What Is the Glaring Omisson in the USA Today Poll? USC Trojans, of Course

Excuse me while I yawn at the news of today's release of the USA Today Coaches Poll.

You see, despite the applause emanating from those programs whose teams were smiled on favorably or the collective groans from those whose teams were not, I found the entire process much like getting ready to play solitaire with a deck missing one card.

Of course, that card, so necessary to play a complete game, is the USC Trojans.

Because of the NCAA sanctions, the poll released today has willfully omitted the Trojans and without them, the whole silly list seems to be just that. Silly.

Now, I understand that there will be those who will suggest that the Trojans in 2011 may not be good enough to be included anyway.

After all, the Trojans were only ranked 25th in the recently released Sporting News poll, and there are others who have excluded them altogether. To which Trojan fans simply smile.

Fans of the program believe, rightfully so, that the Trojans are not getting their due in 2011.

They will point out that at the recently completed Pac-12 media day, the Trojans were picked by the writers to win their division comfortably over the runner-up Arizona State.

It should be noted that Arizona State was picked 26th in today's poll, only three points behind No. 24 Texas.

Trojan fans think USC will be even better than that.

Although the Men of Troy will have some serious obstacles in front of them in terms of depth and inexperience in some units, they may have the best set of skill players in the west and their defense is expected to be much better in 2011 than they were last year.

If so, USC will be a major player on the college football landscape, albeit as a "phantom" program in the eyes of the pompous powers that be.

So Trojan fans will await the release of the only poll that matters to them in 2011, which is the AP poll, the last bastion of integrity in the sport.

To their credit, the AP has figuratively spit in the face of the NCAA, honoring the Trojans titles won in the past while continuing to rank them in the present.

So forgive fans of USC if they are not falling all over themselves with the news of today's USA Today poll.

They will save their energy for a poll with some integrity, namely the AP.

And whether or not the Trojans make that institutions top 25 is besides the point.

At least they know that the Trojans have the possibility for inclusion thus making it a true reflection of the sport.

And for Trojan fans, that is all that matters.