USC Terminates Steve Sarkisian

Here is Pat Haden’s statement:

“After careful consideration of what is in the best interest of the university and our student-athletes, I have made the decision to terminate Steve Sarkisian, effective immediately.

“I want to thank Clay Helton for stepping into the interim head coach role, and I want to add how proud I am of our coaching staff and players and the way they are responding to this difficult situation.

“Through all of this we remain concerned for Steve and hope that it will give him the opportunity to focus on his personal well being.”

294 thoughts on “USC Terminates Steve Sarkisian

  1. Should never have been hired to begin with, way to go Haden, you should resign you incompetent dope

  2. Haden, do the right thing for once and resign like a man. Don’t play this off and cut a deal with Pres Nikias to “retire” at the end of the year!

    • How would that superfluous distraction be good for USC THIS WEEK? I know William Buckley said “never get in the way of a stampede” but perhaps now is the time to break from that sound advice and suggest we all start thinking about something other than what will feel good in the next five minutes.

        • Not only a game, Marv—-a game we can win. A game that marks the beginning of a new season. Let’s stop crying the blues for a few days. As the original Trojans would say, “plenty of time to examine our wounds after the battle.”

  3. Didn’t care about him six weeks ago – and they certainly don’t care about him today. Too bad that record is 3-2 and not 5-0. If it was 5-0, Sark would be on the practice field today. This was always about winning, not about helping a human being.

  4. Three words for coaching search: Nationwide Madden Tournament.

    Sure, our next coach might turn out to be a 14 year old kid with Asperger’s, but the great ones are always intense.

          • If that ‘stache is a tough, hard-nosed ‘stache that still believes in smashmouth football, then that ‘stache could probably build some support among the commenters on this blog.

    • you just described Kiff….but one thing i agree with is that it’s time for Paddy Boy to step down and allow the new AD to hire his guey. everyone likes him (except for some bigots)
      bit his time has come and gone.

      the way Paddy was snakebit in his return to Southern Cal reminds me of Neu’s return to UCLA….neither could catch a dang break!!

      it appears Thomas Wolfe was correct.

      #YouCantGoHomeAgain

      • I’ve been thinking about how, during the last coaching search, I thought that the one thing they wouldn’t do was get rid of Coach O (who was still relatively popular with the fans and seemed to be well-liked by the players) and replace him with Sark, whose hire would naturally be seen by pretty much everybody as a dull disappointment. And then Pat went and did exactly what I thought he wouldn’t do.

        So the question is: What is the one thing I don’t expect them to do this time? The Return of the Kiff? Josh McDaniels? God knows what might happen.

          • believe it or not, i would be more concerned about the trOXans hiring Neu than any other name mentioned thus far. when he’s on, his players will run thru a wall for him.

            #ShiverMeTimbers

          • It would kind of make sense. Doesn’t Rick like to sing and play guitar? And wasn’t Wolf reporting last year that Pat was playing the role of Sky Masterson or something in the spring musical? I can picture the two of them up on a stage together singing “Hakuna Matata”.

          • do yourself a solid and watch Neu’s song “Ed O” sang to the tune of Day-O (banana boat song)….don’t know if he still has the fire in his belly….too many years of cushy commentator work.

            #EyeOfTheKitty

          • It occurs to me just now that Sark has turned out to be the Haggen Supermarket of USC coaches.

      • When I returned to the Farm, I continued to burnish my resume as ‘Assistant Coach, Leland Stanford Junior University Women’s Golf Team’.

        So there !

    • My powerpoints:

      1) Created more success for USC than any other coach
      2) Taught Brady everything he knows
      3) Then taught Belichick
      4) Last paycheck from previous employer October 15
      5) Will provide USC with a ‘decided schematic advantage’.

    • I just blew most of a glass of very nice chardonnay out of both nostrils laughing at that. Put that one in the Hall of SoCal Shame. (It’s a long hall)

  5. When Haden hired Sark, he said the main reason was that Sark “gets SC” and I recall him saying that he was comfortable with Sark. He never claimed to have hired the best coach available. SC has become a politically-correct environment. I can’t see SC under the current leadership selecting a coach similar to Jim Harbaugh. Instead, I fear it will again be someone the administration feels comfortable with and who gives the appearance of being politically or socially correct.

