TALLAHASSEE — One year ago, coach Will Muschamp called the Gators “soft.” Now he doesn’t question his team’s toughness.

No. 4 Florida scored 24 straight points in the second half to pull out a come-from-behind 37-26 victory against No. 10 Florida State on Saturday at Doak Campbell Stadium.

The Gators’ offensive outburst came after falling behind the Seminoles 20-13 with 4:24 remaining in the third quarter.

“We kept saying the second half is our half,” nose tackle Omar Hunter said. “No matter what, (the) second half is our half. We got to finish the game in the fourth quarter. That is the most important quarter, because you got to finish and we came out and did that.”

Said linebacker Jelani Jenkins: “A lot of the games this year proved that we weren’t a soft team.”

Few can question Florida’s resiliency, especially after halftime.

This is the team that shut down Heisman hopeful Johnny Manziel in the second half of a 20-17 victory against Texas A&M on Sept. 8. In a 14-6 win against LSU on Oct. 6, the Gators simply wore down the defending Southeastern Conference champions.

And against rival Florida State in front of a hostile crowd with potential BCS National Championship Game aspirations on the line, Florida dominated the final 20 minutes.

“When we go on the road, our goal is to empty the stadium,” quarterback Jeff Driskel said. “That’s what we did.”

The Gators’ late rally was a product of their style. Muschamp’s mark on Florida shined brightly as UF prevailed against FSU by controlling the ground game, playing tough defense and winning the turnover battle.

Florida notched a plus-four turnover margin, outgained Florida State 244-112 in the ground game and limiting the Seminoles to just 5.3 plays for 26.4 yards per drive during the second half.

“We knew adversity was going to come, and we stayed positive,” cornerback Marcus Roberson said. “We know things like that are going to happen in the game. We just have to fight through every time. It just shows we are a tough team, and in the second half, we come out strong.”

COLUMBUS — For most of the morning and afternoon here on Saturday, a faint snow fell from a slate-colored sky, an appropriate backdrop for the renewal of the timeless Michigan-Ohio State rivalry.

But after a second half spent looking for answers that ultimately eluded them, the Wolverines could only trudge away solemnly, their mood mirrored by the still-gray heavens above them. Hundreds of Ohio State students and fans rushed past them onto the field once the clock read zeroes, fueled by the kind of euphoria that can only result from a win in this game.

The Buckeyes pulled ahead in the third quarter and stayed ahead, kneeling away a hard-fought, 26-21 victory, with Michigan (6-2 Big Ten, 8-4 overall) powerless to do anything about it.

“It hurt,” said fifth-year senior wide receiver Roy Roundtree. “We have to look at film and look at the mistakes that we made.”

The early action on Saturday seemed to promise a high-scoring affair, which has been something of an aberration over the history of this rivalry.

Ohio State (8-0, 12-0) needed just six plays to score the game’s first touchdown, a four-yard run by bruising running back Carlos Hyde after a rapid drive down the field. But the Wolverines answered on their second possession when junior quarterback Devin Gardner found Roundtree for a 75-yard catch-and-run and the tying score.

It was the type of dynamic play that characterized the Michigan attack before halftime. Like last week against Iowa, the team utilized both of its main quarterbacks — Gardner was the traditional passer, and senior Denard Robinson was a running quarterback. The combination was in sync throughout the first half and a spectacular, 67-yard run by Robinson helped the Wolverines seize a 21-20 lead at halftime.

Michigan wouldn’t score again. The team gained just 60 yards in the second half—the two-quarterback system, run with such efficiency for the previous six quarters, ceased to function.

“Too many turnovers,” Robinson said of the second-half woes. “We had three turnovers in the second half. In order for you to win this game, you gotta control the ball, hold on to the ball.”

Robinson and Gardner both lost fumbles, in the third quarter and fourth quarter, respectively. (Gardner also lost a fumble in the first half.)

But the real back-breaker was Gardner’s interception on what turned out to be the team’s final drive of the game. The junior often found receivers for long completions down the field on Saturday, but this was also Gardner’s most mistake-ridden game when it came to taking sacks and missing receivers.

