Seattle and Los Angeles are two Western cities whose sports teams have regularly clashed over the years. The Sonics played the Lakers in multiple NBA Western Conference finals series in the 1980s. The Seahawks played the Los Angeles Raiders in the 1983 AFC Championship Game. The Raiders won and went to Super Bowl XVIII.
The Mariners play the Angels. Now the NHL Kraken face the Kings and the Anaheim Ducks. Washington would be in the Pac-12 Championship Game, not Utah, if it had beaten UCLA this season.
Yet, as much as Seattleites might want to beat L.A., the residents of that city will be pulling hard for USC this Friday night.
Husky fans will be shouting “Fight On!” when the Trojans face Utah in Allegiant Stadium. A USC win not only sends the Men of Troy to the College Football Playoff; it would send Washington to the Rose Bowl.
Washington needing a late-season USC win to go to the Granddaddy is not a new thing. This scenario has existed multiple times before.
Let’s dig into the historical archive: