All three sections of the John McKay Center are really changing dramatically. Such progress on the roof tiles from last week!
The first person we saw as we walked into the south doors of Heritage Hall was Nickell Robey. I asked Nickell when he will be done with his tests. With a big smile on his face he said, "Today, and then I'm going home." Good luck on your test and have a safe trip, Nickell!
As we were setting up, two more football friends walked up to the desk. Aundrey Walker and Lamar Dawson both told Trojan Candy that their last test is today and then they are going home. Good luck on your tests and have safe trips home, Aundrey and Lamar!
Next, friend Dan Avila came to the desk to visit. We talked about his trip to the NCAA Water Polo Championships. Dan was the official USC photographer at the match. He said that our team was so much better prepared than the Bruins. Then, coincidently, Dan told me that Goalie Joel Dennerley was walking through the lobby. Trojan Candy sprang into action. I ran over to meet him, asked if I could interview him, and brought him back to the desk. About the same time, Women's Golf Coach Andrea Gaston came up to the desk. She, Dan, my husband Jim, Joel and I had an interesting conversation. Coach Gaston and Joel compared golf competition to water polo competition. The main conclusion that Joel and Coach Gaston derived was that water polo players can stop the opposing team from playing well, whereas golfers can't. Our men sure stopped the Bruins from playing well! Congratulations to our FOUR Peat National Championship Men's Water Polo Team!
Now back to Joel Dennerley. Joel, who is from Chester Hill, NSW, Australia, has been the star goalie on the USC Water Polo Team for four years. Joel received his B.A. in Human Performance last May. He said that his last final of this fall semester is on Monday. Then, he will fly home, join the Australian National Water Polo Team and later compete in the London Olympics. Another USC Olympian! For hobbies, Joel likes to play water polo, go to the beach, and go camping. Trojan Candy loved to hear him speak with his Australian accent! FIGHT ON, Joel!
Five other new friends came to the Heritage Hall desk for the first time today. Curtis McNeal (3/11/2010) walked up to the desk with two of his high school friends. Mychal Davis and Luz Ramos toured some of the lobby with Curtis. Luz may be a Trojan next year. Trojan Candy again told Curtis how proud we are of him!
The fourth new friend looked familiar. I have seen him many times before...on the Galen Center floor. Sophomore Curtis Washington is a Forward on the USC Men's Basketball Team. He is injured this year but expects to be fully recovered next year. Curtis is from Elizabethtown, Kentucky, but he told us that he is a "Navy Brat." His dad is a retired Commander in the U.S. Navy, who served our country for thirty years. Curtis wrote that he has lived in Korea, Japan, Guam, Texas, Virginia, Illinois and Kentucky. Thank goodness that he lives in Los Angeles now! Curtis, who is majoring in Fine Arts, has many hobbies. He plays the drums in a church band, loves to play the video games "Call of Duty" and "Mortal Combat," and likes rap music by Wiz Analifa. Recover well and FIGHT ON, Curtis!
Allie Harrison is a Sophomore majoring in Creative Writing. Allie competes on the USC Women of Troy Soccer team. She is injured now and is a "student coach" for the time being. Allie, who is from Laguna Hills, likes to write, read Christian fiction and run. FIGHT ON, Allie!
The sixth and last new friend for today looked vaguely familiar. How did Trojan Candy ever miss him before? Reggie Wyatt is a Junior majoring in Economics. He competes on the USC Track Team in the 400 m hurdles, the 400 m and the 4x4. Reggie, who is from Riverside, likes to go to the beach. His favorite music is Hip Hop, R & B, and Jazz. FIGHT ON, Reggie!
Seen at the SCene:
Coaches: Golf: Andrea Gaston; Football: Lenny Vandermade, Monte Kiffin, John Baxter; Lacrosse: Lindsey Munday, Hilary Bowen, Devon Wills
Heritage Hall Friends: Jordan Cohen, Marianne Hunt, Sam Tulin, David, Dr. Bryce Nelson. Isaac Flores, Dan Avila, Scott Jacobson, Yvette Overton, Gregg Millward, Teresa Verbeck, Chris Grosskopf
Women's Water Polo: Adrienne Taylor
Women's Basketball: Ariya Crook-Williams, Alexyz Vaioletama
Soccer: Anne Turner, Isabelle Johnson
Women' s Golf: Alumna Stephanie Endstrasser
Rowers: Helen Tinkus
Track: Stephanie Hoffer, Anniya Louis, Kris Washington , Alitta Boyd
Football: Nickell Robey, Lamar Dawson, Aundrey Walker, Dion Bailey, T.J. Bryant, Hayes Pullard with his dog, Abe Markowitz, Curtis McNeal, Kevin Greene, Jawanza Starling, Peter Yobo, George Uko, Xavier Grimble, Alumnus Derek Simmons, Anthony Sarao, Torin Harris, Soma Vainuku
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Trojan Candy just realized that the 2012 USC Football Banquet will not be in December 2012, but some time later in January, 2013...after we win the 2013 BCS National Championship!