The Wolverines’ defense was solid for most of the afternoon, often put in tough spots in the second half because of the offense’s sudden ineptitude. Dynamic Buckeye quarterback Braxton Miller found success through the air but was contained on the ground.

Hyde, though, wasn’t contained. The running back torched Michigan’s defense for 146 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries, constantly cutting through the middle of the front seven. It was Hyde who clinched the game for Ohio State, bursting forward for a gain of 13 yards on 3rd-and-7 with just several minutes remaining on the drive after Gardner’s interception.

“(Hyde) out-leveraged us a couple times in there because of what we wanted to do, which was a little different,” said Michigan coach Brady Hoke. “It worked in the first half pretty well. Didn’t tackle very well, I didn’t think, from that standpoint. He’s a big back, and I didn’t think we wrapped him up on the first hit a couple times like we needed to.”

“He ran the ball hard,” added fifth-year senior safety Jordan Kovacs. “We didn’t get enough hats to the ball.”

The offense’s woeful second half could be blamed partially on play calling.

On the Wolverines’ first drive after halftime, Hoke elected to go for it on fourth-and-two from Michigan’s 48-yard line. The Wolverines then faced third-and-short on each of their next three drives,

Offensive coordinator Al Borges called a running play each time, and each time, Michigan failed to convert.

“You gotta look at where you’re at and what you feel you may have an opportunity,” Hoke said of the three calls. “Upstairs you see a lot of different things.”

The Wolverines were in no mood to second guess or dwell on missed opportunities after the game. Their faces were somber, and they spoke with the low voices one would expect after they let a rival beat them and complete an undefeated season in doing so.

Hoke talked briefly of the future, of the freshmen and other underclassmen that “will remember” this loss and use it as motivation.

But nothing could ease the pain of today.

“You don’t want to come down here and lose,” a weary Kovacs said. “That’s about all I can say about it.”

Given the opportunity to upset No. 1 Notre Dame in the 84th edition of the storied intersectional rivalry, USC flashed the talent and explosiveness that emboldened many preseason prognosticators to ticket the Trojans — not the Irish — for a date in January’s BCS national championship game in Miami.

Unfortunately, the Trojans were once again bedeviled by inopportune miscues en route to a 22-13 loss before a sellout crowd of 93,607 fans, many of whom were cheering on the Irish’s special season.

“It’s very difficult for everyone in our locker room with so many things not going well this season,” USC coach Lane Kiffin said. “I was hoping today we would finish different with the backup quarterback and be part of history, knocking [Notre Dame] out of the national championship game.”

Continuing their recent trend of slow starts, the Trojans quickly fell behind 10-0 — a week after digging themselves a 24-point hole to UCLA in the first half. After Kyle Brindza’s 27-yard field goal on the first series and a fruitless drive for USC on its first possession, Notre Dame rattled off a 12-play, 87-yard drive, which tailback Theo Riddick capped with a nine-yard touchdown scamper after the Irish converted three separate third-down opportunities. On the evening, Riddick rushed for 146 yards on 20 carries and accounted for the Irish’s only touchdown.

“They were powerful today,” sophomore linebacker Hayes Pullard said of the Notre Dame offense. “It was electrifying out there; kudos to most of their offensive linemen. They recognized our defense, and got up to the second level and were able to run up and down.”

Undeterred, redshirt freshman quarterback Max Wittek, after missing his first three passes in the previous series, roared back with five consecutive completions in a drive that culminated in an 11-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Robert Woods.

“Woody’s a great receiver, and he’s so smart,” Wittek said. “He knows defenses, so it’s easy to be on the same page with a guy like that.”

During the Senior Day festivities before the contest, senior quarterback Matt Barkley strode out of the Coliseum tunnel in street clothes, stopping to embrace Kiffin, before flashing the victory ‘V’ sign to the Coliseum faithful.

Kiffin momentarily choked up upon describing the scene in his post-game media session.

“It’s just wrong,” Kiffin said of Barkley’s injury. “That shouldn’t have happened to that kid. I just felt for him, my heart just felt for him. That kid didn’t deserve for it to end like that.”

Wittek, Barkley’s replacement, valiantly faced the steep challenge of facing the NCAA’s No. 1 scoring defense — Notre Dame only allowed 10.1 points per game entering the game — and subbing in for the legendary Barkley.

