Friday Lunchtime With Sarkisian

146 thoughts on “Friday Lunchtime With Sarkisian

  1. The Grinch would say “only three words describe that performance – Stink, Stank, Stunk.” And welcome back to all the Trolls!!!

    • Whoa, the Wanster conjugates a verb. Much more impressive than KU’s ugly FB performance last night.

    • …and to round out the conjugation of Stinkar…
      Stinkamos, Stinkais, Stinkan

      Point of clarification…Shouldn’t 1st person singular be ‘Stinko’?
      I would normally defer to Mr. Bucket but I believe that he is otherwise occupied due to currently resting upon his laurels for ‘borrOCHO’.

      -Zancudo-

  2. He’s like the Kevin Bacon character in Animal House “Remain calm……all is well……..”

  3. His comments are delusional. He needs to go. Pat should try to hire Chip Kelly, but he probably won’t because that would mean the school would have to come to grips with the fact that the Pete Carroll era is over.

      • He did BUT… His issues centered around his hiring of a recruiting service that would help him recruit in Texas. He wont need that at SC. HIré Kelly!!!

      • I had forgotten about that.

        But Arturo makes a good point about the relative ease of recruiting at USC.

        Plus, if Kelly doesn’t like the NFL, he has to deal with the NCAA. He’ll be scrutinized, and all the more so if he were at USC. He’s certainly not stupid, and he wouldn’t kill his own career over some RB, when he had 3 other good ones on the roster.

        Anyway, Haden has to go. I respect him as a person, but he’s not what is needed now.

    • I totally agree with your comment earlier about Sark getting at least 2 more years. We are headed in the right direction. It’s like the rest of these Trojan fans forgot about the sanctions. Not even the dirtiest of Pete’s teams could have won under these circumstances. FIGHT ON!

    • Pat should be fired and not allowed to hire anyone, or wasn’t him hiring Sark and Kiffin enough for you ?

  4. Most coaches on the bubble make delusional statements like that, and Paul Hackett was one of them, his last words on his way out at SC were. “I need one more year, because this Team is going to be great next season”. Yeah, sure Paul.. LOL

  5. Glad Sark is happy with direction of program. He might be the only one at this point.

  6. I’m not sure who produced more comedy with their desperate statements, Steve Sarkisian, or Karl Dorrell ? Dorrell was hilarious sometimes, because his post game comments were as if he was watching a totally different game…LOL And Sarkisian is running a close second, because he never address the real issues, and likes to pretend, just like a little kid…Lol!

  7. “We are headed in the right direction.” — General Varus in the Teutoburg Forest

  8. Also Kyle Wittingham, Tee Martin, Jack Del Rio, Jeff Fisher, Chris Peterson. Are emerging as candidates.

    • Kyle Wittingham knows what coaching physical, tough, aggressive football is all about…Enough Said! Can you imagine what he could do with the type of Athletes USC attracts ?

      • Sark didnt run the ball even when he could. Pathetic. Im concerned for the development of the players. Sark is way over his head.

        • That’s why you hire competent assistant coaches and coordinators…….

      • He got my attention.

        If you’re not getting a Chip Kelly, I think you need a guy who knows defense well. These less-than-great offensive guys just won’t cut it.

    • sas are you serious? Del Rio, Fisher and Peterson will never consider the HFBC position at KU. If you recall sas, Little Petey only got the job because 6 or 7 other preferred candidates turned KU down flat.

      • That’s not my wish list Owns. Those are the names that were suggested since last night after the game.

        • I see. Well good luck hiring good FB HC for KU. There’s mucho distractions in LA to scare an outsider candidate.

          • Those were the same names mentioned before Sark was hired. Petersen didn’t want the job last time. Neither did Del Rio or Fisher. I think Haden doesn’t move until after 2016 at the earliest.

          • Peterson did a great job last night, but I don’t think he’s our guy.
            In no particular order.
            -Jack Del Rio
            -Ken Norton
            -John Gruden
            -Kyle Wittingham

            I’m in favor for.

          • I don’t want another coach from the Carroll coaching tree. But Norton is a tough minded defensive guy. And he was responsible for coaching up all the the great Trojan LBs during the Carroll era. He made the LBs in Seattle play better than what they were including Malcolm Smith. But he would bring his Defensive first approach to a program (with plenty of defensive talent) who has lacked a top defense since Carroll left. He’s been on the other side of town at UCLA and knows the rivalry from both sides. He would have the defensive recruits here already to implement his defensive philosophy with a roster capable of following, buying in, and playing above and beyond, but most of playing to their potential. And I’m sure the best recruits would buy in. He’s won 2-3 Super Bowls as a player, Super Bowl as an Assistant Coach, and coached up some great SC LBs to All Americans and National Titles as an Assistant. He’s a no nonsense personality who is about handling business, and will get in his football teams face if need be. I think he would at least deserve a proper Interview.

