April Fools Where Has the "HaHa" Gone at USC

On April 1st, after a minor head-to-head altercation during practice, police arrested one of USC’s prize defensive ends for physically assaulting his teammate.

This all occurred during a team meeting in front of all of his teammates and coaches. The only thing was that he, and many of his teammates, did not know was that this was an April Fool’s prank that his coach pulled on him to bring an air of levity to an otherwise boring team meeting.

This was in 2008 and the joke was pulled by then coach, Pete Carroll. This past Wednesday (April Fools Day), came and went with no jokes, no pranks under USC’s new coach, Lane Kiffin. Instead, it was replaced with a hard conditioning session.

Gone are the jokes, laughter, and loose atmosphere that Carroll’s practices were known for.

Gone are the days where fake arguments and falling deaths were staged (remember the LenDale White prank a few years ago?).

There has been no mention of Will Ferrell popping into practice as a pretend “alumnus” who wants to dress up and practice to see if he still has what it takes. Carroll was known for a few things during his practice.

Two of the most notable was a constant air of competition and a loose atmosphere. The latter of those two seem to have left with Carroll. Pate Carroll frequently got involved doing drills, running sprints and routes, as well as throwing the ball.

During his tenure, nearly all USC practices are open to the public, believing that having fans at practice helped his team prepare, perform at a high level, and prepare them for larger crowds on game days. That was then, this now. Lane Kiffin announced this past Tuesday that those wishing to attend practices must contact USC 24 hours in advance and must be preapproved. Additionally, even those that are preauthorized may only have contact with coaches and athletic department personnel.

This means no more sudden pop-ins, fewer autographs and photo opportunities for the fans, and no more spontaneous student attendees if suddenly class ends a little sooner than expected.

Is this policy understandable?

Absolutely.

With USC awaiting word from the NCAA regarding possible sanctions for lack of institutional control, the policy is an attempt to keep agents, marketers, and financial advisers (and those that work for or are affiliated with them) from contacting players. It must be noted that most top-notch programs have closed practices and they have seemed to do okay (ask Alabama).

Under Pete Carroll, USC was one of the few major college programs to hold open practices. Additionally, Kiffin commented that his practices will be more work and less fun than the Carroll era, and that there would be heavier penalties for tardiness or for missing classes.

Coach Kiffin may prove to be a winner when all is said and done, but there is no doubt that things have changed at the University of Southern California.