“Obviously the circumstances with Matt not being able to play in the game is what really sucks about it,” said Wittek, who finished his starting debut 14 of 23 for 186 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. “Looking at him, being with him the past five to six years at Mater Dei and then here … for him to not be able to play in this rivalry game — this last home game — was pretty sad.”

Notre Dame and USC proceeded to trade field goals in their ensuing possessions before USC possessed the ball with 1:25 remaining in the first half and trailing by three points.

Wittek squandered the opportunity to pull USC ahead, however, as he lofted a pass — intended for sophomore wide receiver Marqise Lee — approximately 70 yards down field that Notre Dame cornerback KeiVarae Russell hauled in for an interception.

The Irish capitalized on the turnover in their subsequent offensive possession. After moving the ball to USC’s 35-yard line with 10 seconds remaining, quarterback Everett Golson scrambled for eight seconds before rifling a pass that fell incomplete. Unluckily for USC, time had yet to expire in the half, giving the Irish the chance to eke a 52-yard field goal over the uprights’ crossbar, which staked them to a 16-10 lead at halftime.

The second half also began inauspiciously as Heisman Trophy candidate Manti Te’o snared his seventh interception of the season on Wittek’s first pass and continued to deteriorate as USC’s offense failed to find the end zone despite numerous red zone opportunities.

“Notre Dame showed me that they have phenomenal senior leadership,” Kiffin said. “You can see those guys understand the game, very physical, very old school; they’re not very exotic, but they don’t screw up.”

Following the Irish’s fourth field goal, USC countered with a 13-play, 80-yard drive in which it appeared the Trojans scored a touchdown on a four-yard completion to Lee. Before the play, however, Kiffin called a timeout, thus negating the score. After an unsuccessful third-down attempt, USC had to settle for a 21-yard field goal.

Further fueling the frustration, USC was set up at Notre Dame’s one-yard line with four minutes remaining in the game, seeking to score a touchdown to draw the score to 22-20. After two unsuccessful quarterback sneaks and a stuffed, negative run play for senior tailback Curtis McNeal, Kiffin called for a play-action roll-out pass to redshirt freshman fullback Soma Vainuku. Vainuku bobbled the pass, as the ball squirted between his legs and hit the ground, effectively sealing the defeat.

“In the second half I thought we didn’t move the ball very well, especially in the third quarter on offense, but you gotta make the plays in those situations,” Kiffin said. “They’re the No. 1 goal line defense in the country two years in a row for a reason.”

USC must now regroup for its bowl game after losing both of its rivalry games this season and dropping four of five contests.

“I’d say we’re all disappointed,” Wittek said. “No one imagined losing five games with the talent that we have. Things didn’t exactly turn out how we wanted them to, but I couldn’t express any more pride in my team, being able to go to battle with them was definitely special.”

There are, in life, things that’ll always seem incomplete: a piece of art you can’t quite seem to add the finishing touch to or a home-cooked dish missing that spice giving it the extra kick. These circumstances puzzle us. We’re left scrambling to understand what is, in fact, missing. Why didn’t it turn out the way we hoped? Eventually, we’ll smile, shrug and hum along, and attempt to make the best of our efforts.

I imagine, in a way, this is how we’ll come to view the Matt Barkley era.

Unless the right-handed senior signal caller makes some sort of dramatic return for a December bowl game, we’ve watched him take his last snap under center in cardinal and gold. USC coach Lane Kiffin announced Sunday night that Barkley would miss the Trojans’ regular season finale against top-ranked, undefeated Notre Dame at the Coliseum because of an AC sprain suffered in last Saturday’s matchup at UCLA.

Let’s be honest, this might very well be it.

It’s odd, but for Barkley, who has started more games at quarterback than any player in school history, his career at USC feels like it’s still missing something.

That’ll forever remain the great irony of Matt Barkley. He’s thrown more completions, more yards and more touchdowns than any other USC or Pac-12 passer. But we’ll always be scrambling to provide meaning to his chapter in history.

No, 2012 — and his four-year career for that matter — didn’t unfold like we all thought it would. The portrait of Matt Barkley was to be without a blemish.

