SC NOTEBOOK: HACKETT MAY BE GETTING A LITTLE PUNCHY, BUT HE WON'T QUIT.Byline: Scott Wolf Scott Richard Wolf (born June 4, 1968) is an American actor. Born in Boston, Massachusetts to Steven Wolf and Susan Enowitch, Wolf was raised in West Orange, New Jersey. He graduated in 1986 from West Orange High School. Staff Writer No matter how much criticism USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. coach Paul Hackett endures during the Trojans' five-game losing streak, no one can say he didn't spill some blood for his cause. Hackett's fiery halftime speech during the California game last Saturday included the dramatic gesture of punching his fist through a dry erase board. The incident brought raucous cheers from the Trojans, although it didn't exactly work, as USC was outscored 14-0 in the second half by the Golden Bears and lost 28-16. Hackett had a bandage on his arm, along with some open wounds and blood on his inner arm during the second half. --He won't quit: Hackett said that no matter how badly USC's season is going, he has no intention of resigning. ``Absolutely not,'' Hackett said. ``Those guys are busting their rear end. There's no way I would quit on them. They haven't quit on me. They continue to amaze me with their work ethic work ethic n. A set of values based on the moral virtues of hard work and diligence. work ethic Noun a belief in the moral value of work . ``The people who know me won't ask me that question. The easy way is to say, `I quit.' I'm going to see this through. What kind of values does that teach to quit?'' Hackett said intense speculation on his future is just a natural aspect of being the USC football USC football refers to either of two NCAA Division I-A college football programs:
``I'm just high profile because I'm in L.A.,'' Hackett said. ``But it's no different for Tony Dungy Anthony Kevin "Tony" Dungy (born October 6, 1955) is a former professional American football player and the current head coach of the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League. Prior to that, between 1996 and 2001, he was the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. in Tampa Bay Tampa Bay, inlet of the Gulf of Mexico, 25 mi (40 km) long and 7 to 12 mi (11.3–19 km) wide, W Fla., separated from the Gulf by numerous small islands; it receives the Hillsborough River. St. .'' Hackett is in the third year of a five-year contract. --Knight to start: Linebacker Markus Steele's high ankle sprain ankle sprain Orthopedics A stretching of the ankle ligaments and/or muscles with swelling was giving him problems Monday, which reinforced that he will miss Saturday's game against Arizona State. In his place, junior Darryl Knight will start. Knight started two games last season when Steele was injured. --Special-teams woes: Hackett said his No. 1 priority this week is special teams, where USC has been dreadful with two kicks blocked by Cal and a punt return In American and Canadian football a punt return is one of the punt receiving team's options to respond to a punt. A player (usually a second or third string wide receiver or running back) positioned many yards from the line of scrimmage will attempt to catch or pick up the ball for a touchdown. ``My focus has to be on special teams. Special teams was not a force for us,'' Hackett said. ``We gave them an 83-yard touchdown on punt coverage. We had to put pressure on the punter and we didn't do it. ``If it's not one thing, it's something else. The frustration level is sky high.'' He added that it's not merely a coaching issue, because players have to do a better job tackling. ``We've got to put people in a position to tackle the guy, but you have to be able to make the tackle,'' Hackett said. --No turnovers: USC's defense, which had a national-best 39 takeaways in 1999 (3.3 a game), has just 13 this season (1.6 average), and it's something that Hackett has been bothered by, especially against Cal. ``We got no turnovers against them,'' Hackett said. ``Zero. Goose eggs.'' --Idle thoughts: The unsubstantiated speculation surrounding Oregon State coach Dennis Erickson Dennis Erickson (born March 24, 1947, in Everett, Washington) is the head coach of the Arizona State Sun Devils football team. He has been the head coach of six college football programs and two NFL franchises. coming to USC, if Hackett is fired, took a hit Monday when the Beavers announced that Erickson would receive a new renegotiated contract before the end of the season. Erickson is in the first year of a five-year contract. ``A lot of wonderful things have happened to our football program over the last two years, culminating in two winning seasons, and quite probably a second bowl berth,'' Oregon State athletic director Athletic director (commonly, "athletics director") is a position at many American colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, which oversees the work of the coaches and related staff involved in intercollegiate or interscholastic athletic Mitch Barnhart said. --TV plans: The USC-Arizona State game will be televised live by Fox Sports Net at 6 p.m. |
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