Cincy Sporting News » USC

Garrett out, Haden in as USC athletic director

admin — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 13:08:56 +0000

Associated Press

LOS ANGELES—Southern California is cleaning house in its tarnished athletic department, throwing out much of what got the school in severe NCAA trouble.

Athletic director Mike Garrett and Reggie Bush’s Heisman Trophy are the first two items to go.

In a letter to school supporters Tuesday, incoming USC president Max Nikias said Garrett will be replaced Aug. 3 by Pat Haden, the former Trojans quarterback who became a successful businessman and a member of USC’s board of trustees. The school also will return its copy of Bush’s trophy to the Heisman Trust, among several measures to disassociate itself from the tainted tailback.

The NCAA cited Garrett’s administration for a lack of institutional control while slapping the school with heavy sanctions last month, but Haden believes he can change the culture of a program that has been wildly successful and heavily scrutinized over the past decade.

“We’re going to do better,” said Haden, also the color analyst on NBC’s Notre Dame broadcasts for the past decade. “We have to do better. We don’t have any choices here. We stub our toe, there’s going to be some problems.”

USC was hit with four years of probation, a two-year bowl ban and severe football scholarship restrictions after the NCAA found serious rules violations in the athletic department, primarily around the football and men’s basketball teams. Most involved illegal benefits for Bush and O.J. Mayo, the talented basketball player who spent just one season at USC.

Haden said the school’s plan to get rid of nearly all references to Bush and Mayo—right down to scrubbing their images from school murals and removing Bush’s No. 5 jersey in its place of honor in the lobby of Heritage Hall—are all part of the NCAA’s directive to disassociate the school from the athletes.

Bush’s Heisman has been on display alongside the trophies won by Garrett, O.J. Simpson, Matt Leinart, Carson Palmer, Charles White and Marcus Allen. It was still in place Tuesday, but will be gone by the time students show up on campus next month.

Nikias also doesn’t start his new job until Aug. 3, but he’s already at work reforming the Trojans’ image.

“The Trojan Family honors and respects the USC sporting careers of those persons whose actions did not compromise their athletic program or the opportunities of future USC student-athletes,” Nikias said.

After pledging support for new football coach Lane Kiffin, Haden said he realizes the enormity of his task in restoring credibility to USC, where the NCAA found numerous violations during the tenures of football coach Pete Carroll and men’s hoops coach Tim Floyd. After twice telling Nikias he didn’t want to be considered for the job, Haden agreed to take it last week.

“We want to compete ferociously and win in every sport, but we want to do it ethically and within the rules,” said Haden, a former Rhodes Scholar who became a venture capitalist after an NFL career with the Los Angeles Rams. “We’re going to have a culture of compliance around here. Every meeting is going to start with the No. 1 item as compliance. … We’re going to try to be perfect. When we make mistakes, we’re going to fess up, and we’re going to try to do better next time.”

The 66-year-old Garrett has been the Trojans’ athletic director for 17 years, but he received caustic criticism for his handling of USC’s scandals. The school didn’t say whether Garrett retired or had been fired.

Both Garrett and Haden are former USC football players. Garrett won the Heisman Trophy in 1965, while Haden was the Trojans’ starting quarterback for three years in the 1970s under coach John McKay.

Haden also said he’ll hire McKay’s son, J.K., as an associate athletic director to serve as his liaison to the football program. McKay and Haden played together at USC and have been best friends for over 40 years.

“It’s a tough job, because you can only do so much, and there are people out there who are trying to get to your guys every day,” said McKay, an attorney who served as general manager with the XFL’s Los Angeles franchise. “We’re going to do our best to make sure nobody can question our effort on compliance.”

A few months after abruptly leaving Tennessee to return to USC, Kiffin’s self-described dream job has changed drastically. He must rebuild the Trojans under probation and scholarship limitations—and now Kiffin is working for a boss who didn’t hire him. Yet Kiffin, whose staff was cited for several minor NCAA violations during his 14 months at Tennessee, looked tanned and relaxed when he walked through Heritage Hall on Tuesday afternoon.