  6. Shouldn’t Haden send another “private” letter or something to Myles Jack to remind everyone what a great human being he is?

    • When I read about that letter, no matter how “nice” it was, my thought was that Haden shouldn’t be concerned with the guys across town, he should be focused on his own house.

      • As a UCLA guy, I thought it was pretty cool. Plus, he probably dictated it in 20 seconds. Anyway, not disagreeing that he has more important stuff to worry about–just saying that I was impressed and thought it was a classy move.

        • I agree encinitas which is why I really wasn’t too concerned. I was just Monday morning quarterbacking with that post. Wasn’t a knock on the Bruins or Jack.

          • The letter showed Haden as a classy guy. The hiring of Sark speaks to his judgment which has been lacking at times. Both class and questionable judgment in hiring personnel can coexist. Hiring is not easy. I have done it many times and it is humbling.

          • My point was that Haden should be thinking of USC first. PERIOD. Let all other teams deal with their injuries. Now has he sent a letter to Tuerk?

        • It was cool, but it would pretty naive to think Haden didn’t have an alterior motive. He’s a political animal

    • Wolfe doesn’t have kids.
      Sark has an ex-wife, kids, and collateral damage.
      Between Plaschke’s diatribe and Wolfe’s TMZ reporting and Thiry publishing bar receipts; Sarkisian’s safety is totally violated. Even his personal medical records are being assumed and violated. Scott Wolfe, does it pleasure you and Plaschke to be paid in to write your destructive vitriol?

        • Still early. But you know, as much as I was down on Sark as a football coach, I sure as heck didn’t want to see him crash and burn like that. Any coach for that matter….even Mora.

          • It’s slim pickings for us as usual. I’ll take Del Rio (longshot), Wittingham (longshot)…… Haden has to go with Sark. It’s the right thing to do.

          • I’m not sold on Kelly coming here. Our offense is not the problem, well, with a sober guy calling the game. DOH. Sorry. A “D” coach seems a better fit. Will this wake up Wilcox for the rest of the season? He definitely won’t be protected anymore, and will have to step his D up to even be considered by a new coaching staff.

          • I agree 100%. There will always be a guy to call offensive plays well in college football. But we need to build with a defensive approach from here forward.

          • I don’t even know where Haden begins to look, and that is scary looking at his hiring record.

    • That’s the last thing USC needs. Another offensive guru who doesn’t want to play defense. I really don’t want to see USC in 50 different uniforms. Leave that to Oregon. Kyle Whittingham or death!

    • And the arrogance of trojan fans continues.. Why do usc fans think that all you have to do is pick a coach, and that coach will automatically sign?

      Face it, no quality coach will want to come to usc, when you consider that usc fires their coaches every 2 years, and one of them pulled from the team bus and left out to dry at the airport at 2:00 in the morning.

      • Why don’t you try reading. Who said we even want him. Just like a f****** Bruin opening his big mouth when nobody is talking to him.

          • You would think so. But look at UCLA’s post Wooden hires in basketball and SC’s in football post John Robinson. It isn’t as easy as it looks.

          • We just need to hire the right man for the job. Even if it means some of the recruits jumping ship, that’s a small price to pay for the right hire. Recruiting will always be there.

          • An therein lies the crux of the situation. Alabama was struggling and found Saban. Michigan got their man in Harbaugh. Meyer was always an Ohio State guy. I am not sure who is out there for SC that is easily identifiable. Many of the high profile guys will just use SC in order to get a raise where they are at. Florida seems to have found their guy. It is a desirable job for the right guy. But it isn’t an easy job, even with all the advantages that go with it.

