This Is My Coach, Pete Carroll. What He Said Changed My Life.
Asia Mape
This Is My Coach, Pete Carroll. What He Said Changed My Life.
By Brandon Hance – Quarterback USC 2024-
My coach at USC. My greatest mentor. And the man who taught me more about leadership, rhythm, and belief than any business book ever could.
Here are 6 lessons from Coach Carroll I still carry with me today:
1. Joyful Competition > Fear-Based Grinding
At Purdue, we’d roll around in the cold for three hours, literally just banging into each other.
At USC, our training was shorter & tighter. Just one hour of music, with 101% intensity on every rep.
Carroll built “Always Compete” into everything. It was healthy, not fear-based.
What Cam Ward’s Journey Can Teach All Youth Sports Families
2. Authenticity = Competitive Advantage
USC was full of freak athletes.
But what made us great was Carroll’s “Be Yourself” philosophy.
He was one of the first coaches to let players fully express themselves— • Speak openly • Dress freely • Bring their identity to the field
We thrived through individuality.
3. Pressure Reveals What’s Already There
Carroll focused on developing us as whole people, not just athletes: • Life preparation • Personal growth • Mental health resources
Business is no different. You don’t magically rise to the occasion. You fall to your baseline.
4. Everyone Wants the Trophy, Not the Transformation
People saw the rings.
They didn’t see the real work— The daily choice to “do things better than they’ve ever been done before,” even in basic drills.
Carroll treated every rep with uncommon intention— No detail was too small if it served the bigger vision.
5. Psychological Safety > Demanding Performance
My first college coach was cutthroat. Fear-based. Carroll was the opposite.
He prioritized relationships over rigid hierarchy. He genuinely cared about our lives beyond football— And that made us want to run through walls for him.
His vision became ours because he made us feel part of it. That changed how I lead forever.
6. The Inner Work IS the Hard Work
Carroll was fired from the NFL twice before his breakthrough.
But instead of folding, he took a year to radically reflect.
He wrote out his personal philosophy in detail— And resolved to never compromise on those values again, no matter the pressure.
As he said:
“Your mind is your most powerful weapon. Mastering it is the key to high performance.”
If you’re still using hustle to outrun your insecurity— You’re not strong. You’re scared.
I’ll leave you with a lesson from my grandpa…
He played football in an era where water breaks made you weak. They’d stick towels in players’ mouths and send them back out.
Now, it’s all about electrolytes, yoga, massages & sleep coaches.
The pros evolved. So should we.
Brandon Hance is a former quarterback who played for Purdue University (2001–2002) before transferring to the University of Southern California, where he was part of the 2004 NCAA National Championship team. Today, he serves as President of InHance Design + Build and CEO of Avenue Homes, bringing the same discipline and leadership from football into award-winning home renovation and real estate development in Los Angeles.
This Is My Coach, Pete Carroll. What He Said Changed My Life.
By Brandon Hance – Quarterback USC 2024-
My coach at USC. My greatest mentor.
And the man who taught me more about leadership, rhythm, and belief than any business book ever could.
Here are 6 lessons from Coach Carroll I still carry with me today:
1. Joyful Competition > Fear-Based Grinding
At Purdue, we’d roll around in the cold for three hours, literally just banging into each other.
At USC, our training was shorter & tighter.
Just one hour of music, with 101% intensity on every rep.
Carroll built “Always Compete” into everything.
It was healthy, not fear-based.
What Cam Ward’s Journey Can Teach All Youth Sports Families
2. Authenticity = Competitive Advantage
USC was full of freak athletes.
But what made us great was Carroll’s “Be Yourself” philosophy.
He was one of the first coaches to let players fully express themselves—
• Speak openly
• Dress freely
• Bring their identity to the field
We thrived through individuality.
3. Pressure Reveals What’s Already There
Carroll focused on developing us as whole people, not just athletes:
• Life preparation
• Personal growth
• Mental health resources
Business is no different.
You don’t magically rise to the occasion.
You fall to your baseline.
4. Everyone Wants the Trophy, Not the Transformation
People saw the rings.
They didn’t see the real work—
The daily choice to “do things better than they’ve ever been done before,” even in basic drills.
Carroll treated every rep with uncommon intention—
No detail was too small if it served the bigger vision.
5. Psychological Safety > Demanding Performance
My first college coach was cutthroat. Fear-based.
Carroll was the opposite.
He prioritized relationships over rigid hierarchy.
He genuinely cared about our lives beyond football—
And that made us want to run through walls for him.
His vision became ours because he made us feel part of it.
That changed how I lead forever.
6. The Inner Work IS the Hard Work
Carroll was fired from the NFL twice before his breakthrough.
But instead of folding, he took a year to radically reflect.
He wrote out his personal philosophy in detail—
And resolved to never compromise on those values again, no matter the pressure.
As he said:
If you’re still using hustle to outrun your insecurity—
You’re not strong.
You’re scared.
I’ll leave you with a lesson from my grandpa…
He played football in an era where water breaks made you weak.
They’d stick towels in players’ mouths and send them back out.
Now, it’s all about electrolytes, yoga, massages & sleep coaches.
The pros evolved. So should we.