices will be heard if we work through our elected officials. I urge you to e-mail, fax, or phone the appropriate official asking them to:

Let USC direct and fund the Coliseum's refurbishment in partnership with the city, the county, and the state.


Let USC, in collaboration with the Coliseum Commission, determine and perform vital repairs while ensuring steady income to offset expenses and upkeep.


Let USC be more than a tenant. (USC already brings in 60 percent of the Commission's revenue and that has been the only steady tenant for 80 years! ) We seek to be a key player in the preservation and enhancement of this great civic treasure and historic landmark. Remind them that for 80 years USC has stayed while other teams have gone, and that our home games spark spending in the neighborhood each fall to the tune of approximately $5 million. And that, in total, USC contributes $4 billion to the local economy each year.
If you'd like to join me in taking action, click here for the names of the people to contact.

Your support and commitment to the University of Southern California is invaluable. Together, let's continue to work hard to keep the USC football program in our beloved Coliseum.

Thank you for caring about this issue and for expressing your concerns.

Sincerely,


Michael L. Garrett '67
Director of Athletics
University of Southern California

Keeping USC would seem to be in the Coliseum Commission's best interests. But what do they care?