Pete Carroll
Pete Carroll went 97–19 on the field as a head coach, 2001–2009, at USC; 83–18 officially, after the NCAA vacated 14 wins and one loss (2004 and 2005). His teams claim two national titles: USC in 2003 and 2004. Share
- Record
- 83–18 official; 97–19 on the field
- Seasons
- 9
- Schools
- 1
- National titles
- 2 claimed: 2003 and 2004
- Best season
- 2004 13–0, No. 1
Season by season
| Season | School | Record | Conference finish | Bowl | AP final | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | USC | 6–6 | 5th | Las Vegas Bowl L | ||
| 2002 | USC | 11–2 | T–1st | Orange Bowl W | 4 | |
| 2003 | USC | 12–1 | 1st | Rose Bowl W | 1 | |
| 2004 | USC | 13–0 (11–0 official) | 1st | Orange W (vacated) | 1 | |
| 2005 | USC | 12–1 (0–0 official) | 1st | Rose L (vacated) | 2 | |
| 2006 | USC | 11–2 | T–1st | Rose Bowl W | 4 | |
| 2007 | USC | 11–2 | T–1st | Rose Bowl W | 3 | |
| 2008 | USC | 12–1 | 1st | Rose Bowl W | 3 | |
| 2009 | USC | 9–4 | T–5th | Emerald Bowl W | 22 |
Each season links to the team’s season page; bowls and playoff games link to the game. Conference finishes from the Wikipedia article’s record table.
Players he coached
Matt Leinart
Reggie Bush
Carson Palmer
Rey Maualuga
Fred Davis
Dwayne Jarrett
Sedrick Ellis
Mike Williams
Sam Baker
Troy Polamalu
Kenechi Udeze
Mark Sanchez
Taylor MaysConsensus All‑American, 2008- Taitusi LutuiConsensus All‑American, 2005
- Shaun CodyConsensus All‑American, 2004
- Matt GrootegoedConsensus All‑American, 2004
- Jacob RogersConsensus All‑American, 2003
- Keith RiversNo. 9 pick, 2008
3 more
Lawrence Jackson (No. 28 pick, 2008); Brian Cushing (No. 15 pick, 2009); Clay Matthews (No. 26 pick, 2009).
18 of the 21 players from his seasons with a Heisman top-five finish, a national award, consensus All-America honors or a first-round pick. Photos: Wikimedia Commons, free licenses; credits on each player’s page.
How his teams did
| Kind of game | Games | Record | Won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Against ranked teams | 42 | 34–8 | 81% |
| Against top-10 teams | 16 | 13–3 | 81% |
| Against rivals | 34 | 26–8 | 76% |
| Conference games | 76 | 62–14 | 82% |
| Bowls and playoffs | 9 | 7–2 | 78% |
| Decided by 8 points or fewer | 37 | 21–16 | 57% |
| At home | 54 | 49–5 | 91% |
| On the road | 52 | 40–12 | 77% |
| At neutral sites | 10 | 8–2 | 80% |
| As our Elo’s favorite | 104 | 92–12 | 88% |
| As our Elo’s underdog | 12 | 5–7 | 42% |
His own 116 games on file, 2001–2009, as played (vacated wins counted, ties as half a win). Ranks are the AP poll going into the game; rivals are the ones either program’s Wikipedia article names; favorite and underdog by our own Elo rating, which reads only scores.
Against other head coaches
| Coach | Record | Their schools | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyrone Willingham 2001–2008 | 7–1 | Stanford, Notre Dame, Washington | 8 | |
| Jeff Tedford 2002–2009 | 7–1 | California | 8 | |
| Dirk Koetter 2001–2006 | 6–0 | Arizona State | 6 | |
| Mike Stoops 2004–2009 | 5–1 | Arizona | 6 | |
| Mike Bellotti 2001–2008 | 4–2 | Oregon | 6 | |
| Mike Riley 2003–2009 | 4–2 | Oregon State | 6 | |
| Dennis Erickson 2001–2009 | 5–0 | Oregon State, Arizona State | 5 | |
| Bill Doba 2003–2007 | 5–0 | Washington State | 5 | |
| Charlie Weis 2005–2009 | 5–0 | Notre Dame | 5 | |
| Karl Dorrell 2003–2007 | 4–1 | UCLA | 5 |
Pete Carroll’s record against the head coaches he met three or more times, from the games on file, as played.
Most-faced opponents
| Opponent | Games | Record |
|---|---|---|
| Arizona Stateseries | 9 | 9–0 |
| Californiaseries | 9 | 8–1 |
| UCLAseries | 9 | 8–1 |
| Notre Dameseries | 9 | 8–1 |
| Washingtonseries | 9 | 7–2 |
| Stanfordseries | 9 | 6–3 |
| Arizonaseries | 8 | 7–1 |
| Washington Stateseries | 8 | 7–1 |
National title staffs
Every title staff- Won a national title on USC’s 2003 staff (head coach) · the staff · source
- Won a national title on USC’s 2004 staff (head coach) · the staff · source
The champions’ staffs from 1990 on, as the schools listed them that season: Staff lists: Drew Hoover’s how-many-rings (MIT), from the schools’ media guides and staff pages. Roles as the source words them.
