Pete Carroll Recaps Scrimmage

It was a beautiful Saturday night in the Coliseum under a nearly full moon. We asked Pete Carroll to recap scrimmage for fans who couldn't make it.

Gary Klein and David Wharton were covering all the angles from the sideline:

• Trojans offense shows progress, but it's fitful
• At USC, it's tailback who?
• Bonus: Thumbnail sketches of USC's six tailbacks

Comments

[Pete Carroll is overated]

PETE CARROLL IS OVERATED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why:
First of all he was fired in the pros. Then he is hired by default by USC. His first year he goes 6-6 then with weeks to prepare for his first bowl game against a team that he has more talent than (Utah) he losses 0-6. Even with Carson Palmer on that team he gets shut out. With no knowledge of X's and O's, SC fans want him out.

National titles:
Norm Chow blesses USC and runs the offense one year after Petes first year. 3 Heismans and 2 National titles later he leaves. By the way USC could have won 3 National titles, but it was Petes idea too put a Freshman on Vince Young to make sure that he does not rush for any yards. Vince finished with 4 to 5 rushing TD's. Norm was also kind enough to leave the blue prints to his offense which is still being used by the current staff.

Recruiting:
Yes Pete does recruit very well, but keep in mind that USC has never had a problem in that area. Even before Carroll arrived SC still had 1st round draft selections (Keyshawn) and still out recruited the country at times, even though they did very little with the talent. Having an L.A. exposure can also be very attractive to young players and can also be an advantage. and lets face it, with the programs history, tradition, and facilities combined no other school on the West Coast can match it. Finally, I hate to say it, but having sports agents in your own back yard always helps. Example: that O.J. Mayo guy who gave him money lived 7 miles from campus. I bet Joe Mcknight who could have stayed home and played for his favorite team LSU and won a national title last year with more playing time is not on some agents payroll.

I know what your thinking, "but all schools do it" that is not true. Most schools do not buy their athletes but Yes the big ones do. USC however has a huge advantage over the other schools as most of the sports agents live miles from the campus. USC may not have direct involvement, but tell me those coaches and aministration do not see them hanging around with older men who arent related to them. The Coaching staff have met most of the players families, they also can see what they are driving, wearing and living off campus. Covering up recruiting violations seem to be his thing as well. Yes, even illegal recruiting, like when Joe Mcknight said that he talked to Reggie Bush before commiting to SC (which is a violation) and Pete was there to cover it up and say that Joe made a mistake and meant to say that he listened on a phone conversation between him and Reggie.

Lack of control:
I know that most programs have players that have a criminal history. But it seems that this coach recruits most of them. Assault, drugs, rape, gun possession, it doesnt matter. Coach Carrol will be there to cover it up. Just show up on Saturdays should be his War Cry. At least most coaches have the guts to kick players of the team, but Carroll seems to do very little of that.

Sorry for the long comment, but I do respect USC for the program it has built and they should not have to apologize for it. I think USC is one of the easiest places to coach because of location and athletes in your backyard and no competition near you compared to other schools. I feel the Pete Carroll just a lucky guy who stumbled upon a forgotten treasure.

One more thing, I am sick of SC fans gloating and dont care what kind of reputation that Carroll has built as long as they have bragging rights. Its like the SF Giants bragging about owning the home run record. They know how they got it but don't care.

Fight on....Illegally.

[Johnvald]

Wow

I'm a USC student and agree with SOME of these points. But seriously, people need to stop hating.

Fight on!

[Bobak]

One of the previous comment writers has too much time on his hands, try to guess which one.

[Bruce]

Too many factual errors for me to even take seriously. I stopped reading somewhere around "USC didn't have problems recruiting before Pete Carroll..." Coaching at SC is easy, that's why Tollner, Smith, JRII and He Who Shall Not Be Named all did so well.

[Figgins]

Oooohhh. Sounds like that long comment is from someone whose school hasn't won in a while...

Don't forget Palmer was trying on yet another offensive scheme when Carroll took over. Going 6-6 with Hatchetjob's recruits is a worthy achievement.

Norm Chow - a great offensive mind for college football, but lousy in the Pro's. Isn't that the same complaint you have against Carroll?

LA is an attraction - but also a distraction. That Carroll can get a teenage boy's attention, and keep it zeroed-in on football is amazing. It's so much easier to focus when there's nothing but cornfields around campus. Just ask any of the Florida schools.

Recruiting violations are a cancer that every school has to fight against. The successful schools have a harder time of it compared to the less successful schools because Sports Agents aren't interested in chasing the 6th round draft pick. When there are more sharks in the water, there are more shark bites.

The amount of control - or lack of it - is endemic to our society. 16-year-old gang-bangers shoot innocent people every week in Southern California. Maybe an amount of SELF-control is what's missing, and that my friend comes from the parents.

Carrol does a fantastic job with these kids. Just ask the ones that don't make it to the NFL.

[Pete Carroll is overated]

Bruce:

Your missing the point. Pete would be on that list as well had it not been for Norm Chow. Those coaches should have gotten a couple of coordinaters like Norm and they would have realized that it was the easiest coaching gig.

Figgins:

Let me see.....Pete Carrols first year Carson Palmer, after one FULL regular season of learning a new system, gets shut out to a team with far less talent. The very next year he has to learn a new system again under Norm Chow. This time he wins the Heisman. I guess it was that 1 year of maturing, not Norm.
Also the previous system under Hatchett and Petes first year were not to far off, Pro Style Multiple attacks.

