To be ranked 39th out of 64 teams in the country and flagged as the fourth place team in the PAC 10 behind Stanford, Cal and ASU for next season is not good. Granted this poll doesn't mean much at this time but it is one indicator of the buzz about the various teams. This low ranking for USC is reflective of Creme and others' disappointment with the WOT's last two seasons. If you go back to his predictions in prior years, he had USC ranked much higher. However all of the injuries and the teams's under achievement have made the beat writers leery of getting burned once again in any preseason predictions about USC. That reaction is only natural.
The WOT 2008 team will, on paper, be a very talented team and should prove Mr. Creme's prediction dead wrong. I don't think he and any others would have any problems admitting their mistake. That being said, the expectations for next year's WOT must be much higher than Creme's prediction of making the tournament with a 3 or 4 place finish in the PAC 10. That type of mediocrity is not acceptable USC and will never "restore the glory" of past WOT teams.