Career
| Years | Team | Job | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1973–76 | Pacific (CA) | Graduate assistant | |
| 1977 | Arkansas | Graduate assistant | |
| 1978 | Iowa State | Secondary coordinator | |
| 1979 | Ohio State | Secondary coordinator | |
| 1980–82 | NC State | Defensive coordinator | |
| 1983 | Pacific (CA) | Offensive coordinator | |
| 1984 | Buffalo Bills NFL | Defensive backs coach | |
| 1985–89 | Minnesota Vikings NFL | Defensive backs coach | |
| 1990–93 | New York Jets NFL | Defensive coordinator | |
| 1994 | New York Jets NFL | Head coach | |
| 1995–96 | San Francisco 49ers NFL | Defensive coordinator | |
| 1997–99 | New England Patriots NFL | Head coach | |
| 2001–09 | USC | Head coach | |
| 2010–23 | Seattle Seahawks NFL | Head coach | |
| 2025 | Las Vegas Raiders NFL | Head coach |
Every job as the infobox of his Wikipedia article lists it (CC BY-SA), assistant jobs included.
Coaching tree
Worked under
- Chester CaddasPacific
- Lou HoltzArkansas
- Earle BruceIowa State, Ohio State
- Monte KiffinNC State
- Bob CopePacific
- Kay StephensonBuffalo Bills
- Jerry BurnsMinnesota Vikings
Assistants who became head coaches
- Foge FazioPittsburgh
- Greg RobinsonSyracuse
- Larry BeightolLouisiana Tech
- Sparky WoodsSouth Carolina, App State, VMI
- Walt HarrisPacific, Pittsburgh, Stanford
- Andre PattersonCal Poly
- Bo PeliniNebraska, Youngstown State
- Larry KennanLamar, London Monarchs, Incarnate Word
- DeWayne WalkerUCLA, New Mexico State
- Jack ReillyEl Camino
- Ed OrgeronOle Miss, USC, LSU
- Lane KiffinTennessee, USC, Florida Atlantic, Ole Miss, LSU, Oakland Raiders
- and 8 more
Worked under (7)
| Head coach | Team | Years | His job | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chester Caddas | Pacific | 1973–76 | Graduate assistant | |
| Lou Holtz | Arkansas | 1977 | Graduate assistant | |
| Earle Bruce | Iowa State | 1978 | Secondary coordinator | |
| Earle Bruce | Ohio State | 1979 | Secondary coordinator | |
| Monte Kiffin | NC State | 1980–82 | Defensive coordinator | |
| Bob Cope | Pacific | 1983 | Offensive coordinator | |
| Kay Stephenson | Buffalo Bills NFL | 1984 | Defensive backs coach | |
| Jerry Burns | Minnesota Vikings NFL | 1986–89 | Defensive backs coach |
Coached under him, later head coaches (20)
| Coach | With him | Head coach at | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foge Fazio | New York Jets, 1994: linebackers coach | Pittsburgh | |
| Greg Robinson | New York Jets, 1994: defensive coordinator | Syracuse | |
| Larry Beightol | New York Jets, 1994: offensive line coach | Louisiana Tech | |
| Sparky Woods | New York Jets, 1994: offensive assistant | South Carolina, App State, VMI | |
| Walt Harris | New York Jets, 1994: quarterbacks coach | Pacific, Pittsburgh, Stanford | |
| Andre Patterson | New England Patriots, 1997: defensive line coach | Cal Poly | |
| Bo Pelini | New England Patriots, 1997–99: linebackers coach | Nebraska, Youngstown State | |
| Larry Kennan | New England Patriots, 1997: offensive coordinator | Lamar, London Monarchs, Incarnate Word | |
| DeWayne Walker | New England Patriots, 1998–99: defensive backs coach; USC, 2001: defensive backs coach | UCLA, New Mexico State | |
| Jack Reilly | New England Patriots, 1998–99: quarterbacks coach | El Camino | |
| Ed Orgeron | USC, 2001–04: assistant head coach, defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator | Ole Miss, USC, LSU | |
| Lane Kiffin | USC, 2001: tight ends coach; 2002–03: wide receivers coach; 2004: passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach; 2005–06: offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach | Tennessee, USC, Florida Atlantic, Ole Miss, LSU, Oakland Raiders | |
| Nick Holt | USC, 2001–03: linebackers coach; 2006–08: defensive coordinator and defensive line coach | Idaho | |
| Norm Chow | USC, 2001–04: offensive coordinator | Hawai’i | |
| Steve Sarkisian | USC, 2001–03: quarterbacks coach; 2007–08: offensive coordinator | Washington, USC, Texas | |
| Rocky Seto | USC, 2009: defensive coordinator | USC (volunteer assistant), Seattle Seahawks (quality control/defense) | |
