I am once again begging the folks in USC's athletic department to study some Greek literature

Amber Harding reports that USC Football's athletic department posted a hype poster for the 2026 season modeled on Christopher Nolan's film "The Odyssey," without recognizing that the epic poem documents the destruction of Troy—USC's own mascot—by the Greeks. This marks the second such misstep in less than two years; Harding notes USC previously released a 2024 hype video showing players emerging from a Trojan Horse, when historically it was the Greeks inside the horse, not the Trojans. The reporting is well-sourced with specific examples, dates, and direct references to both classical texts and USC's actual promotional materials, supported by corroborating coverage from USA Today and Men's Journal that confirm the social media backlash. The humor is structural rather than sensational—Harding's criticism rests on documented factual errors in USC's marketing execution—though the tone leans toward mockery. Watch for USC's response to renewed criticism and whether the athletic department makes changes to its classical literature references going forward; the irony is heightened by USC's August 29 season opener against San Jose State (the Spartans, another ancient Greek faction).