Pete Carroll to receive honorary degree

Pete Carroll, current head coach of the Seattle Seahawks and former USC football coach will receive an honorary degree at the 2015 USC commencement ceremony. Carroll’s leadership has revitalized the Seahawks, who won the Super Bowl in 2014 and came a yard short of repeating as champions in 2015.

Under Carroll, the Seahawks have a 50-30 record and two NFC championships.

From 2000 to 2009, Carroll coached the USC Trojans. During his tenure with the Trojans, Carroll returned USC football to national prominence.

He led the Trojans to a BCS National Championship (now vacated), two Associated Press National Championships and five Rose Bowl appearances, but he didn’t achieve success without facing adversity first. In 2001 the Trojans went 6-6, but Carroll’s “Always Compete” philosophy and never-ending pursuit to win rejuvenated the program: USC went 67-7 over the next 74 games.

Against Notre Dame and UCLA — arguably the most important games of the year for USC — Carroll went 14-2. Carroll brought a unique spirit back to USC football, with jokes, pranks, competition and openness that fueled the team’s success.

Not only is Carroll a successful and well-respected football coach — one of a few to have won both a Super Bowl and college national championship — but he also has a passion for service. When Carroll first moved to L.A., he was compelled to take action concerning    gang-related violence.

In 2003, Carroll founded A Better LA, a charity focused on community building and gang violence prevention to empower inner-city youth and generate support from other service organizations.

After moving to Seattle, Carroll created A Better Seattle, which serves the same purpose as A Better LA.

Carroll, a dominant force both on the field and in philanthropy, is still beloved today by many USC fans.