He was, as Kiffin put it last December, the “Perfect Trojan, Matty Trojan.” He was the blue-eyed, blonde-haired quarterback from Orange County who would rescue USC from its darkest hour — NCAA sanctions in June of 2010.

That was the narrative. That was what was expected, a feel-good story too good for even a Hollywood script. The Trojans’ 2012 season would be like some cinematic masterpiece with Barkley leading the program toward the top of the college football universe.

We’ve been expecting as much since he set foot on campus in January 2009 and was tapped as the starter seven months later. Noted then-coach Pete Carroll at the time: “He’s ready to be the guy for us.”

At 18, he was ready. Except — no matter how many touchdown passes he’s thrown since his first game against San Jose State on Sept. 5, 2009 — we’re still searching to uncover the context of his career.

It’s easier for others.

For Matt Leinart, it was consecutive national championships and a 34-game winning streak. For Carson Palmer, it was a Heisman Trophy and a berth in the Orange Bowl, underpinning a return to national prominence. For others such as Rodney Peete or Mark Sanchez, it was trips to the Rose Bowl, the “Granddaddy of Them All.”

But for Barkley, what does his career represent, exactly? He threw touchdown upon touchdown, but in what defining moment?

It’s of course difficult to fault him for the circumstances, but the circumstances are still there. For two of his four seasons, USC was prohibited from participating in the postseason.

Despite a 10-win season in 2011, there was no Pac-12 championship game or Rose Bowl berth. There were 12 regular season games and that was that.

We’ll always ask, “what if?” What if the conditions had been different? What if Carroll stayed? What if the NCAA penalties never arrived? What if the team survived road showdowns versus Stanford, Arizona and UCLA earlier this fall?

Much like the circumstances, his accomplishments are followed by a “but.” He threw for more than 100 touchdown passes over his career, but 23 came in games against Colorado and Syracuse. He orchestrated road wins over top-10 teams Ohio State and Oregon, but the former was followed by four losses during the season and the latter came in a year when USC wasn’t bowl eligible. Barkley and the Trojans began this season as the Associated Press’ preseason No. 1 team, but they’ve already stumbled four times.

In spite of the numbers, we’ve never quantified USC quarterbacks solely by statistics and by their records. No matter how many passes Heisman winners Leinart or Palmer launched, we remember certain moments: a pass on fourth-and-nine in the waning seconds of a win at Notre Dame, a smattering of Iowa in the Orange Bowl in January.

Barkley’s resume lacks that singularly defining play or game. It lacks that kick.

Maybe we’ll remember his unwavering commitment instead. It’s often been said Barkley said yes to USC three times: once in high school by signing a letter of intent, once in the wake of sanctions by declining to transfer and once in 2011 by opting to stay for his senior season, leaving NFL millions behind.

Maybe it’s the way he represented the university, organizing missionary trips to Africa and to earthquake-ravaged Haiti.

Maybe it’s the fact he helped keep USC above water when the program could’ve easily drowned.

Maybe it is the numbers, a sign he made the most of his play on the field during trying times.

“I played up and down,” Barkley said outside the visiting locker room following Saturday’s 38-28 loss to UCLA at the Rose Bowl. “I thought I fought as hard as I could’ve fought. I went down fighting.”

Though business will remain unfinished for Barkley, maybe his lasting legacy is that: he fought. He fought and fought tirelessly for four years. He fought when it could have been expedient not to. And that shouldn’t be undervalued.

But in five years or a decade from now, will we remember any of that?

Distant relatives have purchased their plane tickets, Dad pre-ordered the turkey a week ago and all football games planned for Nov. 27 are TiVo’d. Anyone else ready for Thanksgiving?

This is the time of year for family to come together and feast in celebration of the day the Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock. It’s important to keep in mind, however, that moderation is key when surrounded by overwhelming amounts of food.

What people shouldn’t do is starve themselves before the dinner because then they overeat, food science and nutrition professor Susan Swadener said.

“Research shows if you skip meals, then, if you normally eat 2,000 calories a day, you’ll end up eating around 4,000 because you’re so hungry,” Swadner said.

