https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/resources/fact-sheets/californias-clean-air-decals

Are there income eligibility requirements for the new decal if I’m applying for a plug-in hybrid or battery-electric vehicle?
No. However, starting on January 1, 2018, if a consumer’s gross annual income is above the thresholds provided below, they are only eligible for the Clean Air Decal and not a rebate through the Clean Vehicle Rebate Project (CVRP).

Are there income eligibility requirements for the new decal if I’m applying for a fuel cell vehicle?
Yes. Starting January 1, 2018, if a consumer’s gross annual income is above the thresholds provided below, they have to choose between getting a Clean Air Decal or a CVRP rebate.

5 Women Sue USC Over Alleged Sexual Misconduct by Campus Gynecologist

USA TODAY SPORTS/REUTERS



Five former students at the University of Southern California filed lawsuits against the school on Monday, alleging they were abused by a former campus gynecologist while they were receiving medical treatment. One of the women said Dr. George Tyndall, who’s been accused of inappropriately touching students over the course of nearly 20 years, put his hand into her vagina during a 2003 exam and made vulgar comments about her genitalia, the Los Angeles Times reported. Another woman said he groped her breasts and told her she “likely had AIDS,” when she didn’t, according to the newspaper. USC has come under fire for not suspending the doctor until 2016, after multiple misconduct reports had already been made against him. “The president and the board at USC have created a culture and attitude of dehumanizing people and devaluing decency,” said John Manly, who is representing four of the women. Manly recently scored a $500-million settlement from Michigan State University for victims of Dr. Larry Nassar.

LA Times reporting.

Good news in my opinion.

Fight On!

There are simply no excuses for allowing the Tyndall scandal to happen the way it happened. There is no ignorance Nikias can plead over this one. If you have a campus gyno who is accused of harassment by multiple women, you report that asshole! So what if he threatens to sue you? USC could have handled that a lot easier than it will be to handle a mass lawsuit from his victims.

This one scandal is going to wipe away years of progress we have made toward becoming an ultra elite academic institution. I guess this is what happens when the university is run by people who thought it would be appropriate to designate Jamie McCourt to be a trustee. How can you have appropriate oversight with over 50 trustees? It's as if trustee seats are handed our as favors. Crazy.

Nikias needs to go. I don't care what his explanation is, we are now in the same conversation as PSU and MSU. Time to go Max.

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USC currently has just five commits from a 2019 class that will ultimately include between 20-25 members. It's still a bit early -- although, with the new signing period in effect, it's no longer that early.

Three of the five commits are three-star prospects while a fourth is an unrated punter. For the sake of comparison, not one of USC's 18 commits from the 2018 class was less than a four-star, though a few of the early commits that later de-committed were.

As most of you know, USC's average star rating for signees was a national-best 4.28 in 2018, and the Trojans have ranked in the top five in six of the past seven years (with Sark's initial, 11th hour class being the lone exception). This staff, like the ones before it, have proven to be great recruiting finishers, if not always good starters.

***
Most players who sign with USC are obviously four-stars. But I was surprised to see that USC had more than three times as many three-stars (26) as five-stars (8) from 2014-17. In 2018, USC brought in five five-stars and no three-stars. While each of the five-stars has been productive (albeit, to differing degrees), only about a fourth of the three-stars has made a notable contribution on the field.

Here’s the list of three- and five-stars from the previous four signing classes who have spent the majority of their careers playing for Clay Helton.

Five-stars:
JuJu Smith-Schuster
Adoree’ Jackson
Rasheem Green
John Houston
Biggie Marshall
Porter Gustin
Jack Jones
Tyler Vaughns

Three-stars:
Jordan Austin
Malik Dorton
Uchenna Nwosu
Ajene Harris
John Plattenburg
Don Hill
Jalen Greene
Deontay Burnett
Kevin Scott
Christian Rector
Cole Smith
Isaac Whitney
Daniel Imatorbhebhe
Matt Fink
Jordan Iosefa
Liam Jimmons
Cary Angeline
Jamel Cook
Keyshawn Young
Josh Fatu
Jalen McKenzie
Erik Krommenhoek
Jacob Lichtenstein
Tayler Katoa
Je’Quari Godfrey
Brandon Pili

***
Out of the 53 4-stars that USC signed between 2014-17, only 17 of them (32 percent) have been productive to this point. Granted, a lot of the ones that haven't are from the 2016-17 classes, so it's still very early in their careers. Several of these players, in fact, are projected to have a bigger role this upcoming season. But the large amount of four-stars that either fell out of the program or haven't produced from the 2015 class was probably a big reason why the Trojans were better two years ago than they were last year. It's been a feast-or-famine group that includes the likes of Darnold, RoJo and Cam.

The data suggests USC has a) done well with its five-stars -- there hasn't been a bust in several years, b) hit big with a handful of three-stars, though it's signed three times as many that haven't made an impact, and c) needs to get more out of its four-stars. I suspect most people will point to player development, which I understand, but evaluation, usage and a player's work ethic are also important factors in the equation.

***
So my question is, do the Trojans currently have too many three-star commits for your liking? Which commit is your favorite at this point?

I spoke to a couple sources about the recruitment of Rivals250 ATH Jake Smith.

In case any of you are unaware, Smith is a product of Notre Dame Prep in Scottsdale, Ariz. He’s being recruited to USC to play receiver and the coaches are also scheming other special packages to include even more in the offense. There’s also hope he becomes a punt returning weapon if he commits to USC.

Smith is down to USC and Texas and recently took an official visit to see USC on May 18. I spoke to two different sources after that trip about where his recruitment is trending. Before visiting USC, many felt Smith was leaning towards the Texas Longhorns. There seems to be more confidence in USC’s chances now.