          • Mythical Championships, and Honorary Degrees……throw in the Wino stench and a few YUMMY Hot Box Burritos…..and who wouldn’t want the job…
            feiuyght uuhhnnn

  7. Sark, do what needs to be done. Admit you have a problem, get into rehab and heal yourself. Football will always be there in the end. Fight On! Get Better!

    • Now that we have moved on from Sark I would suggest we get Ed O and Norm Chow on the phone immediately. That would be the best thing for the Trojans. After that I would like to see Clay Helton given the chance. He has been a loyal Trojan for years and really deserves the chance. I think he would grow into the job nicely. FIGHT ON, BROTHER!

  8. Nikias should have started the search for a new AD this Morning. As soon as he has someone signed on, Haden resigns/retires/is fired.

    • Haden didn’t want the job … remember?
      Nikias put him there upon personal request.
      Nikias himself needs to hold some responsibility here!

  9. We should just hire a troll that’s here all the time. Think about it, they know more about USC than most fans.

      • Hahaha. Probation U would be my insider vote, having read his dispensations about both UCLA and USC football.

        • PU is now 88 Straight. I appreciate the up vote but I think our fellow poster, Laker Rod has been waiting for this opportunity.

          • Probation U ticked off some on this site and I have tried to discuss things reasonably. Provoking all the time isn’t my style. 88 straight references UCLA’s win streak in basketball.

          • Gotcha. You do have to realize though that all these “anti-USC” nicks on here and the flaming that goes with it does get old? I’m not trying to start anything here, just sayin’. OH. BTW. Don’t call USC “yesterday U” as you are referencing the past too! 🙂

          • I haven’t called SC yesterdayU. I think somebody has me confused with another poster on that one, so it won’t be a problem not to do it again!

            It’s been a strange year and SC has once again taken the Bruins out of the news! UCLA just had a 2nd string punter arrested for rape. We had the PDiddy incident. Roquan Smith. All sorts of fun stuff…but Sark managed to erase it all!

          • Yeah, its been quite a year already for both schools. The statement about “yesterday U” was just a proactive sort of statement. So many bRUINS call USC “yesterday U,” I lose track.

          • So what. We had an alky for a HC and just canned him. Any family without a drug abuser is an anomaly nowadays. I’m not sure I even know of one, appearances notwithstanding.

            Sark did us a big favor. He combusted. He’s over and old news by tomorrow.

            The only story now is, who we gonna get? You actually have real reason for concern and you know it. With Sark at the helm, you always had us. We have at least an 80/20 shot at the right hire this time after two misfires. That’s what the stats say.

          • Reason for concern depends upon who you hire. I think you mentioned once that there was already an AD in waiting. Correct? Seems like you may need a new AD before the hire is made. SC’s track record post John Robinson has been about the same as UCLA’s post Wooden hiring record in basketball. SC lucked out with Pete Carroll and that should make it easier to get a top notch guy. But it isn’t a sure thing. However, there seems to be no limit on how many times SC can crap the bed and still pull in top recruits.

          • Doesn’t matter whether we lucked out with Carroll or not. He begged for the job, so it wasn’t all luck. Pete wasn’t gonna beg for every job. He knew what he could do at USC.

            When he interviewed, he was so much better than everyone else that USC officials couldn’t believe it. Life has taught me I’d rather be lucky than good many times.

            We had an AD in waiting but he just took another job. We were forced into Kiffin because USC was just gonna begin the worst probation since SMU and nobody wanted to follow Carroll. At least nobody in their right mind who was actually available and talented. Slim prospects.

            We went with Kiffin, young, inexperienced NFL coach at a huge SEC school (who had almost beat ALA), but we whiffed big because he has O leadership skills. But there were many reasons for our choice that won’t hinder USC now.

            Timing is everything. Sark was pure and simple a mismanaged, poor decision and Haden knows that he blew it bad. The next search will be different, whether Haden is involved or not. And there’s a lot of good coaches who want to coach at recruiter’s paradise now. Sark laid the golden egg right in our lap Sunday. Jackpot.

