Pac-10 is Awful ... And I Blame it on Pete!

            Yes, I believe the reason the Huskies of Washington resemble a beaten Chihuahua is because Carroll; not Tyrone Willingham.  The reason UCLA's offense is as potent as a placebo is due to the coach on the "rougher" side of town; but don't fret Bruin fans, Rick Neuheisel will pay, strip-in, bring in the top recruits when he begins his recruiting scheme.

            The only two programs where Carroll is not at fault are the Bears of Cal-Berkeley and the Cardinals of Stanford.  Berkeley's problem stem from the fact they have students living in trees; for god sake, just knock down the trees and put up some additional dorms!  Stanford's issues, on the other hand, deal with admission requirements for the school.  The Cardinals recruiting materials boast, "You don't have to be a Rocket Scientist to play football; unless you play for us!"

            However, the rest of the conference can blame Carroll, and all the coaches being fired in the Pac-10 should band together and bring a lawsuit against him for the monopoly he has created.

             Carroll's monopoly is built around a recruiting scheme that reeks of brilliance.  The first step is to recruit heavily in his area, and thankfully, he is in the talent-rich pool of Los Angeles.  This plan would not work well if he was banished to Pullman, Washington or worse, Corvallis, Oregon.  Unfortunately for the powder-blue younger brother, they are located in the heart of Carroll-country and their only hope is to get the leftovers off the Trojan's table, unless "Slick Rick" does his magic.  

            If Carroll recruited only local guys, the playing field at the Coliseum would be level, but the greedy coach targets the 15 top recruits in the country and lures many to Southern California, with its nice weather and beautiful women.  What 18-year-old high school athlete could resist that temptation?

            With the best-of-the-best donning the crimson and gold, the Pac-10 is left crowning the champion before the first snap of the season.  The Pac-10 becomes the battle for second, and it is awfully hard to recruit upper echelon players to fight that battle.  Top recruits, not pursued by the Trojans, will head to the SEC or Big 12 where competition is fierce and always open.  Unlike the Pac-10, these conferences give everyone a chance to win and claim a piece of the National Championship prize.    

            For the sake of the Pac-10, Coach Carroll and the Trojans might need to emulate the efforts of the leprechaun, Jim Tressel and his Ohio State Buckeyes.  For the good of the Big-10, the Buckeyes are allowing Penn State and Michigan State to fight for first; giving the appearance the conference is wide open and able to be won by anyone.  This Buckeye failure will give a hint of validity to the remaining Big-10 coaches as they woo recruits with their "The conference is wide open and you could be the missing piece that helps us win the whole thing!" spiel.

            For this year as fate would have it, the weakness of the Pac-10 due to Carroll's monopoly on recruits and titles is going to bite him in the ass and cost the Trojans a chance to play for another National Championship.  Hey, maybe this BCS system isn't so bad!

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