By Sourena VasseghiWith Rich Finley
USCRipsIt Guest Bloggers
Not sure if any of you heard this, but during the radio postgame of USC's victory over ASU, something was said that really needs addressed. A caller called in, and was remarking how the offense struggled versus Arizona State (which was true, ASU's defense is very good, but the Trojans are having growing pains this year with young players, dealing with injuries, etc. USC was stellar on defense themselves and made enough plays to win, but it was way too close for comfort). Now, normally, a call like this is not terribly out of line, but the next statement was. The same caller said something along the lines of "Maybe USC isn't firing on all cylinders the last couple of years because Pete Carroll is stretched too thin doing all this charity work. I hear about A Better LA all the time and maybe that's a factor."
Are you kidding me?
Where to even begin with a statement like that? First off, Pete is doing nothing differently than he's done in his entire tenure at USC! He has always done things within the community and for YEARS...years before 60 Minutes got wind of his speaking to gang members, he was doing these things. That's the thing about Pete, he is all about doing the right thing, not appearing like he's doing the right thing. So, when Matt, Reggie and Co. were winning national championships, Pete was doing lots of charity work. When John David Booty was slogging through a season with an injured middle finger the size of your head, Pete was doing charity work. When Mark Sanchez and the boys were rolling last year to a 12-1 record, a seventh straight Pac-10 title, a Rose Bowl victory and a seventh straight top-four finish, Pete was doing charity work.
Charities thrive off the help and attention people of stature bring to it, and A Better LA has grown leaps and bounds in no small part to Pete's direct involvement. But, his cache is made more impressive the more successful he is as a coach. So one feeds the other. Could another coach handle as much as Pete Carroll? I doubt it. But if there is anyone who thinks that there is a lack of focus on any level in the USC program simply because Coach does charity work, let me point this out: If we're working off the theory that focus is pulled away by a practice, that should be noticed across the board. I would dare say, recruiting would be an even more obvious place to look for slippage in a program if a coach is spread too thin. Recruiting is GRUELING. It takes commitment, research, planning, contingency planning, calling, you name it.
Every time I see Coach in Heritage Hall, he is running from somewhere to somewhere. He's one of the most focused and disciplined people I have ever seen. There have been times where he couldn't stop to talk to me because he was on his way to contact a potential recruit. Now that has never been a slight to me, I get it, and Pete is all about what is imminent. Nothing gets in the way of USC Football and its future, whether that future be long-term in terms of new players, or the immediate future in terms of this weekend versus Stanford.
Now that I have said all of that, let me say something that may somewhat inconsistent with everything I just said: What if his focus was diverted?
Stay with me, Coach Carroll's focus is not, as I just pointed out. But the implication in the caller's comment was maybe Pete should cool all this charity stuff if it's going to cost us some football games. Really? That's a pretty sad place that we have reached in our society that when faced with overwhelming evidence to the contrary, the mere possibility our favorite team may stumble makes someone want to actually throw away all the good work that Pete's doing. People would rather have their football coach have no life, positively impact no one's life beyond his players and sit in a film room Sunday through Friday like a prisoner and let him out on Saturdays in time for the game. Get a life if you think that.
If you're a parent and you were deciding where to send your child on a football scholarship, do you want to send your kid to a coach who doesn't care about anything or anyone outside the football program or do you want to send them to a Coach who is a wonderful human being who also happens to be the most successful and consistent coach of this decade, who constantly while not only winning games, prepares more players for the next level of life (whether that is the NFL or not) better than anybody else?
Pete Carroll is an amazing coach BECAUSE he's a wonderful person. Not the other way around. Make no mistake, there are lots of coaches who are princes when the cameras are rolling and the attention is there. Coach's players respect him because of the knowledge AND character he has. And if anyone wants him to compromise that or sacrifice that so they can feel better that their coach is so solely focused on winning and losing football games, they need to take a long look in the mirror and see if they like what they see.
I'm sure Pete Carroll does. And he should.
• Sourena Vasseghi, a motivational speaker and writer, has addressed the USC football team on several occasions over the years. His book, "Love your life and it will love you back," is available here.