My husband Jim and I walked into the lobby of the Tutor Campus Center at 6:00 p.m. The lobby was fairly empty. Standing on the staircase was a young man talking on his cell phone. We noticed that he was all dressed up, but didn't recognize him at first. Then, he smiled at us. It was Robert Woods!
Standing by Robert Woods (8/19/2010) was Hayes Pullard and his mom. We spoke with Hayes's mom Sharon for a few minutes. Sharon told us that Hayes's father, Hayes Pullard, Jr., played on the Lakers! What an athletic family! Trojan Candy is so glad that Hayes chose to play football at USC.
We decided to walk downstairs to the Traditions Bar and Grill. This is where all the players congregated. Some sat on the sofas and others played pool. Sitting in a chair was a player holding crutches. I recognized his face; he was Amir Carlisle! He hasn't come by the Heritage Hall desk yet, so Trojan Candy walked over to meet him. Amir, with a big warm smile on his face, said that he just had surgery today. He said that the pain wasn't too bad and that he was okay. Get better soon, Amir and FIGHT ON!
At 7:00 p.m. a gentleman walked among us and played the dinner chimes on a small xylophone to beckon us to dinner. All the players filed into the Ballroom. It was beautifully decorated. All the Seniors and their families sat in the front tables. The underclassmen sat in the rear half of the ballroom. Over 600 guests attended. There was definitely a positive energy in the room, unlike last year's more somber banquet. Beating Oregon and UCLA at the end of the season sure did raise everyone's spirits and aspirations for next year!
Athletic Director Pat Haden walked onto the stage dressed in a white parka just like Coach Lane Kiffin wore at the Oregon game. What a tease! When A.D. Haden announced that Matt Barkley was coming back the audience erupted with cheers and clapping! Unfortunately, he was kidding! He amended his statement and said that Matt was coming back to his office to retrieve his backpack that he left in an earlier meeting. Trojan Candy sure hopes that A.D. Haden is prophetic.
During a break I was able to walk to Matt's table to give his mom Beverly two newspapers that I brought back from Denver after the Colorado game. The articles were very complimentary to Matt. They should be. Matt played superbly against Colorado! Trojan Candy told Matt, "We know that you will make a good decision, but we really want you to stay!" Matt just smiled. Let's all hope that he stays!
After dinner, the awards program began. One award was particularly interesting. Because of the sanctions, the family of Bob Chandler has not been able to give their award. So, they announced three award winners. The 2010 Bob Chandler Award went to Defensive Tackle Christian Tupou (11/11/2010). The 2011 Award went to Wide Receiver Robert Woods. Then the 2012 Award went to Linebacker Hayes Pullard. What fine choices indeed!
We sat in the middle of the room and several award winners walked right by our table. Trojan Candy took their pictures and congratulated every one of them! These friends stopped graciously for my pictures:
Check out other pictures that I took of the festivities and posted at Picasa by CLICKING HERE.
My husband Jim was taking pictures of the John McKay Center construction. Trojan Candy was setting up at the Heritage Hall desk. Two freshmen football players walked up to the desk. Both had big smiles on their faces. One of them said, "Guess who I am!" Immediately, my brain began to think of a name to match his face. I pointed to the player to my right and said, "I know that you are George (Farmer)." An even bigger smile appeared on his face as he said, "Yes." Now, for the mystery player. He had very short hair. I said, "You can't be Lamar Dawson." "Mmmm," I stalled, trying to give my brain a little more time to recall. Then George said, "You were right the first time!" Lamar told me that he cut off his long hair. (No, this is not Samson and Delilah!) Lamar, with a bigger smile on his face, looked just as strong as ever!
Nine new friends came to the desk today. Seven of them were on the USC Track and Field Team. Track RULES today! The first new friend waited at the desk for several minutes. She wanted to take some Women of Troy Basketball posters to her dorm. Jim went upstairs to look for some, but there were none. Farrah Shuaib, who is from Lompoc, is a Residential Advisor at Fluor Tower. She wanted the posters for her freshmen in the dorm. She is majoring in Broadcast Journalism and Political Science. What dynamic majors! For hobbies, Farrah likes to write, dance, play the violin, and hang out with friends. Farrah wrote a "fun fact" about herself. She wrote that "USC was my top pick because of its Journalism School and school pride." FIGHT ON, Farrah!