            There aren’t any sure things unless Saban or Meyer call you up and say I’ll take it. But I like our chances this time and the odds and historical curves back me up for this hiring. Will be very fun to watch and as usual, USC will be dominating the headlines again because USC is always one of the biggest stories, even when we are crap, irrelevant and simply looking for a FB coach.

          • LIke i said, younever ticked me off. You have been respectful even when you had Probation U.

          • I know, but some pointed out that it was a troll name and I have tried to be respectful. Perhaps you can fill in xtracool up there who thinks I have been posting negative stuff about SC on here!

          • You are officially off my “troll” list, for what its worth. And not because of the name change.

          • Okay Ray. I actually played both high school and college sports. I competed against some great guys and the name calling is stupid. However, I am a die hard Bruin. Like the old adage when scoring a touchdown, act like you have been there before.

          • I totally agree. I’m sure you realize all the TROLL posters on here are infuriating. They do nothing to contribute to a chat, but act a fool. I realize you are not one of them. I respect that you are a die-hard Bruin. When I was at SC, 86-90, I had friends up at UCLA and dated gals from there too. Not a problem. It was a fun rivalry. I think the internet has made it a lot easier for the “nastiness” to show up. Oh well. Fight on!

          • To xtracool 32,

            Please take this into consideration, Probation U or 88 Straight, has been one of the more respectful bruin fans on this site. yes he did call SC Yesterday U, but other than that, he has overall bee respectful to this site, opposing fans, and to me. Yes, I have egged him on and have ribbed him about ucla with negativity. Howevefr, we made a deal and that we would write respectfully on each other’s board. he has held up to this agreement. Please take into consideration that he is hear to over all dicuss and bring an opposing view from a bruin prespective but with respect. I would appreciate it if you did as well. Thank you.

          • ProbationU cannot handle anyone saying anything negative about ucla. That person acts like a total child, when ucla is criticized.

          • Always trying to take shots because I called you out for knocking Rosen in the preseason. Well, Rosen as been handling things quite well, so far. And I think you agree. So maybe you should just get over it.

          • Did he “knock” Rosen on here? If he did, that’s fine, its a USC blog. If he trolled Wang’s blog, its a different story. Get it?

          • I can’t recall. The point is, get over it. He claims to be a Bruin, so I don’t think a Bruin should be on a Trojan blog knocking a Bruin. Get it? I would expect it from a Trojan, but as they say in The Godfather, “keep it in the family.”

          • I respect that. I like to talk football and I have also talked to Trojans on the Bruin site, although there aren’t many. However, to me it is about content. Some posts are simply juvenile and boring.

          • Those of us that have family and friends that are Trojans and Bruins do it on a regular basis. I don’t hate SC. I just love UCLA a lot more.

          • I don’t think that’s a typical Bruin outlook. Some of these guys are devoting a lot of time and thought to being stupid.

          • We can only be responsible for ourselves. I represent my viewpoint in the way I choose to represent it. Others do differently.

          • I’ll be happy for you when the little gutties finally win something in football, anything, even a simple conference title. As you said, then you’ll have the chance to act like you’ve been there before…only problem is, you haven’t.

          • One can still act like a grownup. We have been there several times in basketball, mainly years ago. Neither arrogance or immaturity are traits to celebrate.

          • Exactly. You haven’t been great in basketball since ’95 and in football since ’54, long before most of us were born. USC football has long kept ucla football on the down low. That’s a fact, so you have to get there before you spout off and 1/2 national championship 60 years ago when you didn’t even a play a bowl game that year just doesn’t cut it. Celebrate that.

          • And I have been spouting off? Pick a fight with someone who is looking for a fight. It isn’t me.

          • Very unusual. As Ray said, there are Trolls and there are respected adversaries – very few of the latter. Congrats if that’s truly the case with you.

          • You can judge for yourself. I will undoubtedly say things you don’t agree with. I changed my name from ProbationU to 88 Straight as to be less provocative with the name, even though I think I was pretty respectful. Some did not like it, so I changed it. I am a Bruin. But, I don’t come around talking a lot of junk and using childish terms about SC.