One source close to the situation acknowledged Texas was the assumed leader for Smith entering the USC visit. He now believes this USC official visit was enough to tip the scales in favor of the Trojans.

“I think it changed his mind,” the source said of the visit. “I think he’ll pick (USC).”

Another source close to the situation isn’t as confident Smith will sign with the Trojans. But he acknowledges the USC official visit seemed to change the landscape of Smith’s recruitment.

“I think Texas definitely led going into the weekend but (USC) made it interesting,” the second source said.

Smith plans to take an official visit to Texas on June 1 and make a commitment shortly afterwards.

Here's our interview with Jake Smith following his trip to USC: https://usc.rivals.com/news/rivals250-ath-smith-is-delighted-by-his-usc-visit

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2019 Orange Lutheran HS quarterback Ryan Hilinski told TrojanSports.com late last night that coaches from the USC Trojans have been in contact with him with Kedon Slovis made his commitment to their program. Hilinski also said USC wants to see him throw in the summer.

Slovis, the 2019 quarterback from Scottsdale, Ariz. Desert Mountain HS, committed to USC five days ago on May 19. He made his pledge right after a weekend visit to USC that came on the heels of a scholarship offer. Bryan Ellis visited Desert Mountain HS on May 14 and made an offer to Slovis that same day.

Since making that pledge, Slovis revealed that USC might be looking to take two quarterbacks in this recruiting cycle.

Bryan Ellis and Tee Martin Hilinski watched Hilinski throw at Orange Lutheran HS on May 10. That duo has also been in regular contact with him. Hilinski does not hold a scholarship offer from USC but he holds scholarship offers from 7 schools in the Pac-12, in addition to Georgia and Ohio State. He is currently committed to the South Carolina Gamecocks and made that pledge on April 20.

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Sports Book in Vegas released lines on college football Games of The Year. Of note for Trojan fans:

Sept. 8
USC at Stanford (-2)

Sept. 15
USC (-1) at Texas

Nov. 17
USC (-6) at UCLA

Nov. 24
Notre Dame (-1) at USC

3 of 4 marquee games on the road. Ouch. Favored in 2 games, underdog in 2 games. Tight spreads though.
I pass on betting the Stanford game because it's tough to beat a rival 3 in a row and we won't know what kind of team we have by then.
Texas I rate a tossup so again I'd stay away.
UCLA yeah we should beat them good but again rivalry so I stay away.

Now Notre Dame is the one I would bet on because:
1. We have an outstanding home record under Coach Helton. I think that trend continues this year.
2. Revenge factor. Some guys on this team have to have this game circled on the calendar after the whuppin we took last year. I know I do.
3.This late in the year, for better or worse , USC will have an identity and be playing their best ball.

The better Notre Dame's record coming in, the more I like the bet. I'd play the money line not the spread.

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https://usc.rivals.com/news/slovis-reacts-to-usc-s-continued-pursuit-of-qb-targets

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What if I told you USC would win nine regular season games in 2018, is that something you might be interested in? It's where Diamond Sportsbook International has set the over/under for the Trojans, second only to Washington (10) in the Pac-12.

Login to view embedded media FWIW, USC won eight regular season games with redshirt freshman Todd Marinovich and true freshman Matt Barkley at QB, and nine games with redshirt freshman Sam Darnold, though eight were with him as the starter.

... So... I'm just starting to look into the income tax changes....

"Another change is the state, local and property tax deduction is now limited to $10,000 combined (used to be unlimited)."

Does that basically mean that the sum of the state and local income tax deductions and property tax deductions are capped at $10,000? What about for married couples?

https://www-pennymacusa-com.cdn.amp...s-mortgage-interest-deductions-for-homeowners

https://usc.rivals.com/news/rivals250-ath-smith-is-delighted-by-his-usc-visit

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Scheme analyst Murf Baldwin examines what USC is getting with its latest commit -- Class of 2019 QB Kedon Slovis

Slovis eval

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The jury in the Todd McNair-NCAA case found in favor of the NCAA on Monday, by a ruling of 9-3.

For a complete timeline of the trial, click here: https://usc.forums.rivals.com/threads/mcnair-vs-ncaa-trial-timeline.58260/

Junior cornerback Jack Jones is being removed from the USC football roster, a school official confirmed. He will also be ruled academically ineligible for the 2018 season, a source told TrojanSports.

Jones missed spring practice to focus on academics and had already been suspended for the season opener against UNLV for violating team rules. Now he is lost for the year and is not expected to return to USC, another source said.

Jones had a team-high four interceptions last season and was a third-team AP All-American. Though he was USC’s No. 1 corner last season, the Trojans have bolstered the position this offseason. Senior starter Biggie Marshall was one of the top defensive players in spring practice, and seniors Isaiah Langley and Jonathan Lockett played some of their best football while engaged in a heated competition on the opposite side.

That battle also includes promising redshirt freshman Greg Johnson. Five-star prospects Olaijah Griffin and Isaac Taylor-Stuart will join the team in June.

The latest on his recruitment:

https://n.rivals.com/news/top-2020-db-elias-ricks-breaks-down-some-favorites

Thomas has changed his mind — he will visit other schools.

THOMAS UPDATE

Sophomore Tua Tagovailoa, who was USC’s top QB target of 2017 before he signed with Alabama, said he planned to transfer if he didn’t play in the national title game, and his first choice was USC.

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Ducks dip into our Mater Dei pipeline again. Sean Dollars commits to Oregon. Funa earlier now this plus one other. Whose next... McCoy? Gotta slap Oregon down

USC is making national waves right now and is one of a couple "football" schools that really stands out to us as one that is emerging as a potential basketball power.

https://basketballrecruiting.rivals...h-football-schools-deserve-more-hoops-love--1