The portion size for meat is about three ounces, or the size of the palm of your hand, Swadener said. A serving of potatoes is about half a cup, and a serving of vegetables is a cup.

What tends to add up is generally how things are prepared, food science and nutrition professor Laura Hall said.

“Gravy, mashed potatoes with a lot of butter and cream in them or sweet potatoes with a lot of sugar in them all end up having more calories and are generally less healthy because they’re high in fat,” Hall said.

If you can cook a healthier meal in the first place by trimming off the fat on the turkey, using low-fat milk in the mashed potatoes and making healthier choices, then you can cut the fat in your diet, Hall said.

Little things such as deciding not to put whipped cream on your pie or choosing low-fat ice cream instead can make a difference, Hall said.

Swadener and Hall both offered tips to keep in mind when making a conscious decision about what to eat on this sacred holiday.

Studies have shown that if you eat on a bigger plate, or put more on your plate, then you’re going to eat it, Hall said. If you use a smaller plate, or put less food on it, you won’t eat as much.

Enjoy the company of the people you’re with, take your time and drink water to not overeat, Hall said.

It’s a good idea to have some of the foods from Thanksgiving such as turkey or cranberry sauce throughout the year, Swadener said. If you eat them more often, then you’re less likely to binge on them.

Kelsey Hollenbeck, STRIDE public relations and media coordinator, said you should avoid snacking throughout the whole day.

“I know that when we cook in my house, I’ll just be eating little pieces of everything as we make it, and then I’m full by the time dinner comes around,” Hollenbeck said.

Everyone overeats at Thanksgiving — it’s part of the culture of it, Hollenbeck said.

Students also generally go home after being used to having little food on hand or eating ramen, whereas Thanksgiving offers an opportunity to gorge on food other people make, Hollenbeck said.

This time of the year involves more socializing, and there are foods you wouldn’t typically eat, such as pies, so it’s easy to overindulge, Hall said.

You always hear that people gain weight around this time because they’re eating differently and they may not be exercising like they normally do, Hall said.

It’s important to let yourself feel full and to not overeat, Hall said. You can always have leftovers and don’t forget to be physically active.

A good way to not gain a lot of weight during the holidays is to make it a family tradition to take a walk before or after dinner so you don’t sit around and eat all night, Swadener said.

This is the time to be with each other, and sometimes if you do more physical activity, such as a walk, then you spend more quality time with one another than just sitting around and watching the television, Swadener said.

Good food in moderation and even better company is the trick to finding the balance to a perfect Thanksgiving.

The Cameron Crazies have made the “not our rivals” chant a staple of Duke-Maryland basketball games. And beginning in the 2014-2015 season, that statement will be fact.

The Terrapins announced they have accepted an invitation to join the leave the ACC and join the Big Ten, which will become a 14-team conference with the addition of Rutgers, which, at press time, is expected to depart from the Big East Tuesday.

Maryland will be required to pay a $50 million buyout to leave the ACC. The exit fee was raised to $50 million after the addition of Notre Dame for all sports except football, and Maryland and Florida State were the only schools to vote against the increase.

“Our best wishes are extended to all of the people associated with the University of Maryland. Since our inception, they have been an outstanding member of our conference, and we are sorry to see them exit,” ACC Commissioner John Swofford said in a statement released by the conference. Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski and Kevin White, director of athletics, both declined comment via Jon Jackson, associate athletic director for media relations and public affairs.

Pittsburgh and Syracuse are set to join the ACC next year after announcing last year they reached an agreement to leave the Big East.

Michelle Rhee is a lightning rod. Gwen Samuels, a former Head Start teacher and current education activist in Connecticut, knows what it is like to stand too close. When Samuels partnered with Michelle Rhee in Connecticut, a previously civil debate about education policy quickly turned into all-out warfare. “People I didn’t even know existed started coming after me,” Samuels told the HPR. Unwittingly, she had stumbled into the political minefield that surrounds America’s most beloved and hated education reformer.

Rhee first entered the national conversation as the hard-charging Chancellor for D.C. public schools. She was an unconventional choice for the job: 37 years old, Korean-American, and without significant school management experience. However, after being appointed by Mayor Adrian Fenty, she quickly established herself as a juggernaut in the national education reform movement.

