Friday, October 31, 2008

Game Day Approaching!

Game day is approaching for the Trojans, meaning the Jimokes have important work! Earlier this morning, each of us contributed in putting on the game day jerseys on the 70 players who have a stick-type tape on their shoulder pads. 

Later today, we will run the walk-thru and load the truck with the equipment bags.

One day closer to the Huskies!

Thursday, October 30, 2008

A Halloween Ferrell

For a Halloween prank played on the players, Will Ferrell made an appearance after practice today, participating as "Captain Compete" where he caught a man falling out of a 40 foot tower and attempted to save a burning man (others were able to get it done), all while preaching to the players about constantly competing, a motto that is urged by Pete Carroll.

As a USC alum, Ferrell always enjoys coming back to his alma mater, and the USC football team and staff surely enjoyed his company!

Under the Sun

Today marked the last full practice the Trojans and Jimokes will have with the sun beating down for every minute with Sunday morning's "Fall Back" with the DST occurring at 2:00am. We will now be under the lights for the last hour or so of each practice, creating some fun atmosphere for everyone!

Off to the "Coli"

Yesterday, some of the Jimokes loaded up all the trunks on the USC Equipment Truck to take over to the Coliseum. The equipment staff likes getting everything we need over to the stadium early and have it ready to go for Saturday's game! 

Everybody is prepping for USC vs. Washington! 

Here We Go...

Yesterday was hump day in the world of the Jimokes, meaning we are now on the downhill slope on the path to game day! Today is the Day Before the Day Before and Washington is only two days away! We will have the regular Thursday practice, followed up by the Jimokes' duties with the polishing of the helmets and 7-pad check that has now become routine.

Monday, October 27, 2008

Back to It

Today's "Tell the Truth Monday" was a quick and easy practice for the Jimokes, who also broke out a couple dozen brand new balls. The preparation for the University of Washington has begun and tomorrow's "Competition Tuesday" will also be a good practice as we prepare for the last winless team in the Pac-10. 

Green on the Other Side of the Fence

The Jimokes and players were welcomed to freshly painted grass on Howard Jones when they walked out this afternoon. The USC Grounds Crew spray painted the field over the weekend to give it that new, fresh look we haven't seen for months!

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Completion of the Day

With the stadium atmosphere great, the Trojans prepared for the game under the lights, played a fast game, and then cleared the locker room. Here are some stunning images:
 





 

Hours Before Kickoff

The Jimokes were on the field hours before the kickoff to set up the Coaches' Communication system and set up other miscellaneous things to prepare for the game. Here are some pictures of us and of the stadium, in the hot desert sun. Luckily the heat was not present for the game...








Locker Room Setup - Arizona Stadium

The Jimokes had to work around a small locker room to set up, but made the best out of it, that's for sure! Take a look of some quick pictures after hours of work by the Jimokes: 



Jimoke Travel

Here are some cool photos of the traveling Jimokes, with a stop by ASU:

Jimoke Roady

During this past weekend, three Jimokes made a special, memorable, trip down to Tucson, Arizona for the game! After preparing jerseys for game day, the three of us (Brent Cochran, Adam Kossoff, and myself) embarked on the road trip. Our initial goal was to reach Arizona by 5pm for the stadium walk-thru, but upon hitting traffic in Phoenix, we realized we weren't going to make it and stopped by Arizona State University. Brent transferred to USC from ASU so he was able to give us a tour, while we had a nice dinner and saw some scenic views. 

Upon arriving in Tucson, after a 10 hour trip, we joined the team at the hotel. After a good night of sleep, all of the Jimokes (including the four who traveled) ate breakfast and relaxed for a few hours. Around 2pm, we arrived at Arizona Stadium for the locker room setup, the preparation of Coach Comm, and the anxious arrival of the team. 

Once the team arrived, the Jimokes were ready for their duties. Arizona Stadium was an electric atmosphere, with the students ready to go! It was homecoming for the University of Arizona, so the place was "hopping"! Fortunately, the Trojans were able to eek out the win with a stout performance from the defense and Stafon Johnson. 

After the game, the Jimokes cleaned up all the player's equipment in the locker room while the players showered and cleaned up. Immediately after, the four traveling Jimokes boarded busses to the airport with the team and arrived back at campus at 2:45am. The other Jimokes drove to Phoenix, and finally went to sleep around 4am, continued driving at 10am, and finally arrived back to campus at around 4:45 this afternoon. This concluded a long weekend for the Jimokes, especially for those that drove. However, a memorable trip no question. 

This is what being a Jimoke is all about!

Thursday, October 23, 2008

On Hold

While the football team won't leave until the mid-afternoon, those Jimokes who are traveling by themselves, will leave around 10:30am or so tomorrow morning, after preparing some game day jerseys. With this scheduling, we should be able to arrive in Tucson right as the team arrives at Arizona Stadium for the hour long walk-thru.

Good news for everyone, as the weather seems to be fairly warm and sunny during our stint int he desert. Previous reports earlier in the week indicated a rainy game on Saturday night, but that is now no longer the case.

Upon returning on Sunday, we have photos and posts documenting the road trip, walk-thru, locker room set up, and TROJAN GAME DAY!

Jimoke Road Trip

This weekend's game against Arizona is bringing the majority of the Jimokes as well. Other than the usual four travelers, a lot of other Jimokes will be making the drive down tomorrow.

Travelers: Matt Burkhard, Eloy Ledesma, Eric Ziskin, John Serrano

"Road Trippin": Brent Cochran, Adam Kossoff, Joe Gibson, John Porter, Brian Wagner

Game-time decision: David Toper

It is nice to see the Jimokes represent well in a huge game for the Trojans!

It's Thursday Again!

It's Thursday again for the Trojans, and that means the Jimokes are preparing for game day. Tonight, we will do our usual routine of doing 7-pad check and polishing the helmets. Tomorrow morning, we will also get a head start on the game day jerseys by putting them on the shoulder pads, so they will be ready to go during locker room setup on Saturday. 2 days 'till GAME DAY!

Equipment Truck Loading

Currently, the Jimokes are loading up the equipment truck with all the necessary trunks that will used for the game. The trunks include everything from the player's game needs to the anything the staff needs, and everything else you can think about that USC has for a football game. The truck will leave earlier than the team does, so we can have a lot ready before the team arrives in Arizona. 

Hump Day

Hump Day for the week is now passed us, as the middle of the week was yesterday. We are now on the downhill road on the way to Tuscon, Arizona for a battle for the top of the Pac-10 Conference.

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Competition Tuesday

Tuesday's practice was a great one for the Jimokes. First of all, offensive floater John Serrano returned after spending a few days back home in San Antonio, TX. Also, the practice went fairly smoothly, with all the Jimokes contributing with their skills. 

Monday, October 20, 2008

Preparing for the U of A

Today's practice marks the beginning preparations for our next contest against the Arizona Wildcats! Saturday night's game will kick off at 7:15, making it the first late night game for the Trojans.

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Game Day Photos!

Here are some photos from Saturday's game, including some peaceful images as we left the Pacific Northwest upon sunset.
 

 





Images: Traveling, Friday Walk Thru

The Trojans took an early afternoon flight to Idaho on Friday, and upon arrival, were bussed to Martin Stadium, for their quick walk-thru. Here are some stunning images.





Locker Room Photos

Here are some up close photos of .our locker room set-up and completion. The locker room was interesting, as it consisted of gym lockers, not the typical football lockers that we're used to.