          • Dont think Petersen fits the USC culture or LA environment. Pacific northwest is perfect for him

      • I named Kelly in an earlier post. Last after the game there were a couple of websites saying Chip Kelley’s name is floating around as a strong candidate

  9. Interesting how UCLA gets blown away by ASU and people call Mora one of the best coaches in college, and USC loses a close game against UW and people call for his firing.

    • Helen is a smart lady. The only coach I might rather have at USC is Norm Chow. FIGHT ON!

    • I am unaware of people calling Mora one of the best coaches in college football. He is a good coach that has done a fine job at UCLA.

      Sark recruits well but his overall record doesn’t compare to Mora’s and SC has higher expectations than exist at UCLA.

      • I dont think he recruits well, ratings arent everything.
        I believe, he recruits like his building a fantasy football team.

      • As a Bruins’ fan, I agree with most of what you said, except that until Mora beats Stanford and Oregon, he still has something to prove and a lot of Bruins fans want nothing less than a conference championship at very least, or a shot at the playoffs. So I think a lot of Bruins fans disagree with you on the latter. That’s what a #BruinRevolution is really about at the end of the day.

        • That’s why I used the term “good coach.” He has won almost 75% of his games but no conference titles. He is a big upgrade over what UCLA had, but hasn’t gotten the team over the hump.

    • Gosh Helen, missed you last night after KU’s cupcake defeat on the “Discuss the game” thread – Pwr. outage in Arkansas?

      The one constant refrain from every sunshine-pumping, rah-rah, blowhard KU fan, such as yourself, is that the KU FB program is the most talented Pac-12 team. That’s a load BS isn’t it Helen?

      There’s no talent in O/L, or D/L. It’s true K has the happiest feet in the Pac-12 and loves to pad his stats on weak teams, but has no taste for competition. .

      K only throws to the squeaky wheel JuJu, because JuJu gets upset when K chucks the ball to Adoree, while 37 other receivers sit on the KU bench.

      At the apex of the KU FB circus, sits the maharishi of south central, the one, the only, CC Sark.

      But Helen, you’re whining because Mora can coach FB better than CC Sark. You should take that up with Mr. Haden.

      • ASU was a highly ranked team nationally pre-season, the UW was not. PAC-12 South is turning out to be more competitive than North. The North has the UW, WSU, OSU, and Oregon is having a down year. That is why Mora wasn’t trashed. The South has good teams at Arizona, Utah, ASU, UCLA, and USC.

    • There were some questionable calls I admit (field goal at the end was a head scratcher) but losing the starting Center and losing a close game should get any coach just a bit of slack

      • Really YoYo, I don’t recall you giving Mora said slack after UCLA’s Az St. defeat.

        • I know, I know – everybody is on the anti-Sark train, even my close friends from school – but I still think you gotta give the guy 5 years minimum before making any decision about his future – especially considering his recruiting prowess, and the fact that GPA’s are higher, and that the team is very well disciplined (outside of football) – It is COLLEGE after all

          • Five years? Wow. My hat’s off to you. I think you’re crazy and maybe you’re just joking but in any case, Sark is a dead man walking at this point. His team looks horrible and you like the team’s GPA. Good luck ever getting into a decent bowl game with Sark. Ever.

            By the way. His recruiting’s gonna drop off. The best kids notice when coaches from schools are under always under pressure. Right now, Sark’s under fire nationwide with everyone except you. Good luck.

          • I don’t know who those people are who are defending sark. Maybe they are close friends of his. The fact of the matter is all sarkisan is, is a great recruiter. He absolutely cannot handle being the head coach coach at USC. It takes a talented man, to win consistently at USC, and sark is clearly not that person.

          • Jack, I took note when the fan comments stayed negative after ASU. I thought that was telling.

            But I could not believe the excerpts from columns today in SI, USNews, Fox Sports, etc.

            It would take an historical reversal to extricate Sark from the toaster.

            I just hope that Haden replaces himself first, unless Chip Kelly or someone like that is calling him today for the job.

