My "Football Awards Banquet" article will be posted in three sections. The first section is about the reception.
Trojan Candy arrived at Tutor Hall just before 6:00 pm. As soon as I checked in, I immediately looked for any football players and their families. It was very quiet at first. My sister Patti and I sat on a long bench right near the door. Patti wanted to give 2016 USC football ticket stubs to the mother of each player whose picture was on the stub. The parents do get plain tickets unlike the ones that season ticket holders get. It would be a wonderful souvenir of their son.
It was now or never, so Trojan Candy asked Adoree' if I could interview him for a short time. He smiled and nodded "Yes." Adoree' said that his favorite food is Chinese food. He likes to watch Reality Shows. Adoree's favorite show is "The Bachelorette." He also likes to play "Madden." Then, Trojan Candy couldn't help herself. I had to ask the next and last question. After the Notre Dame game, Adoree' in a radio interview, when asked if he was staying or leaving USC early, said, "There's more meat on the bone." So, I bravely asked Adoree', "What do you mean by 'Meat on the bone?'" With a smile, Adoree' leaned closer to me and said, "There's a lot more that can be done at USC." Thanks and FIGHT ON, Adoree!
Still in shock about Adoree's answer, Trojan Candy saw another player of whom I have taken pictures for four years, but never interviewed. Leon McQuay III was standing nearby. So I rushed over to him and started interviewing him. Leon is the exact opposite of Adoree'! He is so SHY. Barely above a whisper, Leon said that his two favorite things to do are...play football and make music. I had to pull out of him his answer to my question, "What kind of music?" Leon finally said, "Hip Hop." Leon has one more favorite thing to do. He likes to watch the cartoon "Naruto." FIGHT ON, Leon!
Now it was time to go downstairs for dinner. As Trojan Candy walked into the banquet room, there were Adoree' and Leon standing together.
The second part of my "Football Awards Banquet" will be about the dinner and awards.
Congratulations to our USC Women's Soccer team for winning the National Title in the 2016 College Cup! Click each thumbnail to see highlights of this match. The first is from Pac-12 Networks and the second is from USCAthletics.
Congratulations to Katie Johnson (11/3/2013) on winning the College Cup Most Valuable Offensive Player honor! Here's a picture I took of Katie when she was a Freshman with teammates Mandy Freeman and Jamie Fink (11/2/2012). FIGHT ON, Katie!
FIGHT ON, USC Women's Soccer!
Congratulations to our USC Football team for earning a berth in the 2017 Rose Bowl game versus Penn State!
FIGHT ON, USC Football!
Trojan Candy was shocked to hear the sad news about USC football Alumnus Joe McKnight. I was so fortunate to interview him when I volunteered at the Heritage Hall desk. Here is his interview (11/12/2009).
FIGHT ON, FOREVER, Joe!