EL SEGUNDO HERALD November 23, 2017 Page 5 SBA loans. Business credit lines. Cash management services. Commercial RE, construction and equipment loans. Ed Myska Senior Vice President 310.321.3285 emyska@grandpointbank.com 1960 E. Grand Avenue, Suite 1200 El Segundo, CA 90245 grandpointbank.com Five-Star Superior Rating by BauerFinancial Trojans, Bruins Rivalry Could Have a New Look Next Season By Adam Serrao The matchup between the USC Trojans and the UCLA Bruins always carries along with it a certain mystique. This year, that mystique was inflated just a bit more by the two quarterbacks taking snaps from center for each respective team. Sure, the Trojans and the Bruins always play each other hard and bragging rights in the city of Los Angeles are constantly on the line when the two teams meet up. Outside of L.A., though, all eyes were on the Coliseum field with less of the intention to see which team would win the game and more with the purpose to see which quarterback would outperform the other. The Trojans won this year’s rivalry matchup played against the Bruins last Saturday night at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum--and even though the game was a lot closer than most originally thought it may have been, it wasn’t the final scoreboard that really mattered. Sophomore Sam Darnold was up against junior Josh Rosen in a matchup of two NFL Draft-worthy talents that had professional football scouts everywhere drooling. Sure, Darnold and USC may have won the night with a final score of 28-23 over their much-hated rivals from Westwood. It was Rosen, however, who may have won the box score. Darnold burst onto the scene two years ago when he entered the game for the Trojans in mop-up duty and well… mopped up. Since then, the NFL prospect has gone 19-3 as a starting quarterback for USC and has the team as a longshot candidate for a playoff spot this season. In last week’s game, Darnold completed 17 of 28 passes for 264 yards and ran for a score. He also threw an interception. Those numbers don’t necessarily tend to jump out of the box score and slap you in the face like one might expect of a potential number one overall draft pick, but Darnold once again did what was most important by leading his team to their 10th victory of the season. It was Rosen who had the better game of the night statistically, perhaps because he was forced to carry much more of the load on a team that is much more devoid of talent. The UCLA starter finished with 421 yards through the air, three passing touchdowns and one interception. “When you talk to Josh, he’ll probably talk about the missed opportunities,” Bruins ex-head coach Jim Mora explained after the game. “That’s what great performers do. He won’t talk about 32 completions for 421 yards, but the one interception. It’s all about team and winning for him.” Unfortunately for Rosen, his team has only managed to win five games in a college football season that may now even see UCLA out of bowl contention. There are an incredible number of questions abounding for a Bruins team that has not only fired its head coach, but may now be facing the harsh reality of losing their star quarterback to the draft. For as good as Rosen has been during his tenure at UCLA, the best that the team has finished in the standings has been with a record of 8-5. At that time, the 8-5 mark was the worst season the team had ever experienced under their now previous coach, Mora. Fast-forward to present day and it becomes more surprising that the Bruins only lost by five points than that the team lost at all. “Beating UCLA, keeping the Victory Bell here and just staying undefeated at home for the last two years, it’s a huge accomplishment,” Darnold said after the final seconds had ticked off of the Coliseum clock. Running back Ronald Jones II was just as big a reason for the Trojans’ success as Darnold, if not bigger. Jones rushed for 122 yards and two touchdowns, keeping the UCLA defense honest all night long. With the victory, the Trojans (10-2, 8-1) finished off the regular season in a strong fashion. They’ll take the momentum of the rivalry win into the Pac-12 championship game against either Washington State or Stanford and then hope for a miracle in order to move up a few spots in the end-of-year rankings. The Bruins, however, have now gone 0-6 on the road while remaining unbeaten in Pasadena. UCLA (5-6, 3-5) will welcome Cal to town this week, needing a victory in order to gain bowl eligibility. Neither Darnold nor Rosen are required to leave for the NFL after this year’s college season is done. Each player has at least one year left of college eligibility and may use it depending on the NFL teams that are sitting there at the top of the draft board attempting to snag the respective prospects. Another year of competition between the two quarterbacks in their college uniforms sure would be fun to see. Both, however, are destined to play on Sundays under the bright, primetime lights and will more likely than not be lured to do so once this year’s college football season officially comes to an end. – Aserrao6@yahoo.com • Visit us online: www.heraldpublications.com Huntsman Senior Games in Utah Reunite Former Eagles Greats By Gregg McMullin What do Jeff