L.A. is a distraction? It is an advantage. Places like Idaho or Wyoming would love to have that distraction. As long as the recruits go their, it will be worth it.
Also Pete does a good job on having them focus on football? Did you not read my first novel....I mean comment? USC is known for having players repeatedly getting into trouble. What about UCLA? Sure they might have an incident or two, but no where near USC. Urban Meyer is just as bad, however at least everywhere he has been he has produced winning teams thanks to his Offensive mind (he calls the plays). Never been fired like Pete. Look up Lawrence Philips, Nebraska, all coaches everywhere have to deal with bad seeds. Its what you do to them afterwards that makes you a great coach, not a great friend.

Finally, You said "Carrol does a fantastic job with these kids. Just ask the ones that don't make it to the NFL." USC graduates 55% of their team. Excluding the ones who leave early for the NFL that is still a very large statistic. Where is Pete when these players go back home with no chance for the NFL and far from a degree. I will tell you where he is. He and his coaching staff are convincing the rest of his underclassmen to focus 1% of their brain on basket weaving classes and the other 99% on football. Some mentor.

P.S. Whats with this blog? Why does it take so long to post a comment?

[Ed. Note: All comments now require approval. That means when there's nobody available to moderate, it can take a little while to get the comments up. We're working on a solution to approve comments via cell phone so that the delay is only a minute or two.]

[Bruce]

Perhaps YOU'RE missing the point, Norm Chow WAS the OC in Pete Carroll's first year, including the game against Utah. Following the game, Pete revamped Norm's playbook to make it more physical and power run oriented.

If you didn't know Chow was the OC, you lack basic facts and that makes all your arguments pointless. You can't blame the Utah game on Pete, without blaming Norm as well.

[Pete Carroll is overated]

Bruce,

If your gonna debate me then lets debate. Do not make up lies though. I just googled Norm Bio and just as I thought, his first year was not with Carrols first year. He was coaching Philip Rivers at NC State. BTW Philiip Rivers won Freshmen of the year breaking all of NC States single passing season records.

Pete revamped the playbook? Again more lies. Pete was never on the Offensive side of the ball. He was barely a Defensive Coordinator (and not a good one at that). Let me give you a rundown on Norms Bio.

He coached 5 First Team All-Americans including Steve Young, Jim Mcmahon,.

Ty Detmer who won the Heisman and another QB. Robbie Bosco who finished third in the voting.

BYU developed the reputation Quarterback U while he coached the QB's and ran the Offense.

Pete Carrol revamped the Playbook? Give me a break and stop lying to sound intelligent.

Once again I will ask you to read all my comments and tell me....WHAT MAKES PETE A GREAT COACH?

No one seems to have the answer.

[Bruce]

I think you've exposed enough of your own ignorance that I don't need to say anything else. Thanks for trolling.

[USC False National Champs]

I guess that this is your way of saying you lost the argument. Sorry for the very complex question, I thought it would be easy. But I guess no SC fans can tell me.........What makes Pete Carroll a good coach?

[Scott]

Hey "Pete hater", or whatever your name is, what's your beef with SC? Are you a jealous UCLA or ND fan?

In any event, I can tell by reading your posts that you'd never let the facts get in the way of a good story. So please read the following:
-Norm Chow WAS the OC for SC in Carroll's first year. Maybe your problem was relying on a bad web site, but after a year at NC State, he came to SC at the start of the Carroll era.
-Regarding the supposedly horrible disciplinary record at SC, have you checked the facts lately? Look at EDSBS.com if you're REALLY interested in the truth. They have a measurement of off-field transgressions ("The Fulmer Cup"), in which the top teams this year are Alabama, MIzzou and Georgia. SC's not in the top 20. So let's refrain from slandering Pete and the school, when SC has far fewer players getting into legal problems than other schools.
-Could you conflict yourself just a little more re: Pete being overrated? You state that anybody can recruit at SC...if that's true, why didn't any of Pete's predecessors have the success he's had? You can't argue that anyone can get talent at SC and then turn a blind eye to the fact that Carroll has done better than any coach since JR1.
-You're using the Utah game in 2001 to argue that he's not a great coach? That doesn't even make sense.
-Finally, why are you positing here about this? If you want to argue with those who have the platform who've been calling Pete the best coach in college FB, why don't you direct it to Dennis Dodd at CBS sportsline, Stewart Mandell at CNNSI and the guys at ESPN. They're experts, and ALL of them agree Pete's the best coach. So save yourself further embarrassment and craw back under the rock you came from.

[pk-in-the-mesa]

Okay Mr. pete carroll is overated--usc false champs then WHO IS THE BEST COACH AND TEAM?

[pk-in-the-mesa]

SCOTTY WAY TO GO AND YES CHOW STARTED AT USC WITH PETE BUT THIS ____ DOESN'T KNOW ANY BETTER MOST COWARDS DON'T

[pk-in-the-mesa]

Here we go just listen to ESPN radio and both dudes agreed that Pete was the best

[Jonathan K]

I'm surprised that no one has posted out that USC DID NOT get shutout in that Utah game. The score was 10-6. Not 6-0.

Yes, USC should have won, but the fact that you can't get a simple fact correct (and that's just one among many) shows that your argument is flawed.

[dont waste your time]

dont waste your time with Pete Carroll is overrated. The numbers dont lie. Some people in this world like to engage in selective information bias--not seeing some obvious statistics in front of them in favor of statistics that support their points. You can say anything to this guy and he will still find some way to disagree with you.