          • Agreed. You’re an old adversary whom I respect, most of the time, for his content as well as the name change. I used to call you proby long ago. Glad to see that those days are past.

            Good luck against Stanford. Not really, but it’s a game I wouldn’t miss.

          • I wouldn’t expect you to root for UCLA and it looks to be a tough matchup…again. But it has been a strange year already, so who knows. Oregon has just imploded.

          • “Very few of the latter,” ON HERE. Other places, there are many cool Bruin fans. This blog, for whatever reason, is a different story. Could it be that Scott attracts them like flies on sheeit?

          • oh wah, Jackie! We celebrate a great athletic program TODAY, with more NC’s than any school ever, sober coaches and no sanctions. We celebrate not being called a clown college on ESPN.

          • How many women’s softball championships would you trade for 1 national championship in football? It’s antagonistic, but it’s an honest question. I’m not sure if we even have a women’s softball team, but it would literally take like 25 of their championships before I would consider trading one in football.

          • look at the background wall paper behind phaden during press conferences….wth do you think the number 100 stands for…….
            How do you think you got to 100
            If you don’t think it’s important…take it up with the braintrust in South Central
            feiuyght uuhhnnnnn

          • Boy… All I’m saying is that I would take our 100 championships over whatever UCLA has. The reason being is that the majority of ucla’s championships are in women’s sports. Most of USC’s are in men’s sports. Your school was ahead of the curve in focusing on women’s athletics and has run up a nice total by dominating women’s sports. Congratulations, but I’m more into men’s sports than women’s sports. I’d rather have our 100 the way it is constituted than your 100 something that are primarily women’s titles. So when a bruin fan brags about that number and I look down the list, I’m just not at all envious of that number. I wouldn’t trade one football title if you gave me enough women’s softball and gymnastic titles to put us ahead of you guys. I understand if softball and football titles mean the same thing to you, but there’s no equivalency for me and probably most USC fans.

          • Stanford is admired for a lot of things which you torgans will never understand….things like Grad rates, academics, Research, Nobel Laureates, Excellence in NCAA Athletics and a desirable geographic location (know what I’m sayin’?….) They lead the NCAA in Natty’s and are respected for their achievements because they are no ONE TRICK PONY and do not hide behind MYTHICAL CHAMPIONSHIPS and HONORARY DEGREES…
            Your little dump in South Central has a 45 year head start on UCLA, yet UCLA has more National Championships, and RANKS ahead of you in UNIVERSITY RANKINGS according to EVERY Publication printed…..except…. ‘the daily torgan’.
            I’d like to see you win a few football games this year (not really) so our RPI isn’t dragged down after we take you to the wood shed AGAIN, later this year….
            This Saturday night should be fun!!!!!!
            feyight uuhhnnnnn

          • My mistake, I didn’t know you were a Stanford fan. I thought you were a ucla fan. When you say one trick pony, are you referring to all the track and field nattys? We have more of those than football championships. Perhaps you’re referring to all the baseball championships or perhaps football. Maybe you could specify what that one trick is. Whatever that one trick you are referring to is, tampax was not there.

            Listen, I applaud ucla for being so progressive and letting your women be the standard bearers for your athletic accomplishments. That’s fine. Like I said, I prefer men’s sports to women’s sports. It’s ok that you guys like women’s sports better. I realize that some people and groups prefer women’s sports. Look at the crowd at any WNBA game and you will see a lot of people who like women’s sports better. You seem like one of them since you feel so good about all your national championships and they are primarily in women’s sports. I just prefer men’s sports over women’s sports and it’s ok if you don’t. Accordingly, I’m a Laker fan and you probably prefer the Sparks. However, we’re not having this conversation on a ucla women’s gymnastics blog, it’s a USC football blog. We can take up this conversation again the next time we meet each other on a ucla softball blog.

          • Typical, coming from the guy in THIRD PLACE….I guess we need to change from
            THE
            University of
            Second
            Choice
            to UTC….
            feiuyght uuhhnnnn

          • Far from typical, but what credible response could you give to what I said? I understand. Maybe next time you’ll make up a limerick in response.