She took on politically difficult fights, firing hundreds of school officials, closing under-enrolled schools, and pushing for a new contract incorporating a controversial merit pay provision. Meanwhile, she forged a national media presence, appearing on covers for Time and Newsweek and giving countless TV interviews. Rhee’s slew of transformative reforms ended when Fenty lost his reelection bid. She resigned the next day, but mere weeks later Rhee announced that she was founding StudentsFirst, an education reform organization. With unprecedented resources and unique media savvy, Rhee is reshaping the landscape of education reform.

Students First

The expectations surrounding StudentsFirst’s creation were high. Rhee announced intentions to raise a billion dollars and create a political counterweight to entrenched interests, fundamentally reshaping the landscape of education politics. Asked by the HPR to evaluate its success, Rhee expressed cautious optimism, saying, “We’ve made tremendous progress… we met our original goal of having one million members by our first year… We’ve raised a lot of money, changed a lot of laws, engaged in a lot of races. So, have we made a lot of progress? Yes, 100 percent.” “Have we changed the game for kids?”, Rhee asks rhetorically, answering, “on that front we’ve started to build an organization that is on track to do that.”

Many education reformers acknowledge StudentsFirst’s tremendous resources, given Rhee’s unparalleled fundraising capacity. Rhee biographer Richard Whitmire told the HPR, “She can do this because moguls will give her lots of money and it takes lots of money. Who else can do that? I can’t think of anyone.” These resources have the potential to reshape the politics of education reform.

StudentsFirst has spent those resources aggressively on advertising, lobbying, and support for endorsed state-legislators. John DeBerry, a Tennessee legislator who was endorsed by StudentsFirst, told the HPR, “They have the resources to support candidates and send people into communities to talk to people.” StudentsFirst has aggressively pushed back against DeBerry’s critics, sending paid canvassers into the district and trying to boost his pro-reform record.

The organization’s rapid expansion has not come without growing pains though. One local activist felt the organization’s style hurt long-term reform efforts, and most agree that Rhee’s claim that StudentsFirst is a grassroots organization is overstated.

The Lightning Rod

Samuels entered education activism because she wanted to improve her child’s school. She decided that a ‘parent trigger’, which would give parents a mechanism to demand turnaround of an underperforming school, should be introduced in the Connecticut state legislature. Samuels received pushback from teachers unions, but was unfazed until she started working with StudentsFirst. She says, “If I thought the union fight was hard, this was like me going in the ring with Mike Tyson.” The governor backed out of a rally he had previously committed to when Rhee announced she would attend. When the dust settled however, aggressive reform was passed.

The case highlights the effect that Rhee often has on a situation. Simply by showing up, she politicizes, nationalizes, and polarizes a situation. Those within the movement, however, insist that this can be beneficial. “She’s the lightning rod, the right flank” said the President of Students for Education Reform; “She changes the polarization.” Whitmire adds that many education reformers feel they have political cover to be more aggressive because “everyone has agreed to hate on Michelle,” and when they do, everyone else has more space to create consensus.

Rhee insists this isn’t a role that she intentionally fills. “ If some education reformers say [I’m] good to have around because then all their vitriol can be directed towards [me], and they have more cover to do their work, that’s fine. But that’s not really what I do.” Her role, she says, is just to advocate what’s best for kids. Ultimately, though, even those who have seen the costs of Rhee’s polarization at work acknowledge its effectiveness. “We needed our voices to be heard,” Samuels reflects, and Michelle Rhee brought along a loudspeaker.

“Michelle Rhee is a wimp”

Although legislative activism has largely been confined at the state level, StudentsFirst is also setting its sights on reshaping the national politics of education reform. Rhee herself insists that she is a liberal Democrat, but traditionally her style of education reform has been more popular with Republicans.

Rhee is confident that this is changing, stating, “When I started in education reform 20 years ago the Democratic Party was in general very reticent to get involved in these education reform issues…. The dynamics have shifted.” There has been tangible success: “The U.S. conference of mayors, through the leadership of my husband (the Mayor of Sacramento) passed some very controversial resolutions and they did it with a unanimous vote.”

