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USC football: 5 coaches who could replace Clay Helton

By Brad Berreman

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 31: Head coach Clay Helton of the USC Trojans watches warm up before the game against the Fresno State Bulldogs at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on August 31, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 31: Head coach Clay Helton of the USC Trojans watches warm up before the game against the Fresno State Bulldogs at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on August 31, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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LOS ANGELES, CA – MARCH 05: Offensive coordinator Graham Harrell, center, works with the offense during USC’s first spring football practice on campus in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Mar. 5, 2019. (Photo by Scott Varley/MediaNews Group/Torrance Daily Breeze via Getty Images) /

USC will have a new A.D. and that could mean the end for USC football coach Clay Helton. These are potential replacements as the next USC football coach.

With head coach Clay Helton firmly on the hot seat, the USC Trojans have started the season 2-0 as they moved into the top-25 this week. Wins over Fresno State (12-2 in 2018) and Stanford look pretty good, though the latter last week came with the Cardinal starting their backup quarterback as K.J. Costello missed the game.

Further fueling speculation about Helton’s status going forward is this week’s resignation of athletic director Lynn Swann. Swann chose to keep Helton after the Trojans went 5-7 last year, which was the program’s worst record since 2000 under Paul Hackett. A new athletic director will be more than willing to search for a new head football coach after the season, so it may be Pac-12 title or bust this year for Helton now.

Alongside any speculation a college coach could be fired, there has to talk of contract and buyout. Swann inked Helton to a contract extension through 2023, and as of the end of last year, his buyout stood at $15 million.

The positive buzz of a 2-0 start could easily fade for USC in the coming weeks. Three of their next four games are on the road (at BYU, Washington and Notre Dame), with the lone home game against Utah. If they lose all four, the heat on Helton’s seat will really ramp up.

Assuming whoever is the new USC athletic director will want to bring in their own coach, here are five candidates that could potentially fill the role as USC football head coach, beginning one of his top new assistants.

5. Graham Harrell, USC Offensive Coordinator

After Kliff Kingsbury took the offensive coordinator post under Helton, then left to take the head coaching job with the Arizona Cardinals, Harrell came over from North Texas to install the same Air Raid offense Kingsbury would have.

Prior to his season-ending knee injury in the season opener against Fresno State, J.T. Daniels looked good operating Harrell’s offense (25-for-34 for 215 yards). Then true freshman backup Kedon Slovis looked very good in his first career start against Stanford, going 28-for-33 for 377 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions. So the step up in the level of competition for Harrell as an offensive designer and play caller has been pretty seamless thus far.

Firing a head coach usually comes with cleaning out all of their assistants. But Harrell stands as a candidate to be interim head coach if Helton is fired in-season, and a new athletic director would do well to give him more than a token interview no matter what.

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