Pete Carroll and the USC Trojans Hall of Fame

The aftermath of the situation in Los Angeles between the media, USC Trojans football fans and Pete Carroll has been anything but clean, what with the Reggie Bush saga and the following NCAA bans and scholarship/recruiting penalties. But in the end, USC recognized its former coach for what he was and in no small way what he accomplished (not just in the Pac-10/Pac-12, but nationally) by inducting him into the school’s athletic Hall of Fame.

Historically speaking, Carroll’s nine-year run in L.A. was one for the ages. During his epic career as head man of the Trojans from 2001-2009 he helped the school secure seven Pac-12 titles in a row and two national championships. That’s an incredible run, regardless if you like the guy or not, there’s no denying he got it done.

Perhaps that crazy run of success wasn’t a sham after all, as many haters have come to assume. Perhaps it was the fact that he’s just a coach that found a method that his players can respond to and has perfected it. Remember after a lackluster first season with the Cardinal and Gold, alums tried avidly to push him out of the program. When they failed, Carroll said “screw ’em” and decided to stop trying to please the L.A. media and USC alumi base. He decided to have some fun.

And that’s exactly what his players were able to do after he ceased with the political nonsense that had weighed him down since stepping in as the New York Jets head coach. The Trojans were the most dominant team in the land for more than half a decade, and it wasn’t really even that close.

Since returning to the NFL and bringing the philosophy and mantra of “Always Compete” with him, it’s worked out pretty well for his Seattle Seahawks as well. So well in fact that he’s now enjoying the rare accomplishment of having won championships at both the NCAA and NFL levels.

USC made the right decision here and as obvious as it may seem it probably won’t go over well with the Pete Carroll detractors. Just because Reggie Bush took some extra money while he was there it doesn’t undermine P.C’s legacy. The man can coach and is truly deserving of the honor. We can only hope that he and the Seahawks will have the same type of long-term success.