Despite her interest in national policy making, Rhee insists that she will never run for public office. When pressed about whether or not she would accept the position of Secretary of Education, Rhee deferred, insisting, “I think Arne Duncan is doing an excellent job.” She believes she is more effective operating outside the system, commenting, “I think the most important thing I could be doing right now is exactly what I am doing at StudentsFirst.”

In the long-term, she sees the movement being driven by a new generation. “Someone should come along who is even more radical than I am… I’m waiting for the next person to come from behind and say ‘Michelle Rhee is a wimp’… the new kind of reformers should be pushing the wall forward’” For now, however, Rhee seems content to be running head-on into anything in her way, and although she’s been called many things, it seems unlikely anyone will be calling Michelle Rhee a wimp anytime soon.

Though the rockets and bomb blasts are almost 7,000 miles away, the turmoil in Gaza is not far removed from U.S. interests.

In fact, with its economic heft, the U.S., as a seemingly silent superpower, is a larger player in the chaos ensuing now than perhaps either Israel or the Gaza strip.

But as Israel has intensified air strikes and bombs in retaliation to Hamas-launched rockets from Gaza, the U.S. response has spoken as to what side the American taxpayers will be supporting.

While President Barack Obama has said it would be “preferable,” according to the Associated Press, for violence to not exist, he has consistently defended Israel’s “right to defend itself.”

But according to the New York Times, Gaza health officials have reported at least 600 injuries and 70 deaths since Wednesday and Israel has reported 79 injuries and three deaths, the human rights violations being brought upon the people of Gaza by Israel are not things the U.S. should endorse.

While the initial violence of the rocket launch is not condonable, Israel’s response — the response sponsored by the taxpayers of America — is certainly not either, and coupled with the history of aggression and blatant disregard of civilian, women and children’s lives, the U.S.’s strategic oblivion is one that goes against the very value of democracy that allied Israel with the U.S. in the first place.

Gilad Sharon, the son of former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, called for the “flattening of Gaza” in an op-ed written for the Jerusalem post.

“We need to flatten entire neighborhoods in Gaza,” he wrote. “Flatten all of Gaza. … There should be no electricity in Gaza, no gasoline or moving vehicles, nothing.”

The U.S. has a strong, vested interest in Israel — an interest so expansive (and expensive) that it is willing to overlook important aspects of democracy, such as human rights, to secure its own best interest in an utterly undemocratic process.

Israel has received about $115 billion in U.S. aid, and continues to receive about $3 billion a year, making it the largest recipient of U.S. aid since World War II. According to a Congressional Research Report prepared for the U.S. Congress, the Bush administration approved a 10-year, $30 billion package for Israel’s Foreign Military Financing grant, which Obama has continued.

The very Iron Dome system, the system that has intercepted 245 rockets for Israel since the recent burst of violence, is largely funded by the U.S, which provides an additional $70 million for it per year, according to CNN.

While it is incredible that this technology protects Israeli civilians, does the U.S. government value their lives more than Palestinians?

Though a 2011 Gallup poll found that 63 percent of Americans supported Israel over Palestine, it is worth a closer look as to whether cozying up to Israel solely because of its “democratic” roots is worth the fiscal and humanitarian costs.

A democracy is not simply electing leaders, and by turning a blind eye to these injustices, the U.S. is further distancing itself from other Middle Eastern nations at a time in which diplomacy is most needed.

From the moment they ran through the tunnel to the singing of the alma mater, the Irish seniors shined, leading Notre Dame to a near-perfect 38-0 victory over Wake Forest and its first undefeated home season since 1998.

The win, coupled with losses by No. 1 Kansas State and No. 2 Oregon, pushed Notre Dame to No. 1 in the BCS standings for the first time in program history.

The Irish dominated all facets of the game from start to finish, maintaining an explosive offensive attack and an unwavering defense for all four quarters, Irish coach Brian Kelly said.

“We have a paradigm for winning,” Kelly said. “It’s something we talk about actually in our locker room. It’s called four quarters of winning.

“I think that came together in this football game more than any game we’ve played this year.”

