Pete Carroll Makes His Line Coaches Slide in the Mud

It was a rare rainy day in Southern California on Tuesday, and the rain gave USC coach Pete Carroll a bright idea for what to do at the end of practice: Settle a tied scrimmage between the offense and the defense by having his offensive and defensive line coaches see who could slide farther in the mud.

USC's official football blog describes the festivities:

Carroll said the only way to settle the tie was to put offensive line coach Pat Ruel against defensive line coach Jethro Franklin in a slip-and-slide competition on the most puddle-filled part of the field.

So with the players forming a tunnel on either side of the runway where the battle was taking place, the 58-year-old Ruel and 43-year-old Franklin went through two rounds of hilarious sliding before Franklin emerged -- soaked and muddied -- as the champion. The defense was awarded the overall practice victory, but all were in good spirits after the childlike festivities.

One of the reasons Carroll is such a great recruiter is that he convinces teenage football players they'll have fun if they come to USC. And really, what's more fun for a teenager than watching a couple of overweight middle-aged guys slide around in the mud?