So many of the Helton bashers on this board claim the only reason this team is winning is because of the perceived Talent that is on the roster. I am not convinced that our team is loaded with talent at this point, however that isn't the point of this post. The point is it is funny to me that Helton and staff are receiving no credit for the W-L results as fans claim they only win because of the talent on the roster and the fact we out talent most of our opponents. This can be said of any winning program and shouldn't be viewed as a negative against this coaching staff. Do we honestly think Saban is winning all those games because of his coaching.. no, the bottom line is Saban is a good coach that has superior talent to every team he plays, and despite this talent edge, even he loses some games.
Let's take a look at our own program and our recent past. Do we really think Pete Carroll was the end all be all of coaches? The reality is when you look at his most successful years, it coincided when he had the most talent in college football. The run began in 2002, when he had starting developing talent and had an experienced veteran team and a Senior QB in Carson Palmer. 2003 - 2005.. Reggie, Lendale, Matt, etc., etc. This was at a time when the talent on USC Roster was so far superior to the rest of college football, Pete really didn't have to do much other than fire the guys up and get out of the way. Even despite this talent advantage there were MANY games during this time, when the SC team didn't seem prepared to play the game that weekend and struggled in the first half. Now, Pete made his bones with his halftime adjustments and lead the team to victory, so he gets props there, but it is funny how Helton and staff are hammered for not having the team ready; when the same can be said about Pete.
When the talent started to even out '06 - '09 the results were not as favorable as the dynastic years. 11-2, 11-2, 12-1, 9-4. Although the talent was beginning to level, I believe SC still held a talent advantage against most teams during this time, and definitely as compared to other P12 schools. It is funny most fans will harken back to the Pete years, but those records are very similar to the records the team is putting up in the two years under Helton. Last year was 10-3 and if we win out this year we are looking at 12-2. So very comparable to the latter part of the CPC era.
Yet, our "fans" want to run Helton out of town. He is winning far more games than he is losing and he has gotten rid of all the distractions in the program that were there with Pete, Lane, Sark. So he is winning and doing so with what I think is a lower talent gap than the Pete had when he was doing what he was doing at SC. So to all the Haters.. maybe you all want to go back to the "What's Your Deal" days.. but for me I am fine with the coach we have and the direction the program is going in.
Let's take a look at our own program and our recent past. Do we really think Pete Carroll was the end all be all of coaches? The reality is when you look at his most successful years, it coincided when he had the most talent in college football. The run began in 2002, when he had starting developing talent and had an experienced veteran team and a Senior QB in Carson Palmer. 2003 - 2005.. Reggie, Lendale, Matt, etc., etc. This was at a time when the talent on USC Roster was so far superior to the rest of college football, Pete really didn't have to do much other than fire the guys up and get out of the way. Even despite this talent advantage there were MANY games during this time, when the SC team didn't seem prepared to play the game that weekend and struggled in the first half. Now, Pete made his bones with his halftime adjustments and lead the team to victory, so he gets props there, but it is funny how Helton and staff are hammered for not having the team ready; when the same can be said about Pete.
When the talent started to even out '06 - '09 the results were not as favorable as the dynastic years. 11-2, 11-2, 12-1, 9-4. Although the talent was beginning to level, I believe SC still held a talent advantage against most teams during this time, and definitely as compared to other P12 schools. It is funny most fans will harken back to the Pete years, but those records are very similar to the records the team is putting up in the two years under Helton. Last year was 10-3 and if we win out this year we are looking at 12-2. So very comparable to the latter part of the CPC era.
Yet, our "fans" want to run Helton out of town. He is winning far more games than he is losing and he has gotten rid of all the distractions in the program that were there with Pete, Lane, Sark. So he is winning and doing so with what I think is a lower talent gap than the Pete had when he was doing what he was doing at SC. So to all the Haters.. maybe you all want to go back to the "What's Your Deal" days.. but for me I am fine with the coach we have and the direction the program is going in.