      • Ya, like nobody gives Sark enough slack. USC is a 500 outfit under him. If we had injuries like ND and ucla, we’d be completely underwater. Completely. We aren’t improving and we got thoroughly outgamed by Petersen.

        You saw two teams headed in different directions last night. UW is headed up and USC has flatlined. Sarks a big talker who rarely delivers. Petersen stays quiet and last night he just plain old took names, stuffing USC with a great game plan and a terrible true frosh QB. You think we would have lost last night with Petersen? Fat chance. Better hunker down. USC’s in big trouble.

        • Unfortunately, now USC does have mounting injuries. It’s hard to see how ND or Utah will lose.

          You are dead on about yesterday’s result had the teams switched coaches.

    • Really ? WHY WAS THE GAME EVEN CLOSE HELEN ? Maybe because SC hired Ted Tollner II ??

    • Interesting that you show your face after your pronouncements on Petersen and the Husky football program.

    • You did not watch the ASU vs UCLA game. It was a 6 point game with 8 minutes left. Our D is too porous now to stop anyone and could not get the ball back. Mora is 100 times better than Sark, but UCLA did not come to play that day.

      • No, I don’t watch UCLA games.

        If UCLA did not come to play then why isn’t that poor coaching?

        Mora has failed in CFB and the NFL. He inherited a talented UCLA team and took advantage of USC sanctions during the last couple years to recruit well. Let’s see how he does in 2-3 years when the deck is level again.

    • Helen, sometimes it’s not just the end score, it’s how you get there, and whether it suggests good planning and clear thinking.

      What is it about Sark’s coaching that impresses you?

      Inconsistent, abandons what is working, poor preparation for when it stops working, has a certain scheme in mind, whether it matches his personnel or not.

      Do you like him just because he works at USC right now?

      Have you no desire to perceive excellence, for the sake of itself, just for the wonder of getting to watch it operate?

      I don’t get your POV at all. What do you think matters in what you pay attention to?

      • My POV is you don’t go overboard after 2 defeats. If you were a manager in your day job and someone in your group made a mistake, would you fire that person? Or would you let them learn from that mistake and continue to support them?

        In the end the game is played by the players and they need to be criticized for losing. On the last UW TD Cody Temple was pushed back 5 years into the end zone – was that due to poor coaching or having his booty kicked?

        • So, which do you think apply:

          1. players are not talented

          2. players are not ambitious (don’t do their best to learn and/or apply it)

          3. players are not smart enough

          4. players don’t have competitive mentality

          What is your explanation, regarding the players, but not the coaching/teaching/preparation/scheme?

          I’d like to hear that, please.

          And then, I’d like you to explain why the national professional sports writers see it so differently from your POV?

  10. Got to remeber Sark was the guy who said he wanted to stay at Washington longer than Don James tenure and surpass his two National Championships there. I think he really does have some mental issues.

  11. I also feel good about where the program is headed…..A couple more losses and Sark is gone, so I feel really good about where the program is headed.

        • Juan,
          Why do you hate the Trojans so much? Tell me about your past. What brought you to this point?

          • I believe it all started when Juan Valdez caught a very young Lopez trying to steal the Valdez donkey, coffee bean.

      • Not a Sucla troll at all. I’m just tired of seeing our team come out unprepared and getting blown up by less talented teams. I didn’t like the Sark hire from the beginning, I tried being optimistic but the writing is on the wall. We need a coach that is a leader of men, who’s presence commands respect, and who develops a toughness in his players. Sark is not that coach.

        • Sark is like the adult who swears in front of young children to be cool and solicit laughs. Works ok at first but has little ability to keep long term attention.

  12. For the record I’m not praying on Sark being fired. I’m simply reporting to my fellow Trojan fans the coaching rumors. Maybe you’ve heard them, maybe you haven’t. Maybe they’re true maybe they’re not.

    • What do you think about brining Chow back? I have heard Pat has already made contact.

      • Wow. Honestly I want a defensive minded guy as our head coach. My first choice would be Del Rio. I like Chow. I just don’t think he’s fit for USC or any other high level coaching gigs.

        • Coach O would be great also. He brought so much energy. Jack would not want to step down in jobs so I think that would be a waste of time.

          • I agree. But I think Orgeron is now an after thought as a USC Head Coach. And I do agree about Del Rio. But it wouldn’t hurt to try and money talks if he’s offered that big contract.

          • He has no head coaching experience, and it may be way too soon in his coaching career (plus, he’s an ex-Bruin), but how about Ken Norton, Jr.?

