TRICKY RICK'S WORD WORTHLESS.

Byline: STEVE DILBECK

Guess that wasn't much of a dream. Maybe next time Rick Majerus should aspire to something a tad grander, say first man on Mars. He'd probably stay longer.

Sometimes a person can graduate from eccentric to flat out head case, and it looks like it's time to name Majerus valedictorian.

It's one thing not to wear socks and live in a hotel, and quite another to announce Wednesday you just took your dream job and by Saturday say you were just kidding.

``I'm not into this for the short haul,'' Majerus said at his news conference announcing him as USC's new basketball coach.

Apparently one man's ``short haul'' is another's lifetime commitment.

Four days after that introductory news conference, it seems Majerus has decided to keep his ESPN analyst job and resign from USC.

The cable sports network announced Saturday that Majerus - surprise - had changed his mind and would remain with them as a color commentator.

Which hit USC like an unexpected blow to the midsection. No, make that a very low blow.

A few days ago he was yukking it up, dazzling the local media, the jovial basketball guru with all the one-liners.

Who's laughing now?

Henry Bibby, no doubt.

It was Bibby who was oddly fired four games into the season after a 2-2 start. Odd unless you understand that USC wanted Majerus and his .742 winning percentage all along, wanted to lock him up before other jobs opened and tempted his return from the booth.

It looked like a rush hire when Majerus agreed eight days later to a five-year, $5 million contract, unless you recognize they had been talking to him all along.

Majerus took the job, announcing: ``The nicest thing is no one will ask me how soon you are going to leave here. I hope to die here. I hope to coach here for the rest of my life.''

Or until Saturday, whichever comes first.

The ESPN announcement gave no explanation for Majerus' change of mind, save for saying he was overwhelmed at returning to coaching college basketball.

Maybe he was overwhelmed at the prospects of turning around the Trojans, who have six seniors on their roster.

Maybe he wasn't all that impressed with the $114 million Galen Center currently under construction.

Maybe his health isn't as wonderful as claimed.

Maybe he was lured to stay at ESPN with a more lucrative offer.

And maybe he just doesn't understand the word commitment.

His retreat has undermined USC's program. Left them in an awkward and unnecessarily difficult position.

There was no real coaching search. Athletic Director Mike Garrett had identified Majerus as his man.

Despite many alumni who wanted ex-Trojan Paul Westphal, the Pepperdine coach said after Majerus was hired that he never had been contacted by USC.

``As far as I know, I wasn't involved at all,'' Westphal said. ``No intermediary, no nothing. Other than stuff I read like everybody else.''

Garrett is no doubt seething.

Garrett, who called Majerus the ``perfect fit'' Wednesday, left USC's 81-74 victory over Western Michigan on Saturday afternoon shortly before the reversal story broke and later refused interview requests.

There was only a terse, two-sentence release from USC: ``We plan to meet with Rick on Monday. Until then, there's really nothing we can say.''

Of course, there remains the possibility that when they do meet Monday that Majerus could pull another reverse and decide he really does want this dream job.

And if that were to happen, Garrett should laugh in his face and lead him to the door. The last thing USC needs is a coach who is less than fully committed to the Trojans.

They deserve much better, and as it turns out, much better than Majerus.

Majerus' quirky side has always kept some at a distance. He reportedly very badly wanted the UCLA job when it opened up last year, but the Bruins never gravitated to a man who lived in a hotel.

Majerus has a quick wit and easily makes self-depreciating cracks about his weight problem. The national media love him.

Those who cover him, however, would talk of another side, a more cruel and sometimes crass side, the side that routinely drove off recruits at Utah. One writer estimated 28 players left during a less than 10-year period.

By now, USC is not amused by references to Julia Roberts and Jennifer Aniston, or how he had seven bypasses, ``one for every food group.''

What stings now are his glowing references to USC, his pledge: ``I won't coach anywhere ever again.''

You hope not.

He'd better really love that ESPN job, because it's hard to imagine any other significant school ever taking a chance on the Flopper, ever again taking him at his word.

He just made a career decision. Anyway, that's the dream.