USC Trojans Football: How Should Amir Carlisle's Injury Make Trojan Fans Feel?

Sometimes the mirror to a person's soul can come in some strange forms.

For me, it manifested itself as a computer monitor radiating a story about former USC Trojan Amir Carlisle's broken ankle.

And I don't like what it revealed.

Carlisle, a promising running back who transferred to Notre Dame from USC in the offseason, apparently broke his ankle in seven-on-seven workouts earlier in the month and now will be out of action until June.

My reaction?

I laughed.

Immediately, I knew I was wrong to revel in the misfortune of a young man who had done nothing to me other than transfer to a despised rival of a football program I loved.

Carlisle's request to leave USC, granted magnanimously by coach Lane Kiffin and his staff, caught most by surprise and his decision to attend Notre Dame was regarded as a slap in the face by some who follow the men of Troy.

Including me.

So like many Trojan fans, in the back of my mind, I hoped that Carlisle would find little, if any, success in South Bend.

But to relish in the young man's misfortune, especially when it comes to his physical health, is inappropriate and I don't like what it says about me as a person.

Still, in retrospect, my self-recrimination must be tempered by the notion that at least some of my immediate reaction to the young man's injury was motivated by human nature.

It is natural—at least I hope it is—to feel it is poetic justice when a player your team has been jilted by finds the grass less green when he winds up with said team's rival.

Isn't it?

In the final analysis, beyond the first initial reaction, just knowing it is wrong to enjoy other people's misfortunes does allow me to recapture my humanity.

And for that I am grateful.

So get well, Amir Carlisle, and good luck with your Irish career.

Just not against my Trojans, of course.