| Dan Quinn | Seattle Seahawks, 2010: assistant head coach and defensive line coach; 2013–14: defensive coordinator | Atlanta Falcons, Washington Commanders | |
| Jedd Fisch | Seattle Seahawks, 2010: quarterbacks coach | UCLA, Arizona, Washington | |
| Tom Cable | Seattle Seahawks, 2011–17: assistant head coach and offensive line coach | Idaho, Oakland Raiders | |
| Chip Kelly | Las Vegas Raiders, 2025: offensive coordinator | Oregon, UCLA, Philadelphia Eagles, San Francisco 49ers |
Other assistants under him (16)
| Coach | With him | |
|---|---|---|
| Don Breaux | New York Jets, 1994: tight ends coach | |
| Larry Coyer | New York Jets, 1994: defensive line coach | |
| Steve Sidwell | New England Patriots, 1997–99: defensive coordinator | |
| Kennedy Polamalu | USC, 2001: special teams coordinator; 2002–03: running backs coach and special teams coordinator | |
| Brennan Carroll | USC, 2002–03: graduate assistant; 2004–09: tight ends coach; Seattle Seahawks, 2010: offensive assistant; 2015–19: assistant offensive line coach; 2020: running game coordinator; Las Vegas Raiders, 2025: offensive line coach and run game cordinator | |
| Ryan Nielsen | USC, 2002: volunteer assistant | |
| Pat Ruel | USC, 2005–09: offensive line coach; Seattle Seahawks, 2010–19: assistant offensive line coach | |
| John Morton | USC, 2007–08: passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach; 2009: offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach | |
| Kris Richard | USC, 2008–09: graduate assistant; Seattle Seahawks, 2010: assistant defensive backs coach; 2011: cornerbacks coach; 2012–14: defensive backs coach; 2015–17: defensive coordinator | |
| Jeff Ulbrich | Seattle Seahawks, 2010–11: assistant special teams coordinator | |
| Brian Schottenheimer | Seattle Seahawks, 2018–20: offensive coordinator | |
| Mike Solari | Seattle Seahawks, 2018–21: offensive line coach | |
| Steve Shimko | Seattle Seahawks, 2018: offensive analyst; 2019: assistant quarterbacks coach | |
| Karl Scott | Seattle Seahawks, 2022–23: defensive backs coach and defensive passing game coordinator | |
| Chris Beatty | Las Vegas Raiders, 2025: wide receivers coach | |
| Conner McQueen | Las Vegas Raiders, 2025: offensive quality control coach |
From coaches’ Wikipedia infoboxes (CC BY-SA) and each season’s article for its coordinators: an assistant’s seasons at a school count under its head coach in our records; jobs in the NFL and elsewhere, under the head coach whose own article lists the job that year. Names without a page here link to their Wikipedia articles.
How he coached
Carroll’s teams went for it on 25% of fourth downs and on 45% of those where the model said go for it, passed on 49% of plays and took 25.7 seconds a play, 2004–2009.
| Season | Went for it on fourth | When the model said go | Pass rate | Seconds a play | EPA a play | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 12 g | 17 of 87 20% | 41% | 47% | 25.0 | +0.04 | |
| 2005 12 g | 30 of 68 44% | 71% | 50% | 23.4 | +0.24 | |
| 2006 13 g | 28 of 93 30% | 51% | 54% | 26.8 | +0.03 | |
| 2007 13 g | 17 of 98 17% | 44% | 48% | 24.6 | −0.03 | |
| 2008 13 g | 21 of 81 26% | 34% | 46% | 26.9 | +0.11 | |
| 2009 13 g | 18 of 98 18% | 29% | 49% | 27.0 | −0.04 | |
| All 76 g | 131 of 525 25% | 45% | 49% | 25.7 | +0.06 |
His seasons as a head coach from 2004 on, from ESPN’s play by play: fourth downs where he went for it out of every fourth-down decision; how often he went when SportsDataverse’s fourth-down model said going for it was the better call; the share of his offense’s plays that were passes; seconds of game clock per offensive play (lower is faster); and expected points added per offensive play (EPA, a measure of how much each play moved the offense toward points). The season in progress counts its games so far. SportsDataverse’s coach tendencies, from ESPN’s play by play; the EPA and the fourth-down model are SportsDataverse’s.
Films and books
On film
Films: Wikidata (CC0) and Wikipedia’s lists and categories (CC BY-SA). Books: Open Library (CC0); most-reissued first, each linked to its page there.