          • I thought you were Bruin for a second there. It’s getting hard to keep it all straight.

          • I did not know you were probationu. No wonder you disagreed with me on the Myles jack thing, I was curious about that. And no, I never said Rosen would not do well at ucla. I said that my cousin thinks he could be the next Ryan leaf, and go to an nfl team and just p@ss everyone off, and get released much sooner than anticipated.

            Rosen will have an awesome ucla career in my opinion. He is so talented that I think we think he will be a high nfl draft pick, then his troubles will begin. The thing with josh Rosen is he rubs people the wrong way, and not everyone feeders him. To be a successful nfl qb, you have to be a leader, and I think Rosen fails at that. In college you can get by not being a leader, because the head coach is the uncontrolled leader. There are so many great college qb’s who him out in the nfl, because there leadership skills are not good. Leaders are born, and not made. And Rosen isn’t a leader.

          • Perhaps we should discuss this over on Wang. I don’t see that this is an appropriate topic over here. I will be glad to share my thoughts on the topic.

          • “Perhaps we should discuss this over on Wang. I don’t see that this is an appropriate topic over here. I will be glad to share my thoughts on the topic.” —- YA THINK???

          • Well, obviously I think! You know, I can call my brother whatever I want…but if somebody else does it…fighting words. I am not sure he gets it.

          • wtf (when TORGANS fail)…..the mods have gone the Leonard Tose route…..You guys got it in for ROSEN too?
            Taking the word of a FRESNO STATE grad (just like GOAT BOY)….seriously???? Who has Rosen EVER RUBBED THE WRONG WAY? Put up or shut up and pack up….
            U
            Silly
            Clowns
            look dumb again….
            feiyght uuhhnnnnn

  10. Somebody in the USC athletic office better be putting a bug in Kyle Whittingham’s agents ear, because at this point, SC can’t afford to take a chance on a top assistant coach, they need somebody that’s been there, and done that.

    • And acts like it on the sidelines. I never liked the way Sark had the players waving towels, and how Sark would jump around and act like a Jr. High kid.

    • If we pursue Wittingham, we’ll most likely have to wait until January just to talk to him.

      • Back channel feelers happen all the time. Whittingham will be getting a raise no matter what happens.

          • You may need to pay Whittingham an extra 10% to cover his tithing for the LDS Church.

          • Ever since you got rid of that ‘DUTCH’ thing…there’s been a void…..I think YOU have found the solution…
            How does ‘Ray, I have no clue Reyes’ sound?
            Works for most of us….
            feiuyght uuhhhnnnn

          • 88, has UCLA gone through a period of upheaval in their coaching situation like these past three years USC has?

          • Nope. UCLA has waited longer in getting rid of Dorrell and Neuheisel. Our coaches were just lousy coaches. SC’s lousy coaches had other issues beyond coaching. It is even crazier than some of the post-Wooden hires in basketball. This will be the 4th different HC in 4 years to coach SC agains UCLA. Kiffin, Orgeron, Sarkisian and Helton (presumably).

    • Agreed. PH is earning the nickname “Mr. Bungle.” Couldn’t they have just handled this quietly with a payout for confidentiality? This reeks of ego from Max Napoleon Nikias. … this is the sellout I feared for Sark after Salute to Troy. Shame on USC.

    • Yea! Screw up Utah’s possible Championship season with USC’s disfunctional garbage. Good thinking Mr. Fred. Reminds me of when SC stole Larry Smith from Arizona.

    • I believe somehow Su’a Cravens and Whittingham are related. Maybe he can pass along a message.

  11. Haden had to make sure he didn’t need a buy out he fired Sark for cause. And the reports I am hearing say there is more than booze involved in his erratic behavior…think Charles White or Todd Marinovich . Too bad really. Sark is probably a great guy.
    My fear is the team quitting on the season.

      • I agree. Unfortunately they also have players who have been through this before.

