What Is A Lesson From This Debacle?

Posted on by

I think it is clear from the past 24 hours that you can say you are 150 percent behind Lane Kiffin or whatever the current percentage is and talk about how he is “loyal” and dealt with NCAA sanctions, and none of that matters with recruits.

They are too sharp to listen to that kind of stuff. They live in the real world. So that means Lane Kiffin either needed a contract extension or to be fired after the season. That shows concrete steps to recruits about what situation they are being asked to enter.

Facebook Twitter Plusone Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Tumblr Email
  • http://www.facebook.com/rick.loomis.9 Rick Loomis

    Agree, but The alumni would have gone crazy if Kiffin was given an extension. I feel that next year is a no-win for me. I don’t want to have another season like this last one, but I don’t want this embarrassment of a head coach regardless of how SC does next year.

    • http://twitter.com/FatBooster Joe Blow

      Haden could have given him a “conditional” extension and not made the condition public. Very easy. Too busy with his PR machine.

      • betomas

        LOL. Like you would ever know if Haden didn’t do exactly that. What a twit. Still, #FireHaden!!

        • http://twitter.com/FatBooster Joe Blow

          I’ll know. I’m an insider. Ur the twit, more like a moron

          • betomas

            :D …you’re…an…insider!! hahaha!! keep talking—you’re entertaining.

  • lifetime Bruin Fan

    Excellent points I agree although, I don’t like when people are fired, But Sometimes it’s necessary.

  • http://twitter.com/FatBooster Joe Blow

    TOTALLY AGREE. Haden has to go as well. That’s on HIM.

  • Leon

    Such a tool, Wolf. Look, I think we all can agree that USC had an unbelievable class before some of the guys had second thoughts and went elsewhere. IT’S UNDERSTANDABLE WHY THEY WOULD DO THAT! But, even with a horrible year with tons of distractions they were still able to pull more the most 5 star guys in the country mixed in with some other 4s. The sky is not falling Wolfie – everything will be OK.

  • grave soul

    What happened to all of the USC fans’ hubris and self-importance that was always on exhibit up until the last few days? It’s a virtual ghost town here at SW’s blog.

    #lifehumbles. #witnessingdisaster

    • Independent_George

      Need to visit a Pay Board. There is Sunshine Pumping and Sour Grapes galore!

      • grave soul

        I’m on a couple of CFB pay sites and, you’re right, there are still a few SC sunshine pumpers but way more SC sour grapes and indignant trojans fans.

  • betomas

    Puss in Boots has got to go too!

  • Spedjones

    just a decommit or two more and SC could have been 1 to UN in recruiting too! LOL! Fail ON!

  • MichiganTrojan

    Is that from your forthcoming book, “How to be an Athletic Director,” by Scott Wolf? I’ll be sure to get it.

    Meanwhile, are you implying the rest of the commits are dolts? Great bit of journalism. LK, going into his 4th of coaching, make him the 3rd longest tenured coach in the Pac 12. Which means only 3 of the schools have had the same coach for at least the entire length of one class of recruits college experience from Frosh to Senior. In this day and age, a commit would have to be a little naive to think that his head coach or positions coach will be around for the long haul – especially with junkyard journalists like Scott openly calling for the dismissal of a HC, and then using his blog as snarky bandwagon to pile on when things go the way he hoped.

    Recruits are committing because they like USC, and regardless of the coach, they’ll have an aooprtunity for major market media viewership, be playing at an NFL pipeline school, get a diploma from a top 25 school, benefit from an enormous alumni association after it’s all said and done, and live in Southern California.

    • WingsHD

      I could buy what your selling for 50 cents. Some points are valid others just not reality. Too many questions surrounding USC and getting a chance to play right away seem to be winning out with these recruits. What should bother everybody more is the lack of plan B. We have all followed the recruiting news for many weeks and most of what was being reported is coming true, so why are we going to be short. As of this writing we have 12 including the early guys. That is 5 short and I only see maybe one more available that could sign and that is very iffy.

      • MichiganTrojan

        With Falah signing (announced on Reign of Troy), if landed EV, that would be 14 out of the 15 that the NCAA originally allowed. Not the end of the world. We signed 12 after the 2010 season. If you throw in Markowitz and Rogers, it’s about even..

        And listen, if they had signed everybody that initially committed, Scott would be posting things like, “What good is all that talent if they’re going to 7-6 and throw bubble screens all day.” There’s no winning, or even pausing or investigating, with this guy and his type. When USC was winning, he carved out a niche as the “cynical” beat writer, who doesn’t “buy the kool aid.” Now he just gets to swim in the cynicism with the self-loathing UCLA fans. And he’s a USC alum, so that makes him REALLY objective. Acts like he cares about 17 and 18 years olds, but really just has unfinished, indirect business with LK. After the EV announcement, I’m done with updates for 6 months. July can’t get here soon enough.

