Coaches

Tim Floyd submitted his resignation Tuesday and Athletic Director Mike Garrett accepted it so fast he probably got a paper cut snapping it out of the fax machine. The good news, of course, is that it's only the fall of USC basketball, leaving the all-important work of preserving, defending and protecting the constitution of USC football. What happened to Floyd was inevitable and the appointed hour of his departure was inconsequential.

USC won its only Bowl Championship Series title four years ago, but Coach Pete Carroll still ranks No. 1 in at least one category. A new report released today says Carroll was the highest-paid private university employee in the United States during the 2006-07 fiscal year. Carroll earned $4.4 million in total compensation, four times as much as USC President Steven B. Sample, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education.

USC football Coach Pete Carroll employed a former NFL tactician last season to help with the team's punting and kicking game, an arrangement that may have violated NCAA rules that prohibit consultants from coaching, The Times has learned. Carroll's action could widen a continuing investigation by the NCAA, the governing body of major college sports, which has been looking at USC football for more than three years and the school's basketball program for the last year.

With tears in his eyes, a USC student announced that after attending classes for four years and receiving his bachelor's degree, he was leaving campus to pursue his life's work. At which point, his beloved professor publicly scorned him for it. What's wrong with this picture? Nothing, apparently, if you are Pete Carroll. Everything, perhaps, if you are Mark Sanchez.

Midway through Kevin O'Neill's first public appearance as USC's basketball coach Monday, a cellphone rang. "That's a $500 fine," he said immediately. Moments later, another cellphone rang. "We're $1,000 richer now," he said. Goodness, if he's this tough on the media, what about the players? The answer to that question, obviously, is what players? At this point, USC doesn't really have any basketball players, and barely a basketball program.

Was it really that bad? Didn't it all, in the end, after five months, a thousand howls and 34 bowls, work out for the conspiracy theorists, playoff advocates and, most of all, Florida? Gators Coach Urban Meyer, sleepless after a night of celebrating his team's Bowl Championship Series victory against Oklahoma, spent Friday morning posing with national title trophies presented by the USA Today voting coaches, the Associated Press and the Football Writers Assn. of America.

Larry Jones built Moorpark High School's Academic Decathlon team into a powerhouse, led the squad to four national championships, met presidents in the Oval Office and had a profound effect on the lives of countless students. After nearly two decades, he is stepping down as coach of the team he created, prompted by fatigue and a desire to spend more time with his family. "It's been a great run," said Jones, 60. "I don't have it in me to not do the best I can.

Gas just doesn't seem to stretch as far on these California roads. Which is why Nikki Caldwell found herself stranded on the side of one last Friday night. Thankfully, the UCLA women's basketball coach had just finished eating dinner with her staff. A couple of quick calls and her assistant coaches hustled off to find a gallon to go. As Caldwell waited, she was approached by two police officers who wanted to know what a young woman was doing alone in a dark car near Marina del Rey.

Former Compton Dominguez High basketball coach Russell Otis paid thousands of dollars in cash to cover his team's expenses to travel and play in tournaments, witnesses testified during a hearing Thursday. The testimony came during the third day of a preliminary hearing for the highly successful former coach, who is accused of stealing $15,000 intended for his team and of the attempted molestation of a player, now 17.

With the state -- and their university -- struggling through difficult economic times, UCLA football Coach Rick Neuheisel and basketball Coach Ben Howland have agreed to take pay cuts, a school official said. Athletic Director Dan Guerrero, who has also agreed to a cut, said the details are still being negotiated but expects that he and the coaches will forgo as much as 10% of their salaries this year.