Spin Control

Here's a video from the PC blog where he says that:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zf2eVzxRJdk

That's an asinine explanation (by Pete) and a lousy way to play the game (hand off – not to lose). Your qb breaks his finger and you'd rather just hand off for 2 1/2 quarters rather than put the ball in your back up's hands? Just a ludicrous decision by Pete. I fully blame Pete and the coaching staff for this loss for:
A. Not putting Sanchez in when Booty had a broken finger
B. Not getting Sanchez prepared (if that's why he didn't have confidence in him)

I give Pete all the credit in the world for reviving this program and for winning as many games as he has, but this loss is on him.

If he really feels this way (even today, knowing what he knows now) I have two questions for him.
#1 Why not start Booty the next week (and following week, and so on, and so forth)? If an injured Booty was better than a healthy Sanchez, then why did Sanchez start against Zona, ND & Oregon? Kinda kills his point I think.
#2 If you have that little faith in Sanchez, then why not just name Mustain the '08 starter right now? If Pete thinks that Sanchez is that much of a detriment to the team, then his mind should be made up already.

My two cents: I think Pete should have inserted Sanchez into the game as soon as he found out the finger was broken. I thought that as I watched the game and I didn't even know about Booty's finger – I just thought he was throwing the ball horribly.

I have long known that the coaches had no faith in Sanchez so I am not surprised by this. I knew there was a reason Mustain was brought in to SC and this just validates that. Once Booty was at about 80% health again, he came right back and Sanchez was never seen again the rest of the season, even during blowouts.

I agree that Joe McKnight should have been put in there. As many people have noted, without him SC would have lost the game against Arizona.

My question is, who cares? So he was trying to take the heat off of Booty for the loss. Good for him. I'm glad he was trying to protect his kids. He's said since the beginning that it's his fault. To what degree of fault it is is completely irrelevant.

While I certainly have questioned calls by the coaching staff, become so indignant over calls as my fellow readers clearly have. I just don't understand the bellyaching that you guys are going through so long after the fact. The team turned it around and we got to watch a fun Rose Bowl game where some of the little-used seniors got TD's.

Jeez, you guys are acting like it's your right that USC should win every game, rather than what it is, a blessing and a pleasure that we have a 6-time conference championship team.

You're absolutely right, it was a stupid loss. Get over it.

I didn't see the game because they had no feed in this little town in Nevada I was in; I only saw the final touchdown and screamed out loud. So I am no expert on this game. However, in a tight game such as Stanford was, I think I would be reluctant to bring in an untested rookie. And let's not forget that Sanchez did not exactly light the world on fire during his short stint. I still recall the two interceptions at Oregon, especially the final one. Win that game, and we would have forgotten about the Stanford game.

I'm over the loss, but Wolf wanted to bring it back up again (obviously worked). I'm just not buying into the manure that Pete's shoveling.

I think that it's a must at a school like SC to have a competent backup quarterback. You've got to prepare them and get them ready to play. If Sanchez wasn't that guy, then they needed to get McDonald or Corp (or even Garrett Green) ready.

If your starting quarterback breaks a finger, you MUST have a guy that you can bring in. Don't let your broke fingered guy chuck up five INTs in a game.

And that game wasn't all that close (9-0 at halftime) until Booty started threw the pick six.

I'm still high on Sanchez though. Despite some people blaming him for the Oregon loss (I blame conservative playcalling, bad holding call on McKnight's TD, failure to stop Stewart on 3rd and forever, and horrible clock management on the final drive), I thought he brought the most fire and watch-ability to the position since Leinart.

Either way, I'll forever root for SC, I'll always support Pete (although I won't support all of his calls), and I'll cherish every moment of this (still going strong) dynasty.

FIGHT ON!

Fire the coach! He doesn't deserve to be at USC. His players don't respect him for taking the heat off them. He can't recruit, worth a crap, either. The Trojans need a mature leader, like Mr. Neuheisel or Mr. Miles or Mr. Tuberville or one of the Stoops brothers. Coach Carroll always makes outlandish statements, unlike the above mentioned coaches. You let the "little weenie" suck you in again, guys. He never admits his own mistaken reports, but has no problem insinuating, others are liars. SW is "a Trojan for life".