“He is my coach, and I love my coach,” Haden said. “I think he’s going to be successful here. J.K. McKay is committed to doing it right, and I think Lane is, too. I don’t want to say we’re not going to have any issues. We will. We’re going to have guys whispering in our guys’ ears, but we’re going to do our best. I don’t think we’re going to have a problem with compliance with Lane. I think he knows where we’re coming from.”

Garrett has been mostly unapologetic in the face of the Trojans’ NCAA problems, even saying last month that the NCAA’s ruling revealed “a lot of envy” of the Trojans. Two weeks ago, Garrett was forced to send a letter of apology to five schools after falsely accusing them of breaking NCAA rules by contacting star tailback recruit Dillon Baxter about transferring.

While praising Garrett’s work in rebuilding the USC football program and shepherding construction of the Galen Center basketball arena on campus, Nikias said the USC athletic department under his presidency “will seek to excel in the coming years in a manner that is consistent with the highest values” of the school.

Garrett initially received praise for unexpectedly hiring Carroll, who led a dominant decade for the Trojans’ football team, including seven Pac-10 titles and two national championships. Carroll left USC earlier this year to take over the Seattle Seahawks.

“Wish pat haden the very best in taking over as USC AD!” Carroll wrote on his Twitter account. “I’ll support in any way. Congrats!”

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USC drives past Ohio State 18-15

admin — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 13:09:06 +0000

USC drives past Ohio State 18-15

By RALPH D. RUSSO, The Associated Press Updated 8:51 AM Sunday, September 13, 2009

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Two games into his college football career, 19-year-old quarterback Matt Barkley already has a place in Southern California lore.

Southern California running back Stafon Johnson (13) runs into the end zone for the go-ahead touchdown against Ohio State during an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 12, 2009, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)

Three seasons into his USC career, Joe McKnight can now claim a spot with the great runners at Tailback U.

The freshman phenom and the shifty tailback made big play after big play, and Stafon Johnson capped one of the great drives in USC’s storied history with a 2-yard touchdown run with 1:05 left to give the third-ranked Trojans an 18-15 victory against No. 8 Ohio State on Saturday night.

“We’re Trojans. That’s what we do,” Barkley said. “This is what we dreamed of, coming back like this.

“Doesn’t matter where we are in the score. We found a way. I love this.”

For the Buckeyes (1-1), it was another big-game disappointment, maybe the toughest one yet. Ohio State has now lost six straight against top-five teams, including two national title games and last season’s 35-3 loss to USC in Los Angeles.

For the Trojans (2-0), it was their 10th straight victory against the Big Ten. None was tougher — and none was likely more satisfying for Pete Carroll’s team.

“I think it’s a beautiful statement for our whole team,” the coach said. “It was really a great job by a lot of guys.”

The official stats will call it a 14-play, 86-yard drive, but it really started with USC at its own 5, facing a second-and-19 with 6:09 left in the game.

Suddenly, an offense stymied and held scoreless all second half by a hard-charging Ohio State defense came alive.

“He was scared, really,” McKnight said with a laugh about his quarterback. “No, he came in with the same composure he had the whole game. He was calm. He made plays.”

So did McKnight.

First he darted for 11 yards. Then it was Barkley to McKnight, who weaved for 21 more on third-and-8.

When Barkley threw a strike over the middle to Anthony McCoy for 26 to get USC to the Ohio State 37, the record crowd of more than 106,000 at Ohio Stadium started to grow uneasy.

Barkley converted a fourth-and-short with a sneak. McKnight, so often compared to USC Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush, ran three times, showing some power to go with all those moves and got USC inside the 10. Another sneak by Barkley got it to first-and-goal.

Then Johnson swept around right end, going in untouched, pointing toward the USC section as he crossed the goal line. It was the only part of the huge crowd cheering. The rest?

“When we punched it in there it was good to hear the silence,” Barkley said.

