Pete Carroll Balances Teaching At USC While Preparing For Raiders\' Job
Pete Carroll is bringing his coaching philosophy to the classroom, teaching a course called \"The Game is Life\" at USC while preparing for his new role as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.
The 73-year-old meets with nearly 60 students each Thursday evening during USC\'s spring semester, imparting wisdom from his career that includes a Super Bowl championship with the Seattle Seahawks and two national titles at USC.
\"Practice is everything,\" Carroll tells his students. \"If you want something, you\'ve got to get good at it. ... You have to find a way to make time, make scheduling, set priorities, get your s--t so that you can be available to get good at what you want to get good at.\"
Carroll co-teaches the course with Varun Soni, dean of Religious and Spiritual Life, and David Belasco, adjunct professor of entrepreneurship, through USC\'s Marshall School of Business. The class was highly competitive, with 300 applicants vying for limited spots.
The diverse student body includes USC women\'s basketball star JuJu Watkins among musicians, dancers, entrepreneurs, athletes and accountants. Students report an unusual level of engagement, with laptops remaining in backpacks and cell phones out of sight as they take notes in class-issued notebooks.
\"One thing I\'ve told Pete myself is this class is not a class for me,\" said Shadi Angotti, a biological sciences major. \"It\'s an escape. It\'s something I look forward to the whole week.\"
The course features impressive guest speakers, including Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr, actor Jason Sudeikis, author Deepak Chopra, and Olympic gold medalists. During a recent class, actor Rainn Wilson joined to discuss resilience.
Carroll has maintained his commitment to teaching despite accepting the Raiders coaching position, even sharing with students his upcoming first meeting with his new team. \"I have my first meeting with the team. They\'re going to come into a room like this and I am going to \'wow\' their ass,\" Carroll said.
\"I\'m really ultimately unrealistically optimistic,\" Carroll admitted during class, perhaps revealing the philosophy that has carried him through multiple career phases, from college coaching glory to NFL success and now back to both worlds simultaneously.
\"If we didn\'t get kicked out of there, we\'d have been there for another 30 minutes,\" Carroll said afterward about the enthusiastic student participation. \"And it\'s what it\'s been like. It\'s been really special.\"