Your starting QB is ALWAYS one play away from being knocked out of the game. It is inexcusable to have a back-up that is unprepared. (Whether he performs given the opportunity is a different issue, but one never knows until the chance is afforded.) This one is on the coaches, plain and simple. And it was not just "a loss." It was the biggest upset in a long time (certainly by point-spread), if not ever of USC. (Tirebiter - do any others compare?). It ended a 30+ home winning streak. It was a freakin' embarrassment for the team and fans alike. It prevented USC from playing in the national championship game, pure and simple.

Booty threw horrible picks in that game. The pass to Havili was returned for a TD. Three straight pass plays, the last of which was picked and led to the scoring drive. The final pick to seal the coffin. Carroll knew he had a broken finger and Sark continued to call pass plays. Several of Booty's throws were horrible. There is no way that Sanchez could have been worse. NO WAY. Sanchez at 100% health is better than Booty at 20%.

I was stunned when I learned after the game that Booty had a broken finger. I was even more stunned when I learned that the coaches knew about it at or before halftime. I still can’t figure out why it wasn’t mentioned during the broadcast, although it was on the Vs. Network.

Lawyer John says the Stanford loss didn't matter as long as we beat the Ducks. Not so fast, my friend. If Booty was hypothetically 100% healthy at Oregon, there is still a decent chance that USC could have lost the game, the way the Ducks were rolling at that time. Sureshot pointed to other problems aside from Sanchez's two horrible picks (although I think the holding penalty on the McKnight TD was arguably the right call). He forgot to mention the biggest error - Havili's fumble deep in Oregon territory. That was the hole in which USC was buried.

Also, I have defended Pete Carroll on this blog when a select few have attacked him. I am forever thankful for bringing the program from the ashes (Tollner, Smith, Hackett, Robo II). I hope he remains as long as he wants to stay here (annual NFL flirtations, notwithstanding. But he loses credibility the minute he starts changing his story on this subject. You mean NOW you are telling the truth? According to Taxi, Carroll was "protecting" his kids by taking the heat off of Booty. Really? In so doing, however, he is NOT protecting Sanchez. Indeed, he has now exposed for the world his lack of confidence in Sanchez. For those who say that it doesn't matter, because we now have Mustain, the first sentence of this post still applies -- Mustain is one play away from being injured. Is Sanchez damaged goods? I hope not.

Fight On!

SC had dropped in the Polls to #2 and PC wanted to run up the score. This is why he went for it at the end of the first half. And why he kept passing in the 2nd half instead of running and using up the clock. I also heard that he wanted to get Booty back in the Heisman talk.

USC MIKE--HI--HOW YA DOIN'?---YOU ASKED ME IF ANY OTHERS COMPARE--------PROBABLY NOT-----ALL THAT COMES TO MIND IS THE 49-0 MICHIGAN ROSE BOWL, THE 51-0 1966 IRISH GAME---AND JOHN ROBINSONS' FIRST EVER GAME AS COACH WHERE MISSOURI BLEW US OUT AT HOME[WE WON ALL THE REST THAT YEAR]--------I'M JUST THINKING OF POINT SPREADS HERE------AND THE DIFFERENTIAL--------I.E. IF WE WERE 41 PTS. OVER STANFORD, THEN THE ODDSMAKERS WERE OFF BY 42----BUT FOR SHEER SHOCK, NOTHING COMPARES TO THAT STANFORD GAME.
MY TAKE ON THAT GAME----I LOVE PC, BUT HE TAKES THE LOSS BY NOT HAVING A BACK-UP READY---NO EXCUSE--------FINALLY, IF WE HAD BEATEN OREGON AFTER LOSING TO STANFORD, I AM PRETTY SURE THE COMPUTERS WOULD HAVE KEPT US OUT OF THE NATL. TITLE GAME.

Other shocking games were Larry Smith's last game with a loss to Fresno State, and the 1979 tie with Stanford (yes, Stanford again). That game still sits in my craw because it was SC's only blemish that year and cost Troy the national championship, which would have been back-to back ('78 team won it). It had shock value because SC was ahead 21-0, Stanford came roaring back to tie at 21, and then SC botched a center snap to win it in the last seconds.

