Los Angeles' two major college football teams are right where their fans hoped they would be, playing the final game of the regular season still in contention for a Pac-12 Conference championship.
The trip getting there? That didn't go anywhere near according to plan.
A few preseason prognostications had USC contending for a spot in the College Football Playoff. An experienced quarterback surrounded by marquee talent was expected to carry the Trojans to the Pac-12 title and maybe more under second-year coach Steve Sarkisian.
UCLA, with a precocious freshman quarterback but an experienced and star-studded defense, was thought to be ready to achieve national prominence under fourth-year Coach Jim Mora.