Saturday’s complete-game victory was particularly special for the Irish seniors as the 38-0 shutout victory over Wake Forest bookends the senior’s home careers that began with a 35-0 shutout win over Nevada in 2009.

“It’s just a relief for us to win in the fashion that we did, you know, just clicking on all cylinders and everybody is playing with a lot of enthusiasm and energy just on all sides of the ball and just getting after it,” senior linebacker Manti Te’o said. “That’s a great way to end my career playing here in Notre Dame.”

Unlike many of their previous home games this season, the Irish controlled the game from the very beginning. After shaking its pre-game jitters, Notre Dame converted a third-and-11 from its own eight-yard line with a 24-yard strike from Irish sophomore quarterback Everett Golson to Irish senior running back Theo Riddick. On the very next play, Golson ran the quarterback option and pitched to senior running back Cierre Wood, who took it all the way to the end zone for a 68-yard score.

Then, just 74 seconds later, a big hit from Irish senior linebacker Carlo Calabrese knocked the ball loose from Deacons junior running back Josh Harris. After the recovery by another Irish senior — safety Zeke Motta — Notre Dame drove to the two-yard line before Irish senior tight end Tyler Eifert took over. While Golson’s first attempt to Eifert was off the mark, Eifert rose above his lone defender on third down to pull down his fourth touchdown of the year and put Notre Dame up 14-0 just six minutes into the game.

“That’s our number one goal before every game and that’s to start fast,” Eifert said. “Coach [Kelly] talks about it and I think that was huge to get points on the board early.”

Notre Dame continued this high-energy play through the entire first quarter. After the Irish defense forced Wake Forest to punt on its next possession, Notre Dame needed just six plays to find the end zone again. On first down from the 50-yard line, Golson rolled out to his right, threw the ball deep down the right sideline and connected with graduate student receiver John Goodman.

For Goodman, the play represented a further step in the young quarterback’s development.

“Everett through it out there and trusted in his receivers and the offensive line gave him good blocking,” Goodman said. “It was just another one of those plays that you just have to go up and get the ball, because that’s what we are taught.”

With another touchdown pass to Irish junior receiver T.J. Jones in the second quarter, Golson had a career game against Wake Forest. Despite being pulled midway through the third quarter, the sophomore signal-caller finished the day with 346 yards passing, three touchdowns and only one interception.

Compared to the start of the season, his performance Saturday reflects the incredible progress Golson has made, Irish senior offensive lineman Zack Martin said.

“Everett has grown as much as anyone on the team,” Martin said. “He came into camp very determined and has grown every game. He’s been dominant player when he’s out there. He can run, he can throw and he’s communicating so he’s doing a great job.”

On the other side of the ball, the Notre Dame defense overwhelmed the Wake Forest offense all game, holding the Deacons to just nine first downs and 209 total yards. Heading into Saturday, the Deacons realized they would face a challenge with the Irish defense, Deacons coach Jim Grobe said.

“We knew coming in we were going to have issues with their defense,” Grobe said. “Everybody has. They might be the best defensive football team in the country.

“This was just a day where Notre Dame was too much for us to handle.”

In the third quarter, Eifert caught a 15-yard pass for an Irish first down. The reception pushed Eifert’s career reception total to 129 and the senior tight end past former Notre Dame tight end Ken MacAfee in the program record books.

“Today we tried to get him the football, and he made incredible plays, as you know, down the field,” Kelly said. “I think he epitomizes in terms of what we look for as a Notre Dame football player.”

Then with 13:27 left in the third quarter, Kelly took a timeout to honor three other players that truly represent Notre Dame football. One by one, Irish senior defensive lineman Kapron Lewis-Moore, Motta and Te’o left the field for the last time and received an emotional ovation from 80,000 strong.

“Just magic,” Te’o said, describing the moment. “Like everything’s come full circle, [I’m] just very grateful.”

While Irish were pleased to finish off their home season undefeated, the entire team recognized the need to focus on the upcoming matchup with USC.

“Going undefeated at home is always a big deal, but we now have to get ready for USC and right now that’s the most important thing,” Lewis-Moore said.

The Irish will travel to Los Angeles to face off against the Trojans in the Coliseum next Saturday at 8 p.m.