Carroll's spirit rubs off on USC

The fun-loving former NFL coach has built a dynasty at Southern California.
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Southern California coach Pete Carroll grinned at reporters as he sprinted by with several of his players during a recent practice.
That's Carroll, being one of the boys.
"He participates in practice like he still has a couple plays in him," defensive end Lawrence Jackson said. "He's living out his dream."
And yet, Carroll is the unquestioned leader of an elite program that will be making an unprecedented fifth straight Bowl Championship Series appearance Monday against No. 3 Michigan in the Rose Bowl.
"I've seen him angry, when people mess up," linebacker Dallas Sartz said. "He's tough when he needs to be."
Jackson said Carroll is constantly surprising his players -- in a good way.
"He does some things you don't expect him to do, like sing a rap song," Jackson said. "If you're having a bad day, he can cheer you up. His attitude is contagious. He's not artificial at all, he is what he is. He's not going to change for anybody.
"I don't know how old he is. He's something going on 22."
Career turnaround
The 55-year-old Carroll has gone from a deposed NFL coach to unemployment for a year to fame and fortune at USC, guiding the eighth-ranked Trojans to a 64-12 record in six seasons.
His players seem to love him. They've certainly bought into his philosophies.
"He wants us to treat every game like it's the most important one there is," Sartz said. "You don't have to do anything special, you just have to do your job."
But that's not all -- having fun is part of the deal.
"Some of the stuff he does is just goofy," Sartz said. "What you see is what you get. When he's out here [at practice], he's one of the guys, playing catch with everybody, running around, playing safety. It's fun to play for a coach like that."
Carroll has certainly done it his way, and his success has triggered several rumors in recent years that he's headed back to the NFL for big bucks.
He continually denies it, saying he's most happy where he is.
Maybe the NFL wasn't ready for the likes of Carroll in the 1990s, when he coached the New York Jets for one season and the New England Patriots for three.
Maybe it's not ready now.
"They don't have to be ready for it," Carroll said. "You have to adapt, fit in if you want to stay there."
Jackson, for one, believes Carroll is in the perfect place.
"I don't think he could be like this in the NFL -- you have to be composed," Jackson said. "It's businesslike. The guys are there to work hard, collect their check and go home. We don't get a check, we're here to have fun."
Carroll said having fun is not a goal he's set, but it's clearly a byproduct.
"There's no reason you can't work really hard and be really strict and have fun," he said. "There's a rigid line of theory that goes along with what we're doing. The goal is to do really well. Every day we practice hard. Every day we practice fast. If it's not fun, then I'm blowing it in my approach."
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