      • Not the best timing I agree,but the coaching staff is still intact. The only change is the guy wearing the big hat. If the coaches work together ( big if here) then the team can rally. We’ve seen it before. I hope we see it again.
        Meanwhile Notre Dame smells blood in the water.

  12. My brother (also a UCLA fan) said it best in a text to me this morning: “Though they are our rivals, I feel for USC’s players, coaches, and fans. SC, however, being the football commodity that they are, will bounce back quickly. Hopefully Steve Sarkisian will as well.”

    • EncinitasBruin – you got class… 8 clap for your brother and you. This situation is personally very sad.

    • I feel the sorriest for Sark’s family and for Sark. He’s a young guy who got his dream job before he was ready to hold it and has a drinking problem. The stress must be overwhelming and probably followed by a deep depression. It’s a personal tragedy that should not be mocked.

      • Very true. Have seen this too many times with friends and family. Addiction is a life-shredder. My thoughts and prayers are with him and his loved ones.

      • Right after the Tribut to Troy incident, he should have stepped aside for the season and got clean and resolve the issues with his family. The pressure of a divorce and being the head coach at USC would lead a lot of people to drink. With him having drinking problems already and the pressure just made the situation for sark That is like adding fuel to the fire. The only thing that was going to happen would be a nuclear fallout. It happened.

        • I agree wholeheartedly. One thing about addicts is that they tend to be charming and manipulative. They can convince those around them of many things and convince themselves as well. Perhaps that makes Sark a great recruiter. At the end, the chickens came home to roost. I hope he can salvage his relationships within his family most of all.

          • Probation U, He has to learn how to control himself, accept help, and act upon it. If he can’t then he will go down hill and lose everything. He nneds to apologize to Haden, USC, the fans and alumni. Then he needs to apologize to himself and forgive himself. That is the hardest part, forgiving yourself and moving forward.

          • I had a family member in treatment at a top facility. We went through a week of family sessions and learning about addiction. It was important stuff and I saw some well-known people and their families struggling with the same stuff. When alcohol or drugs hit an addicts brain, it elicits are far stronger reaction than in the non-addict. The brain chemistry changes and they make decisions that don’t make sense to anyone else. How else to explain a guy blowing up his entire life? He has a lot of work to do and it is a tough road.

          • I have been through a divorce and it tears you up very much if you really care about the other person. then you add children and then it even tougher. It is gut wrenching. You never really get over it. You survive and move on. No winners and lots of losing.

          • Few have fallen farther than Sark has, from his dream job at USC and losing his marriage in one year.

  13. Chris petersen said it would take a while to change the culture at UW football when he got there , never criticizing but saying he did things differently. Can see why now. I actually feel worse for the assistants that followed Sark here.

  14. I am putting Dave Wannstadt name in the Hat. He is a strong, good looking man, capable of taking our Trojans to the next level.

    • Dave Wannstadt would be a fine hire. I would call him right after Ed O and Norm combo, then Clay Helton. One things I like about Dave is he is so familiar with the Pac 12 from his current position on the Pac 12 network. Fred Norris might really be on to something here. FIGHT ON BROTHER!

  15. Hire Pete Carroll as the new AD and let him be the head coach again. Give him a blank check. He’ll do it.

  16. Now there’s a twist. I’m sure Sumlin, Petersen and Kelly are all flying out tomorrow to discuss!

  17. Vincent Bonsingor just wrote an excellent column. He’s calling for Haden to step down and I agree 100%. The AD that USC should go after is Greg Bryne at the University of Arizona. He hit a homerun with Rich Rod and Sean Miller. The athletic facilities there are top notch and he has hands on experience in running an athletic department.

    • who or what is a Vincent Bonsignor? And have you seen Arizona this year? If Rich Rod is a home run, I hope that you do land the guy as your new AD!

      • He’s a columnist for the Daily News. For the University of Arizona Rich Rod is a home run. Didn’t UofA go to the Fiesta Bowl last year and win the Pac 12 South. Unlike UCLA.

        • Mora won the South in his 1st year as well and is 4-0 against RichRod. I am happy that you don’t like Mora, but I would take him over all coaches in the South other than Whittingham.