        • steveg

          ^^ good post, I agree 100% just to lazy to sit here and type all that out. Great job. We are gonna be okay, whoever the HC is.

  • Independent_George

    Wow. A post from Scott that makes sense.

  • Ben Factor

    This time, I don’t buy Scott’s analysis. First, an extension would have been absurd, given all that happened in 2012. Second, I don’t think Haden was in a good position to hire a great HC, because of the sanctions. Third, the LK buyout would have been a financial burden.

    Falah may sign with USC this afternoon. However, hypothetically, assume that he opts for Washington. USC will have 12 new additions, all of them very promising. It will have five unfilled spots. Thus, the maximum upside of any action by Haden was five scholarships. Hardly the “future of the program.” Furthermore, after a 7-6 season, what new HC was a lock to fill those five slots with very promising players? To my mind, no one who was going to be available to USC.

    In essence, not getting five more highly promising recruits was disappointing, and will hurt on the field by 2014. But there was no easy fix available to Haden or USC.

    Kiffin and Pendergast will either produce a well-coached team in 2013, or they won’t (and five freshmen were unlikely to determine that outcome). If Kiffin and Pendergast somehow get the job done, they will have bought more more time, and the stability and greater success, and impending end to sanctions, should help next year’s recruiting to go better. If K & P don’t get the job done, Haden will be in a better position to hire a strong candidate.

    As an aside, whoever is the coach in 2014, the recruiting emphasis for the 2014 class should include the absolute best JC players, to fill positions of need right away. USC will need the likes of Morgan Breslin and an Isiah Wiley.

    • MichiganTrojan

      Also, this maybe lets them keep Markowitz, and they could go out an find a decent kicker too, if Heidari is done for. If not 3-5 extra scholarships for 2014.

      • WingsHD

        Everybody has said the lack of depth on the roster was a major factor for last year’s result. So leaving 5 bodies unsigned isn’t a very good option.

        • MichiganTrojan

          Lack of depth wasn’t an issue last year because they never tackled in practice. They have a three deep at every position, with guys who can rotate if necessary. I’d rather they actually tried to test that 75 man roster theory this year than keep talking about how it limits. Thus far, Lane has imposed the limits.

  • dtksr1 @dslextreme.com

    This will be the 2nd straight year Kiffin lacks closing the deal, of what was expected. Only this year it was worse in the bailouts. The number of schollies has nothing to do with who you bring in. Kiffin being assleep at the wheel cost him Fitts. His antics will probably cost him Vanderdoes & Hatcher. USC will soon become a “Mountain West type team” with Pat Haden’s blessings evidently…

    • scBlows

      It’s hard to close when you suck

  • WingsHD

    Falah signed his LOI, that makes 12.

  • http://www.facebook.com/charles.bucket.3 Charles Bucket

    and the wolfman delivers another humiliating kick to the trOXans’ crotch!!!

    are ANY of the remaining targets left???

    they are all giving the trOXans the bird and moving on!!!

    except this Falla kid…..hey kid, you interested in a couple of tickets to the Titanic??

    • WingsHD

      Just in UCLA fired Howland quick go look.

  • steveg

    Hey Scott, make sure you get a few good kicks in while they are down. I think you are a very stupid person to continue with your bullcrap. If you are so damn smart what is your constructive suggestion to turn the program around. All you do is drag us down and feed the idiot trolls from the little school across town where all the rapists are.

    • Spedjones

      he’s a reporter and this is a blog, not even his real column. You want a beat reporter at the DN to fix SC’s football program? LOL if that’s how bad things are over there! And low blow about the rapists…but you’re right. Strangely, they only ended up there because they were afraid the murderers hanging out around SC.

      • TrojanFan

        Wrong blog….back up and turn left!

  • Independent_George

    Focus on In-State/In Conference Kids.

    Easier to keep a swaying kid if he is local (Falah) than to keep an OSS kid from another conferfence (Hatcher, Ramsey, Thomas).

  • TroyFan52

    I’m agreeing with these depth problems. How can you be-10 to start with and then lose another four or five that don’t sign……..Did Haden contact Pat Fitzgerald yet??????

  • RememberTheFreedomBowl

    The last USC team with the “IT” factor was 2008. These recruits were in 8th grade then. Next year it’s 7th Grade.Things are slipping away folks.