Letters: Out with the old at USC

After reviewing incoming USC President Nikias’ letter to the Trojans’ community, the new motto of the reshaped USC athletic department can aptly be summed as “be more like Stanford.” USC has been trying to emulate Stanford’s elite academic reputation for years. If USC also wants to run a squeaky clean program adherent to the highest standards in Division 1, simply look at the tape from last year’s football game to see you can have your cake and eat it too.

Dean Paulsen

Manhattan Beach

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I am ecstatic with the dismissal of Mike “The Ostrich” Garrett and hiring of Pat Haden as athletic director at my alma mater. In one fell swoop, USC has gone from a rogue to a Rhodes scholar. Fight On!

Mark S. Roth

Los Angeles

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Today everyone including myself is celebrating the hiring of the squeaky clean Pat Haden. We all agree we needed a new aroma in Heritage Hall but let’s not get things twisted. The only thing we like more than a clean program is winning football games. If USC is circling the drain in the middle of the Pac 10/12, most of us would be longing for the good ol’ Mike Garrett/Pete Carroll days.

Willis Barton

Los Angeles

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So, USC has hired a new athletic director who met the requirements of being more capable, eloquent, likable, polished and competent than Mike Garrett.

Congratulations to Pat Haden for beating out the other 3 million qualified Angelenos.

Mark Backstrom

Inglewood

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There doesn’t seem to be much love shown for Mike Garrett and I would like to correct this if I may. I think in the future, the last 17 years will be known as one of the Golden Ages of USC sports. It is doubtful to me if we will ever win as many NCAA championships in such a short period of time as we have done under Mike. The football was fun; the basketball was fun; the track & field a glimmering of its past glory under impossible circumstances (the limitation of scholarships imposed on USC).

I would also like to point out that for 50 years as a loyal Trojan, I prayed for someone with the ability, foresight and courage to attempt to build our own sports arena. This was accomplished by Mike Garrett even though there were numerous predecessors who attempted unsuccessfully to do the same thing.

Let’s not kid ourselves — things were wonderful under Mike and although I hope things will be even better under Pat Haden, I think we owe Mr. Garrett a very deep debt of gratitude.

Jerry H. Buss

El Segundo

(The writer is the owner of the Lakers)

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Why aren’t the images of Pete Carroll being stricken from the Heritage Hall display?

Michael Amodei

Notre Dame, Ind.

Memo to Mike Garrett. Save yourself some time. There is no need to read between the lines as to what your firing as Athletic Director means.

Chris Pisano

Rancho Palos Verdes

Can they manage?

So Bill Plaschke doesn’t believe Don Mattingly is ready to take over the managerial duties from Torre.

Bill, I’ve seen Torre make many “wrong” decisions and screw-ups this year and I don’t hear you on his case! The last time I checked the NL West, the Dodgers were in fourth place in a five-team division.

Not only do I believe Mattingly could have achieved the same results or better, I think I could as well!

William Michael

Dana Point

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I have been a Dodgers fan since 1965 when as a kid growing up in San Diego, I first heard the voice of Vin Scully on a short-wave radio my father gave me the previous Christmas, and if they trade Matt Kemp [July 18], I will never, ever root for them again.

Well, not until the McCourts sell the team and the new owner cleans house.

Charles Freeman

Baldwin Hills

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Regarding the idea that the Dodgers might trade Matt Kemp, I have two words: Paul Konerko. I can’t think of a worse move they could make.

David Weber

West Hollywood

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With the utility infielder playing left field, a slumping .240 hitter batting cleanup and a minor leaguer as starting pitcher, did Joe Torre and Ned Colletti really expect to defeat the Giants? Not likely. Did 40,000 faithful fans deserve this kind of treatment? Not likely.

Jerry Moore

Cerritos

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Regarding “Hedge of their seats,” [July 23]: Fifteen dollars to park. $5 for a bottle of water. $5 for the worst hot dog on Earth. The highest profiled player is a gimp drug cheat who couldn’t play defense to save his life. They’re in fourth place.

Was this story really necessary?

Rick Mervis

Northridge

Bad deal?

In baseball you don’t trade potential greatness (Sean O’Sullivan) for existing mediocrity (Alberto Callaspo).

Frannie Mazenko

Garden Grove

Gloves are off

The next time those (mis)managing the sport of boxing wonder why it is mostly an afterthought when compared to MMA, they need look no further than the debacle of trying to set up a Floyd Mayweather/Manny Pacquiao fight. This is the only fight everyone wants to see yet odds are we never will. If Floyd and Manny were in the UFC, Dana White would have already matched them up at least one time and as smart and shrewd as he is, probably more than that. Telling people what they should want as opposed to giving them what they want crippled the domestic automobile industry and is turning boxing into horse racing — an irrelevant sport that is dying a slow, painful death.

Erik Schuman

Fountain Valley

Waiting for Kovi

The Devils visit Staples Center on Oct. 30. I hope the Kings use the huge money Ilya Kovalchuk sneered at to get the biggest, toughest, meanest defenseman available to pound him relentlessly throughout the game. Let him earn the extra dimes and nickels it was so important for him to squeeze into his paycheck.

Charles Sergis

Huntington Beach

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I find it incredibly ironic that the NHL players and owners would sacrifice an entire season for the sake of a collective bargaining agreement, only to have those same NHL players and owners come up with creative contracts in an effort to circumvent the terms of the CBA altogether. Way to go guys. Well done.

Steven Smullen

Torrance

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In a perfect world, Phil Anschutz would be a rich man’s Jerry Buss. In reality, he is a poor man’s Donald Sterling.

Andrew Warren

Santa Monica

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For AEG’s sake, I sure hope Beckham can skate.

Elizabeth Bergson

El Segundo

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