Months before UCLA and USC are set to face off, a new player for the Bruins is already embracing the rivalry's intensity. Tight end Josh Phifer, who transferred to UCLA with coach Bob Chesney from James Madison, has voiced his strong opinions regarding a billboard recently erected by USC near the UCLA campus.
USC's billboard, which features an unidentified player with the slogan "THE TIME IS : NOW," is situated at the intersection of Santa Monica and Sepulveda boulevards. When asked about the billboard, Phifer reacted viscerally, suggesting he would "go out there and get some black paint or something — [put] a X over it or something." This sentiment reflects a long history of spirited, and sometimes extreme, competition between the two Los Angeles-based universities.
UCLA coach Bob Chesney, upon his arrival in December, stated his intention to make UCLA the preeminent team in town, promising that it would happen "in the very, very near future." More recently, Chesney has adopted a more reserved stance regarding the USC billboard, stating he had not seen it and had "no real thoughts on it."
Phifer, however, is clearly motivated by the rivalry. "Obviously, I want to win that rivalry game, you know what I mean?" he said. "I want to whoop them, and I know recent history hasn’t gone the best for UCLA, so I definitely want to go win that game." The teams are scheduled to meet on November 28 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
The rivalry between UCLA and USC dates back nearly a century and has been marked by numerous pranks and competitive displays. Notable incidents include USC fans stealing UCLA's "Victory Bell" in the past, USC students displaying cards to form a giant "SC" in the UCLA section at a game in 1957, and USC supporters releasing crickets painted red and gold into a UCLA library during exam week in 1989. Both the Tommy Trojan statue at USC and the Bruin Bear statue at UCLA have also been targets of vandalism over the years, leading to increased security measures in some instances.