Perhaps we can put to rest last year's Stanford and Oregon games. uscmike is correct in stating that SC probably was not going to beat Oregon that day (because Dixon was red-hot). And Tirebiter could be correct that SC might have been denied a title shot either way, but the way the house of cards folded in the final weeks of the season, I think SC would have been voted No. 2 in the human polls and likely would have been in the game.

But come on, in the last 5 years, 2 national titles, played for a title and almost got it, played the last game of the season (similar to the semi-finals)with a chance to go, and then last year where Troy only ends up No. 2 and No. 3 in the final polls. This, my Trojan friends, is something to cherish. It may never happen again!

Here is my take on it, from someone who has been watching USC football for over 50 years, first as a young fan, second as a student, and lastly as an alum.

Pete Carroll's USC Trojans have won 67 of their last 73 games, incuding two national titles, five BCS bowl games, and three Heisman Trophys. Yet we, as fans, students, alums, and also our rivals love to dwell on the losses. I am as guilty as anyone.

The game I most remember is the 1965 Ucla game in which the Trojans dominated the little bears, outgained them by like 200 yards, didn't allow them a first down from early in the first quarter until late in the third quarter, but still wound up losing the game when the fates and a few mistakes all tortured the team out of an assumed win and cost them a Rose Bowl berth. It was like the football Gods, if there is such a thing, all came down and said, "You are not winning tbe game today, Trojans." Someone once told me God may be a Trojan, but sometimes he feels we need to be humbled a bit.

I have replayed that game with Ucla over and over in my mind hundreds of times. Over the years I have talked to some Trojans who played in that game and coaches who coached in it, and same as me, they all remember it like it was yesterday.

Pete Carroll is a coach who remembers the losses a lot more than he does the wins. He has often said that himself, even before the Stanford debacle. He dwells on the losses and he took full responsibility for that loss. He said, "I blew the game." I think he has played that game over and over in his mind many times and has come up with different scenarios of what he should have done or not have done as head coach that night. So that to me is what is going on with him, and I think he has been open and honest about it with everyone in sharing his thought process about it. I don't know more of what you want from this special coach. Yeah, yeah, we should have won all 73 games and cruised to three more national titles. My own opinion is that if it weren't for a rash of injuries, which were seemingly beyond the normal amount at certain times, that is exactly what may have happened.

Actually, it was not the gods that intervened in that 1965 game, but it was Troy Winslow who decided to try a quarterback end run instead of handing it off to a hot Mike Garrett. Winslow fumbled, westwood recovered, next play was the winning touchdown throw.

I was talking to Garrett a few years ago, and I told him that the play I remember the most was in the 1965 game when Winslow fumbled. Garrett's response was to throw his head back and say "Oooooh!" He hadn't forgotten.

Geez! Stanford in '56,'79,'07...any others? How about LARRY SMITH'S, '81 Arizona Wildcats(6-5), over the Rose Bowl bound Trojans, at the Coliseum. Sat at that game, and watched USC, with eight letterman on their roster, who earned AA honors during their college careers, lose 13-10. But it's history. Crap happens, move on. A perfect season, in college football, is incredible to achieve. (Howard Jones 1 in 16, John McKay 1 in 14) How about...let's talk some great memories of USC football, for awhile. You are up, TIREBITER.

This pains me greatly to bring this up again, Lawyer John, but while you are right about Troy's fumble, it was not what set up the winning touchdown. The fumble occurred when USC was leading 16-6 with about four minutes to play. Beban then hit Witcher for a touchdown, they went for two and converted to make it 16-14. They tried an onside kick and the ball took a funny bounce up in the air, and they recovered. A Beban pass was batted down by linebacker Jeff Smith. Beban was then sacked for a thirteen yard loss by a friend of mine, defensive end Jim Walker. Third and 23. Beban hit Altenberg with a 52-yard pass. Wham! It was 20-16, they were in the Rose Bowl and USC was out of it. Painful memories. I could point fingers, name names, etc. other than just Troy Winslow. It's over, yet still painful.....I agree with BcS.....we should probably move on here, including moving on from last year's Stanford thing.

I stand corrected USC1970. I guess Winslow's fumble stuck in my mind because it opened up the floodgates. As I recall it occurred very late in the 4th quarter.

It is true-- the losses stick with you.