Barkley and McKnight hooked up one more time, appropriately, for a 2-point conversion that meant an Ohio State field goal would only force overtime.

But with no timeouts left, Terrelle Pryor and the Buckeyes’ offense went nowhere with their last chance.

“You need to score more than five points in the second half, and they came up with plays on that last drive they needed to and so they go home with the spoils,” coach Jim Tressel said.

Just when it looked as if the Buckeyes would shake their big-game bugaboos, they’ll now face more questions about their inability to beat the very best. Just when it looked as if Big Ten pride would be restored — at least a little — the league took another high-profile hit.

“It’s very frustrating, but we knew eventually they’d make plays,” said linebacker Brian Rolle, part of a unit that was stellar for 54 minutes. “The last drive was heartbreaking. Give McKnight lots of credit on that last drive, he was good.

“The last drive was definitely, you go back and you think about, and you think about how close you came to winning.”

McKnight ran for 60 yards and had 45 receiving, modest numbers but most of them came at the most crucial time.

Barkley finished 14 for 31 for 195 yards with an interception. He was sacked twice and took some shots, but just a few days removed from his 19th birthday, he already has a drive that could define his career. Matt Leinart and Carson Palmer couldn’t have done better.

“He’s not 19,” Carroll said. “He’s our quarterback. I’m not worried about how old he is. Numbers mean nothing.”

Pryor made some plays for Ohio State with his arm and his legs, throwing for 177 yards and running for 36 in a game dominated by defense and field position.

“We should have beat them,” Pryor said. “Point blank, we should have beat them.”

Coming off last year’s drubbing by USC, Ohio State couldn’t have come up with a worse way to start the rematch.

Pryor’s short toss over the middle was picked off by Chris Galippo around midfield and he returned it 51 yards to the Ohio State 2. The Trojans needed four downs, but Johnson bulled in for a 1-yard score to make it 7-0 less than four minutes in.

With their fans a bit stunned and probably fearing the worst after so many recent disappointments, the Buckeyes and Pryor responded.

The rangy sophomore hit Dane Sanzenbacher streaking down the middle for 56 yards to set up Dan Herron’s 2-yard touchdown run. Midway through the first, it was 7-7 and Ohio State’s crowd was back into it and blaring.

The teams traded field goals in the second quarter, with USC’s Jordan Congdon knocking home a 21-yarder on the last play of the half to cap a snappy 2-minute drill by Barkley.

They traded punts and Ohio State won the field position battle and took the lead in the third quarter.

After pinning USC at its own 10, the Buckeyes forced USC to punt from its end zone. That turned into two points for Ohio State when a high snap slipped through the hands of punter Billy O’Malley for a safety with 9:03 left in the third.

Pryor and Ohio State then took advantage of excellent field position after the free kick, and drove to set up a 22-yard field goal by Aaron Pettrey with 4:49 left in the quarter to make it 15-10.

It wasn’t enough for Ohio State. The Trojans had one great drive left in them.

“It was huge,” Galippo said. “Inspiring.”

___

September 13, 2009 12:49 PM EDT

Buckeyes still haunted by 35-3 loss to USC

admin — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 13:13:40 +0000

Buckeyes still haunted by 35-3 loss to USC By RUSTY MILLER, The Associated Press Updated 2:36 AM Saturday, September 12, 2009

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Dan “Boom” Herron can’t remember much about his first career start at tailback for Ohio State in the huge showdown at Southern California last year.

He can’t recall specific plays, touchdowns or tackles, but he does remember the score: a 35-3 bruise on the Buckeyes’ national reputation.

“The score was ugly and that’s something that we need to fix this year,” he said.

A year of waiting for the rematch comes down to Saturday night when the third-ranked Trojans visit the No. 8 Buckeyes at Ohio Stadium before what surely will be a rocking, revenge-minded crowd of more than 106,000.