Tidwell, Scott Mc- Gregor, Stewart Swiggum and Eddie Carroll all have in common? Each played on the 1969 Babe Ruth Worlds Series championship team and played on arguably the best team Coach John Stevenson led. His 1971 CIF Championship team went 32-2 and has been named to the CIF Southern Section’s top three high school baseball teams ever. All four also participated in an El Segundo Eagles reunion at the Huntsman Senior Games in St. George, Utah playing softball. McGregor, Tidwell and Dave Long were player-coaches for the team while 20 ballplayers registered for the week-long tournament--some reuniting after 45 years. The Huntsman Senior Games are set in picturesque St. George where some of the nation’s top seniors, 55 and older, compete in various sporting events in a number of age divisions. The Eagles team competed in the men’s 60-64 division in softball. Over 50 alumni from El Segundo were contacted to determine their interest in playing. The list included George Brett. However, George recently had knee surgery and politely declined since he has eliminated all sports except for golf. The teammates that did participate were competitive and played with such team chemistry that it was as if they had picked up where they left off 45 years ago. Eleven players from the Class of ‘72 took part, including Terry Ray who went on the disabled list with an injury just before the tournament started. Spearheading the team was Jeff Tidwell, who moved to Utah 40 years ago. He became a teacher after playing baseball and getting his degree at BYU. He’s married, has four kids and retired from Prudential Insurance after 25 years. He picked up pole vaulting at the Huntsman Games 13 years ago and helped form the reunion. After striking out 496 batters during his time at El Segundo High School, Scott McGregor was drafted in the first round by the New York Yankees. He was eventually traded to the Baltimore Orioles and was a 20-game winner in 1980. He won the final game of the 1983 World Series, allowing only three batters to get hits: Pete Rose, Joe Morgan and Gary Mathews. After 13 years in the Major Leagues, McGregor retired and became a youth pastor in Dover, Delaware. He is currently a pitching coach in the Orioles organization. Eddie Carroll, after his playing days for Coach Stevenson, was a part of the Dodger organization and reached AAA level before retiring. He later worked for the government as an inspector for the US Postal Service and is now a real estate broker. Carroll had one of the highlight plays of the tournament. Playing with two artificial hips and a reconstructed shoulder, he knocked down a line shot between first and second base. With great composure, while on his backside, he flipped the ball to Lisle Randall--the pitcher covering first base--for the final out of the game to preserve the Eagles’ 17-16 win. Stewart Swiggum, Class of 1972, was a standout outfielder/pitcher in high school. He played baseball at El Camino for two years. Eventually he went into business for himself and has run Pro Tech Automotive for over 20 years. Glenn White is a Huntington Beach Fire Department Captain and Arson Investigator. Last year, White received the Directors Special Recognition Award for his dedication and service to the Orange County Intelligence Assessment Center (OCIAC) as the Fire Department’s Terrorism Liaison Coordinator. Kirk Wolfsburger, Class of 1974, is described by his teammates as a wild and crazy guy. He still lives in El Segundo and owns his own business. He loves to ride his dirt bike and travels the world. Wolfsburger was one of the five players from this team to play for the Seals during his Babe Ruth baseball playing years and also played water polo for the Eagles. Kent Spittler didn’t play high school sports, but he’s athletic enough. His lifelong passions besides his family are skiing, cycling, fly fishing and golf. Don Bell is the brother-in-law of Scott McGregor and moved to Missouri 20 years ago. He hit the line drive of the tournament, but tore his Achilles running to first base. He was a member of the Beavers Babe Ruth League team. Lisle Randall is one of three players to play on the ‘71 and ‘73 CIF championship teams. He played baseball for Ricks College and has not stopped playing softball since his college days. He was a pitcher on the 1971 and 1973 teams and pitched in the Huntsman Senior Games. A nine-handicap golfer, he has been married to Chris for 39 years and played for the Babe Ruth League Angels. Eric Tidwell has a successful dental practice. After graduating from El Segundo, he went on to Creighton University and is an undergraduate from BYU. After leaving El Segundo, he realized he was better off extracting teeth than doing errands in Snuffy’s (Stevenson’s nickname) Porsche. Interesting how he and McGregor were both delegated City Council • School Board Events Calendar • Local News BE IN THE KNOW Herald Publication is now offering FREE digital delivery of any of their community newspapers. Be the first to know about upcoming local events. IT’S EASY AND IT’S FREE! Sign up at - http://bit.ly/2fMg4Eh El Segundo Herald • Hawthorne Press Tribune Lawndale Tribune • Torrance Tribune See Eagles, page 13
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