O.K., you want a GREAT moment?-- Pat Haden to J.K. Mckay to make it 17-16 in the '75 Rose Bowl vs Ohio St, and then Haden, practically falling down, throwing a soft pass to Shelton Diggs for 2-points and the national championship, 18-17. Those closing moments still give me chills throughout my body as I write this. I don't believe I could get more excited at a football game than I was in the Rose Bowl that day. There is nothing, nothing, like attending a national championship football game. T.V. is just not the same

GREAT GAMES IN TROJAN LORE
HERE ARE JUST A FEW THAT COME TO MIND
1931-LOSING TO NOTRE DAME WHO WAS RANKED NUMBER ONE, 14-0, GOING INTO THE 4TH QUARTER, THEN WINNING IN THE CLOSING SECONDS 16-14 ON A FIELD GOAL BY JOHNNY BAKER TO WIN THE NATIONAL TITLE------THAT GAME WAS AT SO. BEND, AND ,NO, I WASN'T THERE, BUT OVER 300,000 PEOPLE TURNED OUT FOR THE DOWNTOWN PARADE TO WELCOME OUR BOYS HOME, AS PER THE LA TIMES---AND LA WAS MUCH SMALLER BACK THEN

1939 ROSE BOWL--LOSING TO DUKE 3-0 WITH ONLY A COUPLE MINUTES TO PLAY---ALL SEASON LONG, DUKE WAS UNBEATEN, UNTIED, AND EVEN UNSCORED UPON---AN AMAZING FEAT-------THEN AN ASST. COACH SENT 4TH STRING QB DOYLE NAVE INTO THE GAME----HE HIT ANTELOPE AL KRUEGER WITH 4 STRAIGHT PASSES--THE LAST ONE IN THE END ZONE---AND WE WON 7-3-------AND, YES, I WAS THERE------I THINK I STILL HAVE THE TICKET STUBS SOMEWHERE

1951--LOSING TO NUMBER ONE CAL 14-0 AT THE HALF--CAL HADN'T LOST A CONFERENCE GAME SINCE 1947-------AND THEN COMING BACK TO BEAT THEM 21-14, BEHIND FRANK GIFFORD UP AT STRAWBERRY CANYON

1964--LOSING TO NUMBER ONE NOTRE DAME 17-0 AT THE HALF, THEN COMING BACK TO WIN 20-17 AS FERTIG HIT SHERMAN AT THE ONE AND HE CARRIED INTO THE END ZONE ON 4TH AND GOAL FROM THE 13 WITH 2 MINUTES TO PLAY

1974--LOSING TO THE IRISH 24-0, AND WINNING 55-24--WE SCORED ALL OUR POINTS IN LESS THAN 17 MINUTES, AND JOHN PUT THE RESERVES IN WITH 14 MINUTES TO PLAY

HEY, I COULD TYPE ALL DAY------FIGHT ON!!!!!!!

Good stuff from George Tirebiter. I had forgotten from my history lessons about the 1931 L.A. parade for the conquering Trojans returning by train from South Bend. 300,000 L.A. people turning out for a parade. Times have changed-- we won't ever see that again. L.A. people have too many diverse interests, and SC is now in competition with the Lakers and Dodgers, which of course did not exist here in 1931.

Man, these posts bring back a lot of good (and bad) memories. A few others that randomly come to mind:

Good
-the Bush Push against ND
-John Mazur and Marcus Allen rally in a 1 vs. 2 showdown against Oklahoma
-Achica blocks the FG
-Frank Jordan makes the FG
-Marinovich-Maddox showdown
-Charles White running wild behind Anthony Munoz in the game winning drive in the Rose Bowl

Bad
-Jeff Fisher tips it to Freeman McNeil
-last year's 13-9 loss
-Tony Rice and ND
-John Barnes
-losing to Memphis State

Fight On!

My, my, it is fun to go down memory lane with SC football. uscmike provided some good ones. That Marinovich-Maddox showdown was a classic at the Rose Bowl. I was sitting with all the MIDGET-BEARS, and kept running down the aisle with every SC touchdown. I recall vividly how the MIDGET-BRUINS would try to trip me as I was doing so. NO wonder I love MIDGET-BEARS with all my heart.