A Weak NCAA Caves To Pete Carroll

by Nestor on Dec 2, 2008 4:30 PM PST in Football

So the NCAA has changed its rule in response Pete Carroll’s unilateral decision to have his team wear home jerseys at the Rose Bowl (HT to bucknellbruin):

The NCAA today altered its rule regarding visiting teams not wearing white jerseys. Now, USC will be penalized just one timeout on Saturday, at the start of the game, as opposed to the previous rule of one timeout per half. UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel has agreed to burn one of his timeouts at the start of the game as well.

Let’s make something very clear. In terms of tradition, it is awesome that these teams will get to wear home and home jerseys on Saturday. It was about time. It is something we have supported pretty passionately (laying out our detailed arguments in support of it) previously on Bruins Nation. And no matter how the NCAA had done, it's a pretty good bet Neuheisel would have burned his TOs if Carroll was going to go ahead with this stunt and call on Carroll to the do the same next year.

However, IMHO it was disrespectful and incredibly arrogant on Carroll’s part to make this unilateral decision without conferring with Neuheisel this past Sunday, when there was no prior agreement in place. Yes, Neuheisel and Carroll had agreed on the concept back in February but that idea hit a snag when Pac-10 seem to balk on the agreement from earlier in the year. So with no agreement in place, Carroll uncorked what amounted to a successful PR stunt by paying lip-service to “tradition” and “rivalry” without showing any actual respect for it by working with Neuheisel. Again Carroll made this move only after it became clear to him that the Trojies were overwhelming favorites to clinch the Rose Bowl on our home turf.

Anyway, clearly the weak, pathetic, joke of an NCAA administration has all the time in the world to jump quickly and cave in response to a Pete Carroll stunt, while they keep lollygagging re. Reggie Bush, OJ2, and all other scandals at Southern Cal.

Guess the Trojans really own the NCAA.

GO BRUINS.

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Comments

Gutless NCAA

The other day, the NCAA clobbered Kelvin Sampson because, while he coached at Indiana, he violated NCAA rules limiting phone calls to recruits. From what I understand, he carries a great burden — one that will “punish” any college or university that hires him.

Yet, they allow the CEO of the dirtiest program in football to skate past very serious violations by his players, and now his own disregard for a rule. Sanctions on Cheety Peety during his reign of error? None.

I do not recognize the NCAA’s right to set or enforce standards. It is a non-entity in my eyes. I wish some of the honest AD’s in the country had the stones to threaten to create another body unless the NCAA plays fair across the board.

sjh

by Class of 66 on Dec 2, 2008 5:09 PM PST reply actions

Yep

They have turned themselves into a non-entity. A total joke like the Chinese Olympic Committee.

by Nestor on Dec 2, 2008 6:15 PM PST up reply actions

I don’t think your criticism of Carroll is warranted. Reminds me of the guy who hears his friends are going out to dinner and gets real upset when they don’t ask him. They don’t ask him because they know he’s busy.

Here Carroll and CRN had a deal back in February. Carroll followed through on it. So what if he didn’t call CRN first?

Get over it and enjoy the very colorful game!

Bleeding powderkeg blue and gold for 54 years. Go Bruins!

by Digdog on Dec 2, 2008 7:29 PM PST reply actions

Doesn't remind me of that at all

Try again.

by Tydides on Dec 2, 2008 7:33 PM PST up reply actions

Yeah, that analogy doesn't make ANY sense...

Still, I am glad to see the home jerseys.

by impaulv on Dec 2, 2008 7:34 PM PST up reply actions

I guess I will have to explain it to you, a fellow UCLA grad. (I only thought I would have to explain it to a USC grad.)

Someone is taking umbrage because CRN wasn’t asked. But CRN already agreed to it. So there was no need to ask him and the umbrage is unwarranted.

Bleeding powderkeg blue and gold for 54 years. Go Bruins!

by Digdog on Dec 2, 2008 7:38 PM PST up reply actions

I guess I'll have to explain this to you

Come on, what do you think is more likely? Getting upset because our coach wasn’t asked about a move that most of us supported anyway, or because the opposing coach is so arrogant that he makes a point of sacrificing a timeout (and what he thought was 2 timeouts at the time he made the decision) as if he doesn’t need it. Maybe he does and maybe he doesn’t, but either way it is blatant disrespect and only reinforces Pom Pom’s reputation as an asshole.

So which of your jackass friends are arrogant enough to not invite you to dinner because they think you’ve eaten enough? (yeah that one is tortured, but it’s a lot closer than your analogy)

by Tydides on Dec 2, 2008 7:49 PM PST up reply actions

Disagree

Criticism of Carrol is ALWAYS warranted. He is a classless, pompous, arrogant asshole. Now, I would argue that on the official PETE CARROL POMPOUS ASSHOLE METER that this would probably rank at about a 3 on a scale of 1 to 10, this move definitely warrants criticism for the exact reasons that Nestor lays out.

by godblesstyus95 on Dec 2, 2008 7:35 PM PST up reply actions

Sounds like

You didn’t read carefully and get the fact that after various discussions there were no agreements in place.

by Nestor on Dec 3, 2008 4:39 AM PST up reply actions

Give them a title

If Carrol keeps disregarding rules and bullying the NCAA, they’ll just give him the national title tomorrow. Anyone who screams bloody murder will be given the death penalty, as by order of King Pete. Ugh.

by thirteentonine on Dec 2, 2008 8:12 PM PST reply actions

i actually heard some guys

on ESPN talking about what great sportsmanship CRN was showing by giving up a timeout to even the playing field.

by bucknellbruin on Dec 2, 2008 8:50 PM PST reply actions

I hope he does

I think that’s the proper response. In this stupid little gamesmanship ploy, CRN can turn the tables back by giving up a TO.

by Tydides on Dec 2, 2008 9:19 PM PST up reply actions

I would have been happier if they charged $c two time outs

I was just getting over Cheaty Petey’s unilateral move when I turned on my computer to read this. Can the NCAA get any more pathetic? They won’t even follow their own damned rules if Petey asks to break them.

Victory or until next year!

by ncrpz2 on Dec 2, 2008 9:38 PM PST reply actions

In light of it all

this specific situation doesn’t particularly upset me, but I’ll certainly agree it shows SC has the NCAA wrapped around it’s finger.

I just can’t stop dwelling on the fact that, as mentioned in the post, SC got off completely clean after the OJ2 and Bush scandals.

O.A.

by Ollie on Dec 2, 2008 9:41 PM PST reply actions

The NCAA caving

annoys me much more than The Humanitarian deciding to do this on his own. I really don’t see that as that big of a deal. Yes, it would have been nice if the two coaches issued a joint statement saying that USC will wear red this year, and UCLA next, and that they wanted to bring back this tradition, etc. I don’t see Carroll doing this on his own as a big insult—would we expect him to do something the classy way? He sure as hell was never going to allow Neu or UCLA to appear to be assenting to this in any way.

by Westwood Wizard on Dec 3, 2008 7:46 AM PST up reply actions

Guaranteed Neu does this next year

Hopefully by not even saying anything and just letting our team run out of the tunnel in blue. The precedent has been set. Watch the overlords at the NCAA solidify the rule over the offseason to be one timeout in each half. “THIS YEAR we MEAN it”. That’s how these tools roll.

by Tydides on Dec 3, 2008 8:24 AM PST up reply actions