          • Did I say that? I think Mora is a Damn good coach and I wish he was coaching the Trojans. My point is that for a school like Arizona to land a coach like Rich Rod is pretty significant.

          • It’s all about timing. RichRod’s rep was on the decline after the Arizona job, so it was a good fit for Arizona. Similarly, Mora was not a hot commodity and was a good fit for a UCLA program that was a shambles. UCLA was lucky. I don’t credit the AD as Mora reached out to UCLA as Carroll reached out to USC.

        • Plus Bryne can create a real men’s basketball program here at last. Pat’s attempt was an abject failure.

  18. Here’s an idea for the next hire: let’s look outside of the Trojan Family. The incestuous route isn’t working!

  19. Now they can start initiating contact with coaches to see who may be interested in the job. This will be Wolf’s obsession for the rest of the season so don’t look for much football stuff on here.

    • I agree with others here that the search should start for a new AD first. I believe that Jack B once mentioned there is already a future AD in place. He can correct me if I am wrong., If so, Haden should step down and let the new person hire your new coach, IMHO.

  20. Next Announcement: “Nikias has decided to make a change in the Athletic Directors position, so USC will be going in a different direction from Pat Haden. We are thankful for all he has done for the university”. Anybody got Garretts phone number?? lol

  21. For those who are hoping for a return of Ed Orgeron, reports are he will not be on the list of candidates to be the next head coach.

  22. Other than Petrino, has there been an incident/situation like this in college football involving the head coach? I honestly don’t know.

  23. Clearly I was wrong about the staff not changing anytime soon. What a lost opportunity for Sark. I’m happy about a new beginning, but I feel really bad for Sark.

    I appreciate the decisive move, but I still think Haden should do the right thing.

      • Kelly Offense with our athletes …. The thought is scary !!! Every Athlete in the country would sign up !!! Bellotti hired him cause ” I would go into a recruit home and would be told by a 18 year old kid. Coach! I’m waiting for USC to offer! That’s when I realized I had to get a different approach. I couldn’t compete , with what Pete had going down south on the recruiting trail.”

      • so a school that just got off sanctions is going to hire a coach just off sanctions? I see you’ve been thinking hard on this one.

  24. Too bad that Paddy Boy has too big an ego to hire Coach O. Maybe Paddy should be fired before he makes another lousy coaching hire. We don’t need another Hayden mistake.

  25. Now Pat Hayden needs to go. No way can he be trusted to select the next coach. Poor decisions on basketball, football coaches, highly emotional and unprofessional firing of Kiffin within a couple months of endorsing him, arguing with refs at Standford, fail to truly vet Sark before hiring, using an executive search firm to help with football coaching search when Sark was hired (are you kidding me? . . .probably 5 candidates in the entire nation to run USC football program. Why is a search firm needed?). Hayden is a lawyer and has no clue how to manage people and a high profile program.

    Max, please, please replace him. Nothing is going to change unless you do. USC football has already lost another 2 years because of this disasterous hire/fire.

  26. BAHAHAHAHAHAHA
    USC fans as delusional as ever, thinking that all they got to do is offer a coach, and the coach is like “where do I sign??”.

    • the Chip Kelly talk is the funniest…he’s in the big show, can still make the playoffs, why on Earth would be go back to college now?? Same with Jack Del Taco.

      #CallingBrennanCarroll

  27. This thread is going to break the internet. Over 200 posts now. That much reading would put me to sleep.

  28. I WANT HADEN’S HEAD! Leave him in charge of picking the next coach, you have to be kidding me.

  29. Its just hard to relate to fans of other teams being so immersed in everything USC. I waste enough time following my team let alone someone else’s.

  30. The 8 year Trojan cluster eff sports clown sheet show continues and the common denominator is Pat Haden

  31. Come on Pat Haden… do the honorable thing and quit. You have done enough damage while getting your big salary. You totally ignored the coaching search recommendations and put your own preference in its place and failed. You need to leave Pat Haden!

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