On Dec. 2 USC’s athletic director Pat Haden hired Steve Sarkisian as the new head coach of the Trojan’s football team, but what Haden did not know was that his decision to hire Sarkisian would bring outrage to Southern California.
Two months ago, Coach O., a fun and loving man, was introduced to Trojan and other college football fans around the nation. Ed Orgeron, who was granted the title of interim head coach when the program fired Lane Kiffin, brought life and relevance back to the Trojans after a horrible 3-2 start to the season. Coach O. and the Trojans finished the season 9-4 and with a signature 20-17 win over the then seventh ranked Stanford Cardinal.
As a college football fan, it was hard for me to see Coach O. go. He was a successful coach, but more importantly, a good person and mentor to his players. Fans around the nation grew to love Orgeron’s attitude, personality and strong Cajun accent. He treated his players as if they were his own sons, working hard to make football an enjoyable sport for them.
Although most college football players want to make it to the NFL, the reality is that most of them will not. By the time Coach O. took over, the Trojans had already been eliminated from winning a national championship. The team’s morale was beginning to fall and the team was desperately in need for help.
Keeping these ideas in mind, Orgeron wanted to make football a fun and memorable experience for his players. Instead of being aggressive and intense like traditional football coaches, Orgeron made personal connections with his players and created a family-like environment at USC, even occasionally treating his players to cheeseburgers and milkshakes after practice.
Being a football player myself, I can genuinely appreciate and relate to Coach O.’s style of coaching. In the past, football practice was something that I did not look forward to. Three hours of hitting, running and conditioning started to become too much of a burden on my life and I was beginning to feel that football was starting to turn into a huge waste of my time.
However, my teammates and I were lucky enough this season to have a group of coaches that we felt were genuine people. Coach Saxon, Coach Smith and Coach Speaks were not only geniuses on the field, but also great mentors off of it as well. They made practice fun for our team, incorporating techniques that made drills less dreadful but just as effective. Our team’s morale went up and so did the number of our wins.
Even though I believe a football team that has championship expectations like USC needs a coach that will bring discipline, I was glad that the players at USC had the chance to have the fun experiences that Coach O. brought to them. My hope is that Coach Sarkisian can help the Trojans regain their championship aspirations while allowing his players to have a fun experience playing football.
I most definitely appreciate the fun and memories that my coaches gave me and teammates. Football is something that I will cherish for my entire lifetime and I am glad that I have positive memories that I can hold on to forever. In a time where controversy surrounds the NFL and the sport itself, I am glad that there are people who believe that there is still fun left in football.