At the University of Southern California, football coach is less as job than a role. A man must know his X's and O's certainly, but as importantly in the movie capital, where there's no business like show business, he must know how to shake a hand and tell a joke.

He must have presence.

USC has always been the town team in a town of stars and glitter. The Lakers temporarily have climbed into that No. 1 position, and the Dodgers have had their moments, as well as their own personalities, mostly Tommy Lasorda and announcer Vin Scully.

But going back to the late 1920s, back to when a kid named Marion Morrison was playing, back before he changed his name to John Wayne, USC was the place and football was the sport. And still is.

Especially since Los Angeles, southern California with a small "S'' has been without the NFL now for 15 years. Especially since Pete Carroll took over the program in 2001, becoming the perfect fit and not incidentally in 2004 leading the Trojans to a perfect season.

Bland doesn't make it in L.A. Neither does gruff. Or rude.

Nick Saban would last as long at USC as a starlet would in a film after insulting the producer. A guy who sneers at a Gatorade bath at the BCS game in the Rose Bowl? Where did he think he was, Tuscaloosa?

John McKay was from West Virginia, as is Saban, but McKay had a twinkle in his eye and a wisecrack on his lips. He became USC coach in 1960 and knew how to schmooze, as well as recruit.

His one-liners were right up there with those of Henny Youngman. When a writer asked once about O.J. Simpson carrying 47 times in a game, McKay responded, "He doesn't belong to a union. Besides the ball doesn't weigh that much.''

After a 51-0 loss to Notre Dame, his message to the team was, "All those who need showers, take them.'' Even in defeat, McKay was showered with praise. L.A. had four newspapers in those days, and his comments invariably were in at least one of them, usually all of them.

McKay moved on to the expansion Tampa Bay Bucs after 15 seasons and USC then spent a quarter-century searching for a coach who was as quick with a quote as his linebackers might be filling a gap. Finally, along came Carroll for the marriage made in heaven.

USC had been left at the altar by its first two choices before the 2001 season. What to do? Hey, the guests were in attendance. Might as well have a ceremony. Who was that guy who'd been without a job? Grab him. I now declare you man and institution.

Everything worked beyond expectations. Carroll, who grew up in Northern California, was Mr. Right. Championships, Heisman Trophy winners. That's as good as it gets.

But in Hollywood almost every love story has an unhappy ending. Carroll, who had been a head coach with the Patriots and Jets, who had been an assistant with the 49ers, had the roving eye. Who could blame him? That $7 million a year, the opportunity to gain redemption at the highest level were enticing.
"I can't pass up this opportunity,'' Carroll said about connecting with the Seattle Seahawks.

That, after conceding, "I thought I would be (at USC) forever. It hurts to separate right now . . . This is the challenge of a lifetime.''

For Pete. For USC, the challenge is finding another coach with pizzazz. A coach who can keep beating Notre Dame and UCLA - the latter school so hidden in the shadows it had to bring in Rick Neuheisel in an attempt to compete - and can keep getting attention.

Carroll ranked with Kobe Bryant and Manny Ramirez as the main men in Los Angeles. Pete's enthusiasm was uncontrollable. He tried almost anything.

Four seasons ago, around Halloween, he and LenDale White cooked up a scheme where White climbed a building next to the practice field and after threatening to jump tossed a dummy to the ground while teammates gasped. Anything for a laugh.

Carroll also had a serious side. He would drive late at night into the tough area west of USC, where shootings were frequent, and talk to gang leaders, trying to persuade them to stop the violence. "We want to give them hope,'' said Carroll.

He's leaving those kids, although he's given them many hours and many months of advice and encouragement. He's leaving USC, although not without having filled the 92,000-seat Coliseum with fans and Heritage Hall with trophies.

USC has confirmed Carroll's replacement will be Lane Kiffin, who was an assistant to Carroll before leaving for the Oakland Raiders in 2007 and then taking over at Tennessee in 2009.

That makes sense. Kiffin understands both the intricacies of "Student Body Right" and also the expectations of working in the entertainment capital of the world. Hooray for Hollywood.