Baseball card courtesy of www.baseball-almanac.com

Issue: Spring 2006

[ Editor’s Note ] Triumph and loss

For USC athletics, the holiday season brought a rollercoaster of emotions, from heady triumph to heartbreaking defeat to the sudden grief over the loss of one of baseball’s legends.

December started with the news that the men’s water polo team had defeated Stanford 3-2 to win its third NCAA national championship, finishing the season 26-1 with a record 19-game winning streak.The match was a thriller, with USC’s final score coming in the last minutes of competition. Later in the month, the American Water Polo Coaches Association announced its awards: USC coach Jovan Vavic was named Coach of the Year, and senior Juraj Zatovic, USC’s all-time leading scorer, was named Player of the Year. Five other Trojans also were named All-Americans.

On December 10, Reggie Bush won the Heisman Trophy, over Texas quarterback Vince Young and 2004 winner Matt Leinart, and the Trojans seemed invincible. Then came January 4 and the Rose Bowl, which USC lost in the final seconds with a dramatic scoring drive led by Young.

On the very next day, January 5, legendary baseball coach Rod Dedeaux, who had suffered a stroke in early December, died at the age of 91, prompting an outpouring of affection and respect from coaches, sportswriters, former players and the legions of Trojans who knew and loved him.

“A giant has passed away,” said USC athletic director Mike Garrett, who was an outfielder for Dedeaux in 1965. “You’ll never, ever, in our lifetime see another Rod Dedeaux,” added former L. A. Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda, comparing his influence on the sport to that of John Wooden on college basketball.

But Rod Dedeaux was more than a baseball coach. His involvement with USC extended back more than 70 years; he met his wife, Helen, when they were both students at USC. And the Dedeaux family has been an integral part of the university ever since. Ironically, on page 63 of this issue, you’ll see a photo of the coach taken last October, with one of his former players, acclaimed film producer David L. Wolper, who was honored with the Half Century Trojans Hall of Fame Award. As you can tell from the photo, Rod Dedeaux’s energy and enthusiasm was with him until the end.

– Susan Heitman