Back in August, former USC head coach Pete Carroll seized on freshman linebacker Marquis Simmons, leading the Trojans in a rendition of Bill Withers‘ hit song, “Lean on Me,” for a team unity-inspiring prank involving Withers himself.
Apparently, all you can lean on Carroll for now is a recommendation for a good cup of coffee.
Carroll said he left the sunny skies of Southern California for the cloudy-with-no-chance-of-being-anything-but-cloudy Seattle Seahawks because it was impossible for him to turn away such a challenge. Surely it would’ve been more difficult for him to keep intact the West Coast-cool attitude that has become as much a signature of his tenure in Los Angeles as the Trojans’ success with him at the helm.
Not only did he leave behind a talent drain of both coaches and players at USC, he likely will avoid a backed-up drain of off-the-field issues ranging from as far back as Reggie Bush to, currently, Joe McKnight.
So he exercised the John Calipari Rule: Get while the gettin’ is good, and dupe somebody else into believing you deserve a chance to advance your career. Never mind the impending tsunami or those in its path. Make for higher ground.
Or, perhaps Carroll just had another Withers song in his head, one that applies to both USC and his new home in the Northwest: “Ain’t No Sunshine.”
