Answer Friday!

Q: Jeff from Canada said:

Scott,
I have been reading your blog for several years and have noticed a continuing trend in your AP poll voting- you have consistently voted USC lower than your peers.
Are you aware of this? Is it possible that you grade them tougher because you are following the team on a regular basis? Is it possible that you grade them tougher to avoid being considered a homer?
To be fair- I appreciate that you are willing to post your poll and face the criticism.
Any insights to your voting procedure would be appreciated.

A: If I do vote USC than most of the other voters, it might be because I am more familar with the team than the other voters. I had USC No. 7 the past couple weeks and I'd argue having them lower was accurate considering what happened in Oregon. One colleague had USC No. 2 going into the game. And as I've said before, I voted USC No. 1 in the 2003 AP poll when it split the national title with LSU. So

Q: gotroy22 said:
Do you consider O'Dowd a major disappointment this year?

A: I know that he's been hurt so I consider that a reason for any problems he's had with his play. Even if he played hurt, I don't consider him a major disappointment because the offensive line as a whole was fine when he played and even hurt, he's better than a lot of centers.

Q: trojanfanmatt32 said:
Scott Even pollspeak called you out. you got what you wanted -attention:

Scott Wolf gets his second consecutive Bad Voter of the Week which is no surprise since he is once again the most extreme voter, which gives him the biggest opportunity to upset a lot of fan bases. His ballot most likely upsets the old Rose Bowl crowd, ranking Oregon lowest while leaving Ohio State and Penn State off of his ballot completely (Houston is also missing).

A: Now my life is complete.