          • Yes. I have been in favor of Norton. He’s a defensive guy. He knows USC and the rivalry. He’s learned the defensive side from Pete and kids like him. And he could recruit. I want a defensive minded coach.

          • What do we have to lose now? Bring back coach O , he will bring Pete Jenkins along. Between O and Jenkins the D-line would be optimal again. Helton offense coordinator and Sirmons as D coordinator , we will be where we were two years ago.

  13. Before you get rid of Sarkesian, you better get another AD. It’s beginning to look like Sark is going to have to go but I certainly don’t want Haden hiring the next coach. Haden is more interested in finding a guy who fits in well with the politically correct culture at USC and less interested in hiring a great coach. There’s got to be more to this than just saying that Sark was the only thing available. This is USC. They have as much football tradition as anyone in the country and southern cal is a hotbed of talent, not to mention the great wheather. There should be a lot of great coaches who would jump at the chance to come to USC, and besides, there was a great coach who was begging for the job(Peterson). I don’t blame Sark. I blame Haden and Nakias. Until they decided that they need to hire the best guy, they are going to make this mistake again. Forget about whether he’s an ex-trojan. Just hire the best guy. Don’t worry about how he interviews or even if he’s charismatic. If you want someone who is charismatic hire a rock star. The main criterion for who you hire has to be his past record, not his personality. To hire a coach because of his personality is psychobabble on steroids.

    • They had a good one in Coach O. He doesnt drink and didnt fit into the drinking culture at USC… particularly at booster events.

      • Coach O is exactly the kind of a coach that I wouldn’t go for. He may eventually be a great head coach. But right now he is still an unknown. He’s never even been a co-ordinator(just a position coach) and his head coaching experience has shown mixed results. They need someone who has a proven track record of success. We don’t want to guess on another guy and end up wasting another 2 or 3 years. A lot of people are talking about Chip Kelly. I don’t know if he would want to come back to college. I always felt that he didn’t like a lot of the things associated with college like recruiting and baby-sitting the young athletes and that’s why he left college. But after a couple of years in the pros, he might have come to the conclusion that his spread option offense with a mobile QB doesn’t work in the NFL and he might be open to coming back to the NCAA. If that were the case and he was open to coming to SC, I think the trojans should jump on that even if they have to fire Sark early. It’s too early to tell at this point but it’s beginning to look like eventually Sark is going to be fired anyway. So if any great coach shows interest in SC, the trojans should jump on it.

        • Fair points on Coach O but i do remember the team played better under his guidance that Kiff or Sark. Not sure what happened v UCLA that year but they were just better. My point with Coach O is that he represented USC well, got the most out of the players he had and the Coliseum was electric. We were proud to be Trojan fans and he bled cardinal and gold. It was awesome. Do you feel the same about Sark? Not even close for me.

          • Coach O may become a great coach someday. But he may also end up like Norm Chow who was the best offensive co-ordinator in football but wasn’t really cut out to be a head coach. You’re taking a chance with coach O and I’m not sure that I want to waste another 2-3 years on a guy that eventually proves that he can’t take this team to the promise land.

        • Unless USC can lure a proven coach from another winning program, then they will have to take a chance on a coordinator. Pat Fitzgerald, and Kyle Wittingham are the only two I can think of.

          • I’m sure there would be others if you don’t stipulate that they have to be ex-trojans or that they must accept some of the current staff. Fitzgerald and Wittingham are proven winners. I like a coach in his early 50’s. That way he is still not learning the trade. SC doesn’t need someone who is getting on the job training. He needs to already know what he is doing.

          • I think Greg Roman and Tim Drevno are two Really good assistant coaches, Roman wanted an interview with Haden 2 years ago, but he was denied. …lol unbelievable ! The comedy never ends at the USC athletic department.

          • I was really sorry to see them lose Drevno. I don’t know what kind of a HC he will eventually make but he was really a great line coach and now he seems to be doing a great job as OC at Michigan.

    • Jim(bob) You are entirely, totally and completely ABSOLUTELY “CORRECT” !

      As in “COMPLETELY COOOORRECT” x 10 to the 777th POWER !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

      Those in power at the University of Southern California are completely inept to the 1000th degree !!

      Thes”SCUM” bags are destroying one of the great traditions in College Sports !!!

      All in the name of Political Correctness !(Who would even think of cancelling the USC vs Notre Dame game because of their personal (That’s singular, something that lives in someone (personal) and should “never” be invoked on others just because “they” (They as in themselves) believe that they know what’s best for everyone else) beliefs !!!

