The New York Times ran an annoying article yesterday about how USC really, really wishes it was going to play a better team in a BCS game other than the Rose Bowl.

When a team ends its team meetings in training camp by chanting “Miami,” the host city of this season’s Bowl Championship Series title game, it has greater ambitions than to beat up on what is perceived to be another lumbering Big Ten team, even if this one was a last-second field goal from playing for the national championship.

O rly?

This game against Penn State in a familiar stadium may not be quite what they were hoping for. But when the Trojans walk into the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day, they will try to remain convinced that a bowl by any other name couldn’t be so sweet.

This will just make the Penn State victory on Thursday all the more enjoyable. (This is the year we’re going to disprove the Beef Bowl theory.)