Paul Yarbrough: USC’s Carroll Shows Lack of Class Against UCLA

» James Gossett on 11.30.09 @ 10:05 PM

You are wrong Paul. BOTH coaches are at fault.  Yes, Pete Carroll was wrong to call for the pass, he easily could have just run the ball.  But Rick Neuheisel was wrong to call a timeout after USC took the knee to try and end the game.  I know you don’t like USC and that is fine, but you need to give equal blame.  Heck, even UCLA players said after wards that if they were going to call a timeout in that situation they needed to be ready to play, and they were not.

BOTH coaches lacked class because they let their Los Angeles ego’s get in the way. And that is a shame for a city that only has college football.

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» Don't put this on Neuheisel on 11.30.09 @ 10:31 PM

This was a rivalry game, a Pac-10 game and with a bowl on the line, and I can’t think of any coach who wouldn’t use all three timeouts in that situation. The way UCLA was playing, there’s no way the Bruins could win with 54 seconds left. But the way USC was playing, there was a possibility UCLA could make it 21-14 if they got the ball back. Neuheisel was correct in that situation — although I have plenty of criticism for some of his decisions in the previous 59 minutes.

I don’t fault Petey for throwing that bomb; I was surprised he took a knee on the first play. It’s unfortunate that that was the one play UCLA’s defense wasn’t prepared for all night, because they played their hearts out.

What I’m furious about is the sideline behavior — specifically, Pete Carroll’s — which was one of the worst displays of classless BS that I’ve ever seen. The way he was jumping around, you would have thought he’d won the national championship instead of a close contest between two mediocre teams.

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» Shey on 12.01.09 @ 12:44 AM

“If you’ve been paying close attention during the past six months, you know I don’t much care for USC football coach Pete Carroll. “

Well that pretty much explains the rationale behind the rest of your article.

Pete Carroll did show class by offering to end the game mercifully, something that most teams including Stanford 3 weeks ago wouldn’t do.

Rick called a TO because he wants to keep playing. Okay, fair enough. Not a bad call. But if UCLA is going to play until the end, why shouldn’t USC? The problem here is the UCLA players and Rick weren’t on the same page. A 48 yard throw from Barkley isn’t a typical feat. Had the UCLA defense actually attempted to stop the play, they could have easily done so, and I say this as a Trojan fan.

Besides, Rick himself said that USC was justified in throwing the deep ball. Why whine about it?

But this fuels the great rivlary that is USC-UCLA. All this will do is make UCLA put on their big boy pants and come back next year with more force, giving us all a better game to watch.

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» Casual Observer on 12.01.09 @ 05:44 AM

This ‘article’ just comes across as more smack talk from a UCLA fan. 

Ya got beat.  Eat it.  Live it.  Love it.  A fair fight has a fair ending, and that’s exactly what happened on Saturday night.

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» Chicago Jim on 12.01.09 @ 08:11 AM

SC fans and alums are trying to spread the blame to both coaches.  This is totally ridiculous.  Stop drinking the Kool-Aid Trojans.  Everyone across the country is calling your coach low class.  Read the papers outside of the LA (Trojan) Times. 

Football coaches don’t have their quarterback throw a bomb when they are trying to run out the clock.  They don’t hoot, scream and dance on the sideline when they run up the score.  They don’t incite their team to insult the opponents.  ONLY Pete Carroll does this. 

Until you stop your your sickening adulation of Carroll, you are not going to see how his lying, cheating, and hypocrisy have led your school to the NCAA violations dog house. 

Your school is a laughing stock.  No one outside of the inbred “Trojan Family” considers it academically superior in any way.  Pete Carroll with is low life behavior has only buried you deeper behind Stanford, Cal, and UCLA. 

The only question that remains for Trojans is was it worth it.  Well Trojans, was it worth winning a few extra games against UCLA and Notre Dame now that Carroll has trashed your school’s reputation?

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» to Chicago Jim on 12.01.09 @ 09:53 AM

Ok, so we are low-class.  I guess this is why any college team in your area has had a reason to celebrate lately.