      Watch now as these people destroy everything that they say needs fixing just because they say so !

      USC has become “The University of Stupid California ” lead by a Rhodes Scholar by the name of Patrick Haden !!

      You see, education can make You smart or…

      Extremely Stupid !!!!!

      FightOn

        • Haden is a problem as AD. Im pretty sure we have a bad rap as a place to coach from MGs overlord like mannerisms to PHs constant tinkering. How does PH get a free pass for his sideline rant? Made one good hire for the baseball coach but has misfired completely on FB and BB.

          • It’s too early to tell. Maybe Sark will actually turn this thing around and become a great coach. Like I said, he is very young. But hiring a football coach was a humongously important hire. That’s especially true right now when USC is trying to fill the coliseum to pay for all the renovations in the coliseum. I think that PH passed up one of the great coaches in college football today and went with a 7 win coach. I can’t understand his reasoning for that decision. Between 2006 and 2013, Peterson was 13-0, 10-3, 12-1, 14-0, 12-1, 12-1 and 11-2. That’s 84-8. From 2001-2005, he was offensive co-ordinator at Boise state and his offenses averaged 45 points a game for 5 years. How do you pass up that record for a 7 win coach. You tell me that you should pass that record up just because he didn’t interview well or that he was a small town guy and didn’t fit in well in the big city. The fact is, PH just made a terrible decision for whatever reason he might have had. We need another AD. I’d actually like to see Pete Carroll come back someday as the AD at SC.

  14. Talk about a “tin ear”!!! borrOcho puts Ironman to shame!!

    The mob is out for his scalp and borrOcho sounds like he just best Alabammy at Tuscaloosa!!!

  15. I heard someone suggest that sanctions are still hurting the program and that the loss can be chalked up to having too many freshmen playing. Which makes sense until you consider UW has 55 freshmen and RS freshmen on the roster. #sevenwinswillbeamiracle

  16. Cutty Sark sounds like Baghdad Bob !!!! Don’t remember Bob? YouTube him and laugh !!!!

    • Charles, Bagdad Bob was the Bomb !

      I’ve said it before, bring Bagdad Bob back to the U.S. and give him his own comedy show, that guy is/was hilarious !!!

      FightOn

  17. 1991 and 1984 under James understanding they were dtermined by polls in those days.

  18. And I thought it was odd that Steve Sarkisian didn’t take advantage of the fact USC was very successful at running the ball down Washington’s throat. And the Television analysts also thought it was odd, it was like he didn’t want to win the game unless it was his way. That’s the behavior of an egotistical FOOL!!

    • Fred, could it be egotism?

      I am more inclined the conclude that he’s not especially aware, intelligent, or analytical.

      Would it be great to see a transcript of the 2nd half communications between Helton and Sark, to find out what was actually going on?

      If I were Haden, I would ask for a headset on mute. How can he know what to do, without first hand information?

        • I gather Sark may be out.

          You’re pretty astute, Fred. If you were AD, would you hire Kelly? I know abt the TX recruiting stuff, but would YOU hire Kelly?

          • It would be difficult to say no to Kelly, because he’s a great teacher, and trusts his assistants to develop players. And USC fans and alums want that running game to return, and you’ll get that from Kelly, just not from the traditional formations .

  19. It was a big mistake not suspending Sark after the Salute to Troy. I think it would have given this team more respect for Haden and the leadership of USC . May be spilling over to the teams results.

  20. Spoke to a few buddies today who are pretty tied in at USC. Here are the takeaways:

    -Sark is essentially a dead man walking unless he runs the table, if he loses to ND next week, it’s over.
    -PH is not on the chopping block, not even close. I think this is because he runs in the same circles as many of your heavy hitters and they all seem to genuinely like him. Then again, it’s easy to be likable when you can get someone a tee time at Augusta.
    -Sark will finish the season no matter what, PH doesn’t want to fire two guys in arrow mid-season and most agree that it makes the job less attractive to the next guy.
    – the next head coach will not have any ties to USC, Chip Kelly is a top priority, but there is concern that he will not be able to handle the schmoozing aspect of the job, not an issue at most schools, but you better believe that this is a requirement for the USC job (this is why Peterson was not on your sideline last night) Chip will have to agree to a thorough vetting.

  21. Ncf had Huskies 1 . Back in those days there were three or more determinations for national championships.

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