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Lane Kiffin's Legacy At USC

Gabe Quintela |
October 4, 2013 | 11:09 a.m. PDT

Staff Writer

Pete Carroll symbolized everything about USC football that Lane Kiffin did not. (University of Southern California)
Pete Carroll symbolized everything about USC football that Lane Kiffin did not. (University of Southern California)
Just 13 months ago, the Trojans were ranked first in the Preseason AP Poll, featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated as the team to beat and seemed destined to win another national championship. Just a year ago, the Trojans began the season 6-1, mostly living up to that hype. Yet, just under a year ago, the Trojans finished the season 1-5 and went from national championship contenders to mediocre bowl game losers. 

While it is understood that head coach Lane Kiffin was dealing with a limited roster, the loss of scholarship funds due to NCAA sanctions, an injury to Matt Barkley and no efficient quarterback to replace him, Los Angeles has no time for excuses. Perhaps Kiffin was doomed from the start, but after an embarrassing home loss to Washington State and giving up 62 points to Arizona State (the second time the team has given up 62 points in a year), AD Pat Haden finally fired him.

Yet, as Kiffin departs to the Coliseum’s echo of “fire Kiffin” chants, what is his ultimate legacy as head coach at USC?

As an incoming freshman at USC, I was able to experience first-hand Kiffin’s legacy, or perhaps lack thereof. As the sounds of the world’s greatest marching band rang in my ears, thoughts of Reggie Bush lighting up the Coliseum filled my head while images of Pete Carroll, white haired and half-smiling, throwing up the "Fight On" after a victory stood vividly in my mind. I realized that to me this image was the identity of USC football: The quintessential Los Angeles football team, the team that transcends the city’s unfortunate NFL history and consistently lives up to the spotlight that LA inevitably casts on all who dare to play under it. Yet, as I actually arrived at the Coliseum for the first time, gravitating toward the upbeat tone of the marching band, I found myself watching a very different football program than the one I had so fondly remembered. What had once been the most electrifying offense in the country had slowed to a crawl. Kiffin - labeled as a great offensive mind - watched idly as the USC Trojans, once the Leonardo DiCaprio of college football, began to look more and more like Nicholas Cage

Kiffin did have some highs, although they are hard to imagine now. The 2011 season was USC’s best season since 2008, as the Trojans won the Pac-12 South and finished 10-2 overall. But, serving its second year of NCAA suspension, the team was ineligible to play in a bowl game and as a result the season is often overlooked. Yet, as is common in the unforgiving world of sports, no legacy will live on positively after a demise as tragic as Kiffin’s was. 

Instead of the 2011 season, the fans will most likely remember the fall of Matt Barkley, from what could have been the first pick of the draft to the 98th. Or perhaps the legacy will be Kiffin’s running of one of the most inefficient offenses USC has ever seen: USC is currently 9th in the Pac-12 in passing yards and 8th in total offense. The fans might even recall Kiffin’s handling of a quarterback competition that should be labeled inefficient at best. 

As this year continues and USC scrambles to save its season, one can only hope the next coach is able to turn this program back around. While the future of USC football is left in utter uncertainty, one thing is for sure: When the next set of freshman enter the Coliseum for the first time, they won’t be dreaming of a Lane Kiffin-led team taking the field.

Reach Staff Writer Gabe Quintela here


 

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