I was unable to write about what I had hoped to write about for this date – so I will substitute it with “sloppy seconds,” and, talk about USC football and Uncle Pete (Pete Carroll).
I had been meaning to send-a-note-or-two to my beloved Times Sports section – but I knew they probably wouldn’t print my stuff (as they only have once), and besides, there seem to be plenty of people saying the same things that I intend to say here…
Uncle Pete has lost “touch” with his program: both his players and his coaches – you can tell that the Trojan Football Team is dealing with a number of mixed messages — which I will attempt to ferret out in this missive.
Back-in-the-day, when I was attending Grey High School in Port Elizabeth, South Africa (which I just heard mentioned in a Sopranos episode [Port Elizabeth, NOT Grey H.S. {and yes, Giti and I are only now getting round to watching The Sopranos}]) – we had a master (teacher) who would tell us that we were Grey Boys 24-hours-a-day and 365-days-a-year: well, this is a dictum that I would like Uncle Pete to communicate to his players: a philosophy that I thought he had already ingrained in his “system”: but the Reggie Bushes and Joe McKnights obviously haven’t picked up on this.
I also read an article in the Sports Times a number of years ago that quoted Pete suggesting that he had finally experienced a meaning for his life: coaching the lads of Troy. Pete’s sentiment so resonated with me (as I am a sucker for Man’s Search for Meaning “[thanks Joseph Campbell]) that I guess I’ve just enjoyed the ride and averted my eyes to Uncle Pete’s arrogance and that occasional deer-in-the-headlights look he gives. It seemed that Uncle Pete finally had a good reason for awakening each day…
I well remember that Bowl game in Uncle Pete’s first season where I believe (if I read his face correctly as ‘SC went down to Utah 10-6) – that he was thinking that this would never happen to him or ‘SC, again! Well, it happened AGAIN this 2009 season (and a-couple-of-other times over the past 8 years [but those losses can be forgiven as ‘SC bounced back each time!])! But this year the blowout losses at the Coliseum that were EPIC; and then, a pathetic bowl game performance against a pitiful Boston College team could not stop any of the faithful from wondering if the Pete Carroll dynasty is over?! Damn! I continue to pray that some communal learning experience has transpired – but I’m still amazed that every former Trojan football player didn’t visit this year’s Trojan team before the UCLA game — to avert any further embarrassment. Where were they?
Yeah, yeah – I know about the NFL drain and the many coaches who have left Pete’s fold (but I also have to wonder if Pete hasn’t snorted mountains of cocaine (in-the-past) that are finally weighing on him [to wit, a recent printing of a bizarre quote Pete rendered RE: Joe McKnight]) – not to mention that the Trojan level-of-play also seemed to hint at team drug usage reminiscent of the Todd Marijuanavich era (though Todd could put points on the board with his partner in crime, ol’ Wellman!).
There was also some bizarre disconnect between Pete’s words and what transpired on the field this season: it was suggested that Matt Barkley would be brought on slowly and maintained within his means – but we saw a lad thrown to the wolves (granted, many of the receivers dropped passes that should have been caught [that’s where the drug angle comes in]). And, when every team stacks the box against SC’s run – why doesn’t ‘SC work the corners with the run – like Oregon started to do in the Rose Bowl?
I’m very worried that dynasties only last a-decade-or-so – and, while it’s true that ‘SC was the most dominant team of the 2000-2009 years – this Trojan would hate for the-run-to-be-over. So please Uncle Pete, please consider re-connecting yourself to all-of-those blue chippers and reminding them of our legacy — cuz some of us are really watching you closely now – to see just what kind of uncle you really are: one that can be trusted to stay with the kiddies and keep them in line, or, one who loses them and let’s them get into nonsense.