Todd McNair Case To Get New Judge and More USC Football News

The Todd McNair case will get a new judge after the NCAA’s successful motion, but is it a true victory? Plus our daily round up USC football news from the web.

Can’t get enough USC football and basketball news? We’ve got your morning dose of all the best content from around the web concerning the men of Troy.

1st & 10:

First Take… Congratulations to the NCAA. You’ve won. Sort of. Maybe.

As reported by the LA Times Tuesday, Judge Frederick Shaller is being reassigned and a new judge will now oversee Todd McNair’s defamation case against the NCAA. This comes on the back of the NCAA’s request to have Shaller removed because of his ties to USC as an alumnus of the university and the perception of bias that might cause.

But make no mistake, as much of a win for the NCAA as this might seem in a legal sense, it’s not much of a victory.

It wasn’t the NCAA’s argument about media and internet message boards drumming up hate for the NCAA in the Los Angeles area that saw Shaller removed. Rather it was a technicality — because the 2nd District Court of Appeals struck down a small portion of Shaller’s initial ruling (not the part where he stated that the Committee on Infractions acted maliciously towards McNair), the judge’s continued participation could be challenged without good cause.

That means the NCAA has successfully stalled the case a bit longer and will now throw themselves at the mercy of a new judge.

Of course that also means that there can be no complaining about the USC ties of the new judge, should he come to the same conclusion that Shaller did when he rejected the NCAA’s request to dismiss the lawsuit.

McNair, and the USC fans hanging on every revelation as proof of NCAA misconduct, have waited a long time for this case to proceed. It’s still going, don’t worry.

And Ten USC Football and Basketball News Links…

1. “Tate Martell Announces Top 7” — Reign of TroyFive-star quarterback Tate Martell announced his Top 7 schools on Twitter including USC, UCLA, West Virginia, Cal, Ohio State, Miami and Colorado.
2. “Which Team Is Best Fit for No. 1 Dual Threat QB?” — Bleacher ReportThe conventional wisdom at the moment says Ohio State will be Martell’s ultimate landing spot but Cal is also a major player in the race to sign the top-rated quarterback. As for USC’s chances? Martell cites Reggie Bush and Matt Leinart as players he looked up to as a kid.
3. “Most indispensable player: USC” — ESPNUSC’s most indispensable player as determined by Ted Miller is JuJu Smith-Schuster, which is admittedly obvious but undeniable based on sheer production numbers.
4. “JMax Going Down Under” — RipsIt BlogJordan McLaughlin will be among the 12 Pac-12 basketball players to represent the conference in their tour of Australia this summer.
5. “4-Star DE Luiji Vilain Sets Decision Date, 3 Finalists” — College SpunLuiji Vilain may have USC in his top three alongside Virginia Tech and Michigan but it would be a shock if he chose anyone but the Wolverines.
6. “Dejean-Jones was on road to his dreams before tragic death” — OC RegisterMark Whicker recounts the strange journey of Bryce Dejean-Jones, from leaving USC over frustration about his place on the team to UNLV where he was suspended for leaving the locker room angrily after a loss to Iowa State and the NBA where it all seemed to come together before tragedy struck.
7. “2016 NFL Player Rankings: Quarterbacks” — Athlon SportsCarson Palmer checks in at the No. 8 quarterback heading into 2016.
8. “Fullbacks hoping to make a tough decision for Seahawks” — Seattle TimesWondering what’s going on with the new crop of Projans? Pete Carroll says Tre Madden has done well during OTAs and will be in the mix battling for a roster spot as a fullback.
9. “A Century of Champions” — RipsIt BlogUSC legend Dean Cromwell was named the Pac-12’s All-Century Track and Field coach. In addition to winning nine NCAA titles for the Trojans, Cromwell coaches the football team for five year with a record of 21-8-5. Another recognizable name who helped the Trojans amass the most selections of all schools in the conference is Louis Zamperini.
10. “Notre Dame Football: First Thoughts on USC” — Slap the SignFor a view from the enemy sidelines, Bobby Norell gives his first thoughts on Notre Dame’s match up with USC this year, wondering if the Trojans could have four or more losses by the time the two face off.

Stat of the Day:

JuJu Smith-Schuster needs 109 catches and 1,477 yards to catch Robert Woods and Marqise Lee’s career receiving records at USC.

Social Media Snapshot: