USC must hope reboot with Steve Sarkisian is better than sequel
More than anyone else associated with college football, the powerbrokers at USC probably should understand the sequel is never as good as the original. There's just no recreating the magic.
Still, Hollywood can't resist them. Apparently, the Trojans can't, either – which would explain, at least in part, why they've just hired Steve Sarkisian.
RELATED: USC hires Steve Sarkisian as coach
But then, it's not technically a sequel. It's also not a bad hire. Sarkisian replaces Lane Kiffin, who like Sarkisian was an assistant on Pete Carroll's staff. Kiffin was hired when Carroll left for Seattle after the 2009 season in an attempt to maintain the aura. He didn't, and now Sarkisian has been hired to re-ignite the spark.
Part III? Trilogy? Threequel? It could just be a continuing series of attempts to reboot an era that is gone and isn't coming. Back when Sarkisian and Kiffin shared duties as USC's co-offensive coordinators, before Alabama and the SEC ruled college football, the Trojans were the nearest thing to a dynasty. They did it with sizzle and flash and fun. They were A-listers in a town that loves its stars.
Despite his connection to that era, Sarkisian's hire hasn't gotten rave reviews.
But it is probably at least as much a sign of what USC couldn't accomplish in the coaching search as it is a desire to rekindle the past. When athletic director Pat Haden fired Kiffin in October, he put the Trojans first in line on the coaching carousel. The job is widely regarded as one of the very best in college football. The effects of NCAA penalties – namely, those draconian scholarship reductions – are still being felt, but they end soon.
And yet the Trojans didn't land the big fish.
Texas A&M's Kevin Sumlin re-upped with the Aggies for a contract extension and a nice raise. Boise State's Chris Petersen, who has never seemed all that interested in leaving Boise, apparently was not interested in leaving Boise (though because it's a coaching search, and it's in the Pacific Northwest, we should toss his name into the mix at Washington). Jon Gruden was apparently unable to find a house he liked. Nick Saban is, of course, headed to Texas. (Just kidding about those last two.)
In a statement released by USC to announce Sarkisian's hire, Haden said he identified 20 candidates, interviewing five.
"We kept coming back to 'Sark,' " Haden said. "He is the only one who was offered the job. I believe in my gut that he is the right coach for USC at this time."
He'll have to be. And despite the easy line – they replaced Kiffin with (pause for timing) … Kiffin – Sarkisian has accomplished a lot more in five years as a head coach at Washington than Kiffin did with the Oakland Raiders, Tennessee and USC.
Sarkisian's career record is only 34-29, but he inherited the smoldering ruins of an 0-12 season and gradually began to rebuild a proud program. Washington won the national championship in 1991, but its days as a national power had long faded by the time he arrived. Never mind the winless season in 2008, the Huskies had won only 12 games combined in the four seasons before that.
After three consecutive seasons that finished 7-6, it was hailed as a big accomplishment when the Huskies won their eighth game of the season last Saturday. Winning seven and eight games at USC gets coaches fired. But programs don't rise and fall in a vacuum. As Washington faded, Oregon and then Stanford burst to prominence, making Sarkisian's task that much more difficult.
USC is a very different platform. The Pac-12's most traditional power has seven national championships in the modern era, deep financial resources and most important: location, location, location. A bunch of talented recruits live within a stone's throw of the campus, and the glory days were recent enough that they remember them. All the ingredients are there for a return to winning – which is also why the Trojans figured to lure a big name to campus to lead a resurgence.
But if USC struck out and then went to Sarkisian? Well, they settled once before, too, going after big names before finally landing a failed NFL coach.
Carroll worked out pretty well.
There's one immediate issue to deal with. Interim coach Ed Orgeron, who led the Trojans to a 6-2 record after taking over for Kiffin, resigned Monday after learning Sarkisian was getting the job. He spoke with players Monday afternoon in what was apparently an emotional meeting. Players emerged crying, according to multiple reports. It might be difficult for Sarkisian to get initial buy-in from his new team.
But frankly, that issue might be easier to deal with than if Orgeron, who had hoped to become the permanent head coach, had taken USC's offer to remain on staff as an assistant.
This way, Sarkisian gets the chance for a complete reboot. Time will tell if it's a hit or a bomb.
George Schroeder, a national college football reporter for USA TODAY Sports, is on Twitter @GeorgeSchroeder.
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