Haden defends himself after Sarkisian firing
Pat Haden is questioning a lot of things right now, but his job is not one of them.
The day after the University of Southern California’s athletics director fired football coach Steve Sarkisian and two days after he placed the coach on leave for an alleged alcohol problem, Haden received an endorsement of job security in a statement from USC President Max Nikias released during Tuesday’s practice:
“Pat Haden has been doing an outstanding job in leading Trojan Athletics in the past five years, and I want to take this opportunity to reiterate my unwavering support for him. I look forward to working with Pat Haden as our USC AD for many years to come.”
The university put Sarkisian on an indefinite leave of absence after he failed to show up for Sunday’s practice. The decision to terminate his contract came after further inquiries into the situation were made and Haden determined he was not “healthy.”
After practice, Haden and interim head coach Clay Helton addressed the media. No players were made available. The 3-2 Trojans have their most highprofile game of the season this week, their biennial trip to No. 13 Notre Dame.
A defensive Haden took full responsibility for the hiring of a coach who was wrong for the program and called into question the vetting process of the search firm that the school retained to hire him.
However, he admitted the university never did a public records search, which was all it took for the Los Angeles Times and The Associated Press to uncover Sarkisian’s numerous alcohol-related incidents and receipts from restaurants and bars.
“We used a respected national search firm that screened all of our candidates, including Steve,” he said. “Also, Steve had both NCAA and USC background checks done. We talked to dozens of people, including head coaches, staff members, friends and people who knew Steve well for many years — sometimes decades — including some from his previous years here at USC. None raised a concern.”
Haden was never able to reach Sarkisian to inform him he was fired. He said he went through several different channels of communication before finally reaching his brother-in-law. The two still have not spoken.
“I spent two hours trying to get a hold of him,” Haden said. “I called him, I texted him. I called three different numbers for his agent. I called his sister, and I finally got a hold of his brother-inlaw. But at this point, I don’t want to deliver this any other way without talking to him. But the statement had to be made and we had to get it out there. But I tried.”
Helton expressed compassion for Sarkisian and his desire to earn the head coaching job. This is Helton’s second stint as interim head coach. He filled the role after Ed Orgeron’s departure in 2013, when the hiring of Sarkisian was announced.
“I want to be the head coach. No doubt, I’m up front,” he said. “But I also know the reality of the situation. In college football at this level, you have to prove yourself.”
While Helton’s job might still be contingent on wins and losses, Haden, a former USC quarterback, is adamant his is not.
“Did I ever question my future? My wife did,” Haden said. “But no. I know who I am. I’m 62, I know what I stand for, I know what I’ve been asked to do when I was hired by President Nikias and I think I’ve delivered some pretty good results.”