A Timely Exit
The good times and easy smiles at USC are over for Pete Carroll and the Trojan faithful. A reign created from the stuff of college football legend (9 years, 2 national championships, 7 consecutive Pac-10 titles, 3 Heisman winners, a near-.900 winning percentage) ended in two abrupt days. With one phone call from an NFL team, Pete Carroll was gone quicker than a Reggie Bush 40-yard touchdown run. After 9 years, Carroll decided it was time to move on and try something new, and walked out the door on USC.
"Walking out" is a convenient way to put it, given the present climate at USC-- 77 and sunny. Just kidding. The Trojan athletic department is undergoing multiple investigations for possible violations in both football and men's basketball. The basketball investigation has found some amount of closure as the program imposed sanctions on itself just weeks ago. This implies a recognition of wrongdoing, as well as a ploy to get a lesser penalty if/when the NCAA brings the hammer down. The fate of USC's then-head coach Tim Floyd? Resigned amidst a flurry of criticism and allegation.
Sounds familiar, right? Long-time coach makes a timely--if not conspicuously sudden-- exit while his program endures recent allegations of impropriety, leaving the athletic department, staffers, players, and the new coach to pick up the pieces? Seems to me that there is a common thread at USC: when the going gets tough, the coaches quit. Everything came easy to Pete Carroll after arriving in Los Angeles: top-ranked recruits flocked to SC to stock the lower rungs of the depth chart, wins piled up as SC demolished opponents, Heisman winners and other stars graduated to the NFL, and a rabid, dormant fan base came alive in support of its juggernaut. Pete Carroll became a celebrity, even an idol, in the shadows of Hollywood. Life was good, recruiting was easy, and success met the Trojans over and over again.
Everyone saw Pete Carroll at his best during these times, but in recent years, his team has slowly and increasingly met with failure on the field. The crushing loss to Texas in the 2005 National Championship game, the home loss to 41-point underdog Stanford in 2007, the single loss to Oregon State in 2008, then the stain of 2009's 9-4 record. Things got tough for Pete Carroll, and once again it rang true that difficult times reveal a man's true character. He walked out on his team and the program that he built when it needs him the most.
ESPN's Ivan Maisel wrote an insightful article about the meaning and implications of Carroll's shocking exit. Maisel chronicles the deep competitiveness of Carroll that originated his incredible success. This competitive drive, though, disappeared when the Trojans fell down the mountain. Instead of digging in, hunkering down, and sucking it up to pick his program off the mat, Carroll decided it was too much for him and bolted, leaving a trail of carnage, confusion, shock, and insecurity in his wake. This is really the first time USC has been vulnerable since Carroll arrived, and he couldn't handle it.
This all doesn't even venture into some questionable personal character of Carroll's, we don't want to touch that. This is strictly about his professional character, although it is hardly logical to compartmentalize a person's character. Carroll is the master of portraying himself as the good, easy-going, accessible, and approachable football coach. Naturally, supporters will harken back to memories of him and see these things, causing them to buy the explanations that his departure is not about the investigation of his program and that he's guilty of nothing, when all I will remember is a guy weaseling out of a tough spot with a lot at stake, and leaving his former employer to deal with the fallout.
You say that you "know where [USC football] stand[s]," and you "fought hard to do right", Pete? You stated that your abdication is not in the least about the possible penalties? Excuse me, but I just don't believe you.
