He is our commander and chief; the leader and the mastermind behind the most dominant and potent college football team in the country. Even the President listens to every word he says. He is the man behind two national championships, three consecutive Pac-10 championships, three consecutive victories over both Notre Dame and UCLA, and a 22-game winning streak. In his five years at USC he has gone 42-9 (82.4 winning percentage), has coached two of the past three Heisman winners and has a chance to achieve something no college football team has ever accomplished, an unprecedented three nation-al championships in a row. In his most recent victory, the Trojans demolished the Oklahoma Sooners in the Orange Bowl 55-19. This year, the national championship will be held right down the road in Pasadena at the Rose Bowl.

SNMag takes you to a place you probably have never been before. It is located on the second floor of Heritage Hall, guarded by two giant Orange Bowl trophies, a mix of national championship trophies and Pac-10 Championship trophies. You can hear the music blasting from the hallway, just inside his door that’s is plastered with yellow sticky notes left by his secretary. We are inside the oval office (which is more like a rectangle). This is where the magic happens; this is where Pete Carroll reigns.
Pete, what do you do in your free time?
I like to go to the beach, work out and play basketball.

Do you surf ?
No, I like to boogie board.

What would be your ideal afternoon when you are not coaching football?
I like to get a good workout and then go straight to the beach.

Do you have any hobbies?
I like fly fishing up north.

What is your ideal Saturday Night?
My ideal Saturday night would be to have a Saturday game, have a big win, go down to South Bay and have something to eat. Maybe go to the beach and if the waves are nice, go in the water.

If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you travel?
There are a lot of places I would like to go, but someday I need to go to Nepal.

What is your favorite thing to eat?
I like to eat breakfast, so probably pancakes and waffles.

What about a favorite movie?
One recent movie I really liked was Cinderella Man.

If somebody made a movie about your life, who would you want to play you?
Will Ferrell.

In 2003 you helped develop “A Better LA,” a nonprofit group that works to reduce gang violence and make neighborhoods safe. Tellme about your involvement.
We try to help groups already out there [working to better the community] by giving them an opportunity to come together, give them resources and assist in connections we can make. It is an enormous undertaking to help what is going on in the streets here, we are trying to be a small part to try to help in some way.
Note: Pete Carroll received the Courageous Leadership Award from Women Against Gun Violence in 2005 for his work in the community.
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Let’s jump into some football talk. Where do you keep your championship rings?
I have them at home. I don’t wear them. The rings mean different things to different people, and to me the trophies are more important. That (winning the rings) already happened, so I don’t like to dwell on the past.

Are your rings in a nice case?
No, [laughs] in the case they came in.

When you go out and recruit a player, what is your biggest selling point?
The University really sells itself. The University has a tremendous setting; the school has great history and great character to it because of the combination of the academic side of things and the athletic side of things. The football team is fun to talk about. The biggest issue that comes to mind other than academics, kind of career oriented is the Trojan family, which is unique and special.

You mention the Trojan family. Many people don’t know that you are actually a Trojan parent; your daughter, Jamie Carroll went to USC. What has been your experience as a parent on campus?
It is very interesting because she was here before I was here. When the offer came along I called Jamie and asked her if it would be ok if I came to USC, too. She was happy about it. It really gave me a special insight in coaching, when talking to families and having players come in. I have been through what they have been through. I was across the country in New England when Jamie decided to come out to Los Angeles, so when I recruit kids from across the country I know exactly what it is like. It definitely gives me some credibility.

How do you manage the star power of some of your players like Reggie Bush and Matt Leinart?
In the fashion we do everything. We are about ‘team’ and as long as we maintain a connection and a relationship with how important team is, then the guys who become the highlighted guys in terms of the media shouldn’t factor in to what is going on. We have ways that we talk about it and deal with it.

It is amazing how [Bush and Leinart] handle it. A lot of times in the pros players can’t handle it, which leads to fighting and anger amongst each other. Is there anything you specifically tell Matt or Reggie? For instance when it gets close to the goal line and Matt wants a pass play or Reggie wants to run a play to boost his numbers?
It could, but it hasn’t really. Guys have their role. Lindale is the guy who pounds the ball inside the ten-yard line and Reggie scores from way out. If a guy isn’t satisfied with his role, then he has to work his way into an expanded role. This is how we talk. You do that by performing on the field and at practice. I don’t mind hearing from a guy, if he has frustrations. I want to hear from him so that I can put it in perspective and deal with him and act on it.

A lot of people were upset about USC missing out on the Sugar Bowl two years ago. You stayed so calm. I remember seeing you interviewed on TV… I wanted to ring the necks out of the voters. How did you stay so calm?
I tried to look at the situations that were presented and the opportunities. I couldn’t do anything about it, it was already done. So I just looked at what our options were, which was go to the Rose Bowl which we loved and win a national championship. What could be better than that? It was a home game, 50,000 fans could see us rather than 20,000. I saw the positive in it and presented it in that manner.
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I don’t want to dive too far into these questions because I am sure you have been asked them a million times… but what do you think about the Coliseum not selling beer?
I understand why it is happening; we are the last stadium to go along with it. The thing I don’t like about it is that I don’t want the environment to change. It’s been great. But I am sure people will find a way to enjoy themselves.

What do you think about the AP and ESPN voters pulling out and the new poll they have created?
I don’t know how it works. I remain in the dark about all of that by design. I want our players to know it has nothing to do with us. If we can take care of business, it doesn’t matter. They can’t help but vote us in.

What is your take on a playoff system?
I think that would be awesome. I don’t have the system or would design it. I understand that there are some real issues with orchestrating that as well, in the sense that you will have to nail down to a top eight and you are going to have an eight and a nine or a nine and ten that thinks they should be in the top eight. I don’t know if that is the best way, I just wish we could do it that way.

Do you have an opinion on paying college players?
They don’t need to be paid. They are doing fine. A lot of people don’t realize that these players get scholarships, which are worth a lot of money. They are getting great scholarships.

What would be one word or a phrase that would describe you best?
Competitor. I compete at everything. That is the theme we base our program on. We talk about a relentless pursuit for a competitive edge in everything we do.

What’s it like coaching with your son on the sideline with you?
It is a cherished opportunity. It’s one that I really love. I love competing with him. He is my most loyal confidante, and he is important to me in that regard.

I read that said that you would never go back to the NFL. Is that true and if so, why?
What I said is that there is not a job makeup in the NFL. I love the NFL, it’s great, but there is no job description that would let me operate like I operate here. There is no place for me to go.

Do you read books?
Yeah, a guy who inspired me just before I came here was Coach [John] Wooden. He inspired me in terms of giving me a big kick. That was when I was between the New England [Patriots] and coming here.

What was this kick that got you back on track?
I was home, reading his book and I read that he didn’t win his first championship until his 17th year coaching. When he won that one, he won seven straight and ten in the next 11 years. I just slammed the book down and was like I figured it out. He knew exactly what he wanted and exactly what it took. Once he was able to perfect himself and his system, no one could touch him. That was really the moment, where I got in the mind set that I had to get my life in order.

Do you have a motto of saying that you lead your life by?
It’s a couple of things. The first one is, you don’t want to be the best one doing it, you want to be the only one doing it. That’s a quote I have always liked; Jerry Garcia said that. There is another one that Nick Barrio, the basketball player, he had a philosophy, he said that I am a lifetime 48 percent shooter. If I miss my first 10 shots, look out. I like that a lot. It’s about knowing who you are.

Thanks for letting me sit down with you. I’ll leave you with a motto I like to lead my life by, ‘You have nine innings to play and the rest of your life to think about, so make it count.’
Very good.