You Don’t Have to Be a USC Alum to Hate This Hire

The hiring of Pete Carroll by USC seems to be attracting daggers from everywhere. Here’s what host Chris Myers had to say on Fox Sports Net’s “NFL This Morning” Sunday:

“There were a number of NFL coaches who shook their heads in disbelief. One told me, ‘Carroll must have Superman as his agent because he sure doesn’t deserve a job like that.’

“Also, a number of African American coaches were upset that Athletic Director Mike Garrett did not give serious consideration to any black coaches.”

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Another shot: Of Washington Redskin owner Daniel Snyder, Myers said, “I get the impression if he went one-on-one with Saddam Hussein, you’d root for Saddam Hussein.”

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Trivia time: When were penalty flags first used in the NFL?

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Some tribute: Bill Walsh, in announcing that Sunday would unofficially be Jerry Rice Day, fought tears as he said, “I hope fans recognize Jerry as possibly the greatest player ever to take the field and certainly the greatest 49er.”

Commented Skip Bayless of the Chicago Tribune: “Let that sink in. Rice had more impact than Joe Montana? Rice might have been more valuable than Walter Payton or Jim Brown or whomever you believe to be the greatest football player ever?”

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But he’s no geek: As part of Fox’s NFL pregame shows on the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier over the weekend, analyst Cris Collinsworth took a ride on an F-14 Tomcat fighter jet. The crew that prepared Collinsworth for the trip decided he needed a nickname and came up with “Pencil Neck.”

Collinsworth is often kidded about his long neck.

Back on the set in Los Angeles, comedian Jimmy Kimmel, decked out in a suit, sat in the chair usually occupied by host James Brown. Monkeys were in the seats where Terry Bradshaw and Howie Long usually sit. In Collinsworth’s seat was a turkey--with a long neck.

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Talkin’ politics: TNT analyst Charles Barkley last week asked pregame host Ernie Johnson if he, like Barkley, was a Republican.

“I don’t talk politics,” Johnson said.

Said analyst Kenny Smith: “I do. I ain’t Republican.”

Said Barkley: “We use proper English in the Republican Party.”

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Frugal: Manny Ramirez, who signed an eight-year, $160-million contract with the Boston Red Sox last week, is known for his frugality. For his stay in Fort Myers, Fla., for spring training next year, he’s already been offered houses on the water. Instead, he plans to stay with the minor leaguers.

When he was with the Cleveland Indians, he stayed in a Holiday Inn.

Can you hear it now, whenever Ramirez makes a request at the Red Sox’s minor league facility: “What do you think this is, a Holiday Inn?”

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Trivia answer: Penalty flags were first used by NFL officials Sept. 17, 1948, in a game in which the Green Bay Packers defeated the Boston Yankees, 31-0.

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And finally: After Dallas’ Troy Aikman suffered his 10th concussion, Jay Leno said, “Two more and they make you governor down there in Texas.”