<p>All of a sudden, it seems like the sun shines a little bit brighter. <br/>The sky is a little bit bluer. <br/>The bird?s song is a little bit better. <br/>Even the traffic doesn?t move quite as slowly. <br/>It?s the darndest thing, because less than a week ago, things weren?t so great. Finals were rapidly approaching, nearly everyone had a cold, and traffic was really, really bad. <br/>But suddenly, the proverbial clouds have cleared, and life is simply grand. I can?t figure out what it is. <br/>Oh yeah, I remember. <br/>13-9. <br/>In those four hours on Saturday, it seems like everything wrong with the world suddenly became right. I know it sounds petty and patently untrue, but hey, feelings are feelings. <br/>And I feel great. <br/>Four hours Saturday simultaneously washed away four years of sadness and validated my decision to stay in school for year number five. <br/>It was ? sad and pathetic as it may sound ? one of the happiest days of my life. <br/>The happiness, of course, didn?t end Saturday, and it won?t end for awhile. <br/> On Sunday, there were newspaper articles to read, fallout to follow, backs to pat, and BCS ramifications to behold (it seems as though the road to Glendale wasn?t paved with Trojans, after all). <br/>Some other Sunday incidents unmistakably proved how much my life changed in those four hours. Reggie Bush scored four impressive touchdowns for the Saints, and I found myself kind of excited to watch the highlights. Matt Leinart won again, and I felt kind of good for the guy. The UCLA men?s soccer team lost in the NCAA Championship game, and I wasn?t too bothered. <br/>It?s truly amazing what one win can do for the old psyche. <br/>But it?s not just my psyche; it seems to be the collective Bruin psyche. <br/>Around campus, students seem to walk with a little more bounce in their steps. UCLA gear is more prevalent, not only on campus but in society at large. We?re pumped to get out there and take on our finals, and then the world. All because our football team beat USC. <br/>Which, I suppose, brings me to my ultimate point. <br/>Football matters. <br/>Sure, we can attempt to explain it away in a down year (?We?re not a football school, anyway.?), or shift the topic to UCLA?s 99 NCAA titles (?That?s more than Stanford and USC.?), or point to our No. 1 basketball program (?Howland is my homeboy.?). These are my common tactics, and they are generally pretty successful. <br/>But four hours Saturday have provided a glimpse of the way things can be ? and hopefully, with this new swell of confidence, the way they will be. <br/>I truly feel that this football program, if it continues in the direction it is headed, is capable of great things. It is capable of 10-win season after 10-win season. It is capable of overshadowing USC. It is certainly capable of instilling a great sense of pride in almost everyone who attends this university, making UCLA an even better place to be. <br/>13-9 provided a glimpse. <br/>In four hours, seven years of Bruin heartache fell by the wayside, and the college football landscape was transformed. <br/>Notably, the arrogance emanating from Troy has diminished significantly. <br/>Before the game, a Trojan friend was explaining to me that Ohio State running back Antonio Pittman wouldn?t have any success against USC. <br/>He was right. <br/>After the game, this same Trojan friend was not accepting phone calls. But he did send out a mass text message: ?Congrats please do not call or talk to me for awhile.? <br/>Gracious in victory, gracious in defeat. <br/>After my column last week, which began with a definition of ?arrogance,? I received a number of responses (primarily from Trojans). <br/>My favorite response simply defined the word ?envy? ? a feeling of discontent or covetousness with regard to another?s advantages, success, possessions, etc. <br/>When I received that e-mail last Thursday, it was spot on. <br/>Not anymore. <br/>Things have changed.</p><br><br><a href='; target='_blank'>;