Now, for all my new track friends. The second new friend is Junior Stephanie Hoffer. Stephanie, who is from San Gabriel, is majoring in Mechanical Engineering. She wrote that she wants to design cars for the Formula SAE Racing Team and would love to work for Fisker or Tesia. Stephanie competes in the Hammer Throw and her hobbies are snowboarding, volleyball and tennis. Stephanie is such a good athlete that she went twice to the Junior Olympics, to compete in...volleyball! What an athlete! FIGHT ON, Stephanie!
Sophomore Ross McDonald is from Newton, MA. He competes in the Pole Vault. When Ross was a Freshman at Newton South H.S., he broke the state record in pole vaulting with a 16' 9" vault. Thus far, Ross is undecided in his major. His hobbies are racing R/C Cars, skiing, hiking and rock climbing. Amazingly, Ross competes while wearing an insulin pump for his diabetes. Ross also can play the ukulele and guitar. What a multi-talented Trojan! FIGHT ON, Ross!
Viktor Fajoyomi competes in the High Jump. Viktor came to USC from Hungary. He is a Freshman majoring in Economics. As for his favorites, Viktor likes to listen to Hip-Hop music. FIGHT ON, Viktor!
Trojan Candy's fifth new Track friend is Colin Boehnlein. Freshman Colin is from Portland, Oregon. He is majoring in Health Promotion and competes in the Long Jump. One of his hobbies is playing video games. His other hobby is drawing...in particular Celtic drawing. What an intriguing hobby! FIGHT ON, Colin!
My sixth new Track friend came to the desk after the track team meeting ended. 
Junior Jeff Churchman is majoring in Business Administration. Jeff, who is from Santa Barbara, competes in the Javelin. Unfortunately, I was away from the desk taking Colin's picture when Jeff wrote about himself. That is why, Jeff did not write about his hobbies. Tell me next time, Jeff. FIGHT ON, Jeff!
Sophomore Brett Linkletter is a Business major. Brett is from Laguna Beach and competes in the Long Jump. His hobbies are skimboarding and traveling. Trojan Candy asked Brett where he has traveled to. Brett said Europe, China and Latin America. Another world traveling Trojan! FIGHT ON, Brett!
My last new Track friend is Jeff Zia. Freshman Jeff is from Oak Park, CA. He is majoring in Aerospace Engineering. For hobbies, Jeff practices karate, kayaks, enjoys outdoor activities and likes to travel. (Maybe Brett and he can take a trip together!) Jeff, like Brett, has been to Europe and China. 
Jeff is a versatile athlete; in high school he competed in the pole vault, the long jump and the high jump! FIGHT ON, Jeff!
My final new friend today was Junior Anna Gustafson. She is majoring in Mechanical Engineering. 
Anna, who is from Royal Oak, Michigan, plays Midfield on the USC Women of Troy Lacrosse team. Anna's mom and brother are also Trojans. Her mom, who graduated in 1980, played in the Trojan Marching Band and became a dentist. Anna's brother just graduated in 2011 in Electrical Engineering. Another Trojan Family! For hobbies, Anna wrote that she is interested in photography. She likes to photograph flowers and travel locations. Anna likes to listen to all kinds of music, and she plays the violin. FIGHT ON, Anna!
Seen at the SCene:
Heritage Friends: Pat Haden, Odette Overton, Scott Jacobson, Jill Dennis, Rebecca Morin, Sean Jordan, Pierson Clair, David, and Paul Goldberg.
Coaches: Football: Lenny Vandermade.
Rowing: Kajsa Olsson, Anna Janicka, and Helen Tinkus.
Women's Water Polo: Adrienne Taylor and Blair Moody.
Track and Field: Caroline Lutzky, Alitta Boyd, Lauren Chambers, Anniya Louis, Eric Williams, Vanessa, Nia Ali, Jessica Davis, Loudia Laarman, Kris Washington, Jovonte Slater, Cooper Thompson, Josh Mance, and Bryshon Nellum.
Football: George Farmer, Lamar Dawson, Marc Tyler (USC SWAGger is BACK!), Christian Tupou, Kevin Greene, T.J. Bryant, Hayes Pullard, De'Von Flournoy, Demetrius Wright, Zack Kusnir, Boomer Roepke, Ross Cumming, Marshall Jones, Randall Telfer, T.J. McDonald, Luke Freeman, Abe Markowitz, Wes Horton, Andre Heidari, Nic Curry, Drew McAllister and Markeith Ambles.