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The Silent Dynasty

Outside of football and basketball there are few college sports that get much mainstream media or fan attention. Not that there's nothing wrong with that, but sometimes amazing accomplishments can fly a little under the radar:

There’s no denying that the 2008 Trojans will be considered among the game’s greatest teams of all time.

They never lost on their way to winning the national title, a feat accomplished by few teams across all sports and at all levels.

But this was just the fourth national title in program history. And it wasn’t just USC’s first fully undefeated season.

It was the coronation of one of the most dominant dynasties the sport has ever seen — over the past four seasons, USC has gone 100-6. USC has now won three national championships in the last six years, including four consecutive trips to the title game.

Vranes, Ligtenberg and Ryan Cummins played for arguably the most dominant team in the sport.

“Look back on what we have accomplished,” Vranes said. “Having that record and the two national titles is absolutely incredible.”

“When I first came to USC,” Ligtenberg said, “My high school friends said ‘USC’s football team never loses — what about their water polo team?’ I told them, jokingly, ‘You watch — I’m going to have four rings.’

“We won two, but we were right there the other two years. I was kidding when I said that, but it almost came true.”

from the Daily Trojan

I remember noting that USC had put together an undefeated season in Water Polo in the fanpost section, but I think it deserves another mention. Take a look at that quote again, the Trojans have gone 100-6 over the past 4 seasons and have played in every championship game. That is what I call domination, and it is amazing to think that the team was literally minutes away from four straight national titles. Does anything else really need to be said?

...Well yeah, one more thing actually. The men's water polo coach, Jovan Vavic, is also the head coach of the current no. 1 ranked women's water polo team which also had an undefeated season in 2004 to go with a national title won in 2000.