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» Steve Jones on 12.01.09 @ 10:40 AM

I couldn’t help but respond to the blatant misunderstanding that i think most sportswirters exhibit most of the time. The end of the game was not a matter of class by either coach. Neuheisel had the timeouts and was free to use them. Competitive spirit he is he couldn’t just concede. Carrol could have called the kneel two more times, but there was a risk and indication that there would be know mercy. The pass could hve been incomlete and stopped the clock. He could have run a play and killed more time, but the spirit of football is not just the gentlemanly thing to do and the lines of players jawing at eeach other across the field say we’ll have many more great UCS/UCLA games in the futre with the kind of exitesment that only major rivalries can muster. Rmember what you’re writing about Paul. One of the best rivalries in the country.

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» Danny on 12.01.09 @ 11:54 AM

Paul. USC took a knee. UCLA called a timeout. USC kept on playing, UCLA did not. Period. SC all day every day.

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» Get your facts right.... on 12.01.09 @ 01:13 PM

Are you a journalist or just some hack?  Did you even watch the game.  You should do your homework.  Neuheisel has said publicly he wanted to force a fumble or force USC to punt.  He wanted to try and score again - when the other team had taken a knee already.  Your “article” is completely one sided.

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» Chris on 12.01.09 @ 03:04 PM

Both coaches were well within their right to do what they did.

Neuheisel had 3 timeouts. As a coach you teach players to fight to the bitter end.

USC is well within their right to call “game-on”.

However, what makes this noteworthy is that Carroll rolled the dice in dialing up a bomb, instead of an easier 1st down on a hitch, curl, screen…heck even a run.  It was a symbolic, not a tactical decision.

The reaction from the USC sideline and Carroll himself tells the rest of the story.

There’s no surprise though.  The age of class, sportsmanship, and mutual respect have long gone.

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» bob ponce on 12.01.09 @ 05:40 PM

Paul Yarbrough has just never given up being a Bruin fan and thats OK. It was Rick Neuheisel was the coach who called time out as the Trojans were trying to run the clock out. Crazy things can happen in football. I’ll always regrettably remember Gary Bebans two late TD throws after SC had pushed them all over the field. Coach Rick bears the fault here! He embarassed UCLA after they fought hard but were clearly outclassed by SC talent. The monpoly in LA is not over Rick and Bruin fans should give Pete Carroll his proper due as a great coach and he will bring the Trojans back to greater prominence. Fight on!!!

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» Chiming in from Arizona on 12.02.09 @ 12:40 PM

—“Come on. When you are in lead and want to kill clock you run the ball. None of this what if USC fumbled. Run the ball or take a knee to get clock down low.”—

Ok.  USC take a knee, UCLA calls a time out with what, 51 secs. remaining?  Timeout number one.  USC runs a play or takes another knee on 2nd down.  UCLA calls timeout number two with 45 secs on clock.  3rd down now.  USC runs another play or takes another knee.  UCLA calls timeout with 40 secs. on the clock.  4th down.  Does USC punt? take another knee so they dont get the punt blocked?
Lets say they punt and UCLA gets ball back on their own 20 with about 35-30 secs left.  Stranger things have happened in sports (Stanford - Cal, Pacers - Knicks) where teams have come back in those situations, no matter how small, little, or no chance they have.

—“And if you are down, you call timeouts.. 2 TDs is not much even if UCLA Offense dropped passes all night.”“—-

So by that thinking, USC should have tried to score because as you said, 2 touchdowns isn’t much.  If it isnt that much, USC needed to score to ensure the win.

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» Blake Dorfman on 12.03.09 @ 07:53 PM

Paul, I think you rushed this column a bit. You don’t really back anything up. You just put it out there that you don’t like USC, recap the events poorly and then call it “typical Trojan behavior” before jumping to the PAC-10 as a whole. If you’re gonna be so passionately opposed to Carroll’s decision, don’t lead with it and give up after 200 words. Focus a little bit here.

What “message” was Neuheisel sending to his defense by calling the timeout? That is something you fail to explain. The boos came from the crowd immediately after he called that timeout, and for good reason.

It made no sense.

It served no purpose but to say “I’m not ready to stop playing yet, even if we’re gonna lose.”

Pete, who was initially trying to run the clock out and get to the postgame handshake, said to himself “Fine, we’ll keep playing.”

And Chicago Jim, way to call USC a laughingstock and academically inferior with no basis. Where do your judgements on the school’s academic programs come from? Is it the lack of quality professors? That would be a tough one for you to argue. Is it low admissions standards? Don’t think so. So what is it?

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