Coach Pete Carroll’s Trojans have beaten the Buckeyes six times in a row, including three times in Rose Bowls. With a true freshman quarterback and several starters who have never played such a pivotal role in a big game, one of Carroll’s biggest concerns is the crowd.

“The difference in this game is really the noise,” he said. “We have to keep it in the right perspective and make sure we take our ability to play well into the setting. If we do that, like we’ve done in other years, then we’ll have a chance to win. If we don’t, we’ll get hammered.”

The Trojans, a touchdown favorite, have a talented offensive line, a dizzying array of quality running backs, receivers who seemingly can leap buildings in a single bound — and 19-year-old Matt Barkley at quarterback. Months removed from his senior prom, Barkley acknowledged he was a little shell-shocked at the outset of last week’s opener against San Jose State. But he got comfortable in a hurry and had a big day in a 56-3 rout.

The noise, the rabid fans, a national television audience and a Buckeyes team still smarting from last year’s pasting should combine to help Ohio State. At least that’s what coach Jim Tressel is hoping.

“We need all the help we can get from the folks being nice and loud,” he said. “We were thinking about imposing a curfew for all the fans all week long so they come with a lot of energy and be louder than they’ve ever been in their entire lives.”

It’s not so much last year’s loss that haunts the Buckeyes, it’s the margin. To them, it’s as if every newspaper columnist, TV analyst, blogger, Web site and Twitter account in the land has taken shots at the Ohio State program for failures in big games over the past three years.

Their best chance to stop all that snickering? Beat USC.

“I don’t think there are any guys who were on the team last year who don’t think about that every once in a while, going to Southern Cal and getting your butts whipped,” tight end Jake Ballard said. “It’s definitely one of the most embarrassing things that have happened to me. Now it’s taking that and saying, ‘OK, I’m going to do my best and not let that happen this year.’”

USC had last year’s game in hand by halftime, leading 21-3 after linebacker Rey Maualuga returned an interception 48 yards for a score. But he’s in the NFL, along with quarterback Mark Sanchez — who tossed four TD passes for USC. The Trojans still have plenty of big-play guys around, including tailback Joe McKnight, wide receiver Damian Williams and fullback Stanley Havili.

“They have an excellent knack of coming up with what we call explosive gains,” Tressel said. “They might go a couple plays and it’s business as usual and then, boom, all of a sudden it’s a 17-yarder.”

The USC defense lost most of its big names from a year ago — something that also can be said of Ohio State — but no one is feeling sorry for the Trojans. There’s no dearth of talent with stars such as Taylor Mays at safety.

A lot depends on whether McKnight and Co. gobble up yards like they did the last time the teams met, thus giving Barkley the time and room to pick and choose his receivers.

Ohio State’s hopes hinge on a young quarterback as well. Terrelle Pryor saw limited playing time a year ago against USC as a freshman backing up Todd Boeckman. Now he’s the acknowledged leader of Ohio State’s offense, being handed the job the week after the USC debacle. At 6-foot-6, he is big enough to bowl over a tackler, but he has tantalizing speed for someone who weighs 235 pounds.

The Buckeyes are hoping his ability to escape the pocket can keep the USC defense honest and limit blitzes. Pryor has yet to have a big passing game, so if the Buckeyes should fall behind early it’s likely the Trojans will come after him when he looks to throw.

“I don’t feel the pressure,” Pryor said after the Buckeyes’ narrow 31-27 win over Navy last week. “Coming into (the USC game) we’re looking forward to the chance to show what we can do.”

High-profile losses in national title games after the 2006 (Florida) and 2007 (LSU) seasons, and defeats to USC, Penn State and Texas a year ago have led many to rank Ohio State’s program a notch or two below the elite teams in the nation.

“No one thinks that Ohio State can win the big one right now,” Herron said.

Ballard said all the negativity was motivated the Buckeyes the past 12 months.

“This could determine who’s going to the national championship and who doesn’t. If you lose this game you have no chance,” he said. “It’s do or die right here.”

___

September 11, 2009 05:53 PM EDT