OT - Steve Sarkisian "Sent Home" From USC Football Practice - Haden Imposed LOA

[Chin Diesel]

Sark get no sympathy from me. He knows he has a problem. There are lots of treatment facilities available for him. He then takes big money from USC without addressing his demons. This isn't on Haden. It's on Sark. It's called personal responsibility.

He doesn't need sympathy or empathy. He needs help. The problem is that everyone knows it but the addicted person.

Throw in the mindset of a major college football coach, almost all of whom believe they can conquer anything, and it's a recipe for disaster.

It's also too early to say Hayden should have done more. He could have been working it in the background. There's also HIPAA rules meaning we don't know what actions USC has already taken. Plus there's some legal issues when an employee has addiction issues. It's a prime reason HR departments exist.

 

[FartMan69]

Sark get no sympathy from me. He knows he has a problem. There are lots of treatment facilities available for him. He then takes big money from USC without addressing his demons. This isn't on Haden. It's on Sark. It's called personal responsibility.

I won't even pretend to be an expert but the problem I've seen with addiction is that the affected person is usually the last to realize that they have a problem. In any case I've ever been associated with it usually takes a traumatic event/experience to invoke change. Hopefully this is the event that sparks recovery.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Just a thought..........

I'd laugh if it turns out bacon jalapeno mac and cheese had anything to do with Sarks meltdown.

 

[huskymedic]

Can't see how Haden escapes this unscathed

On the other hand - I could be wrong (at least till they find a suitable replacement ):

BrianHamiltonSI 1:35pm via TweetDeck
USC president says Pat Haden has his “unwavering support. "I look forward to working with Pat Haden as our USC AD for many years to come."

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

Haden's handling of Sark is, by itself, a fireable offense. There's absolutely no way he knew nothing of Sark's drinking habits, not just after the preseason event, but then also after the ASU game. Either he's guilty of being 100% out of touch, or he's guilty of trotting out a coach he knows to be in need of serious professional help.

 

[huskymedic]

Where's @ruskin...

BryanDFischer1:53pm via Tweetbot for Mac
Haden said USC used search firm to screen Sark plus background checks done. Talked with friends about Sark. “None raised a concern.”

BryanDFischer1:54pm via Tweetbot for Mac
Haden: “The decision did not work out and I own that.”

darrenrovell1:59pm via TweetDeck
Pat Haden references search firm of Korn/Ferry doing the checks on Sarkisian. Why AD's hire search firms -- provides distance.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Haden's handling of Sark is, by itself, a fireable offense. There's absolutely no way he knew nothing of Sark's drinking habits, not just after the preseason event, but then also after the ASU game. Either he's guilty of being 100% out of touch, or he's guilty of trotting out a coach he knows to be in need of serious professional help.

In retrospect Hayden should have had Sarkisian be involved in a recovery program after the August event. Reading the riot act to an alcoholic or giving them a second chance doesn't work. Alcoholics prey off people in that environment. Hayden was correct in establishing a zero alcohol policy for Sarkisian to cover his butt when Sark made an assess of himself in the future. You don't need a medical diagnosis of alcohol dependency to be admitted in to a recovery program.

From a human factors or HR perspective you would hope that a program as big as USC and with the resources of USC would have seen risk factors from his divorce increasing and been proactive with making sure his life was stable. Not legally obligated, maybe morally obligated. But from a business and success on the field stand point, definitely obligated.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

In retrospect Hayden should have had Sarkisian be involved in a recovery program after the August event. Reading the riot act to an alcoholic or giving them a second chance doesn't work. Alcoholics prey off people in that environment. Hayden was correct in establishing a zero alcohol policy for Sarkisian to cover his butt when Sark made an assess of himself in the future. You don't need a medical diagnosis of alcohol dependency to be admitted in to a recovery program.

From a human factors or HR perspective you would hope that a program as big as USC and with the resources of USC would have seen risk factors from his divorce increasing and been proactive with making sure his life was stable. Not legally obligated, maybe morally obligated. But from a business and success on the field stand point, definitely obligated.

Agreed, and because Haden is the one who was making all of these decisions, and let it get this far, he must be held accountable for these repeated judgment errors.