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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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Mandatory Credit: Scott Taetsch/Getty Images
Mandatory Credit: Scott Taetsch/Getty Images /

3. James Franklin, Penn State head coach

As the heat turned up on Helton near the end of last season, reports tying Franklin to USC surfaced from credible sources (Yahoo!’s Pete Thamel and then-Sports Illustrated’s Andy Staples). The Nittany Lions’ coach chalked it up to it being the time of year for that kind of speculation, while eventually professing he plans to be in Happy Valley for a long time.

But in the immediate moment, Franklin almost channeled previous times where coaches roundly denied they might be on the move.

"“It’s that time of year where all this stuff happens,” Franklin said. “As you guys know, like always we’re focused on Maryland completely, 100 percent. I don’t even think it’s fair or right to be talking about that with everything I understand about it. We’re completely focused on Maryland.”"

Franklin has a 47-21 record now into his sixth season at Penn State, and he’s got nearly four years left on a new six-year contract he signed in 2017. But according to The Morning Call at the time of the USC rumors, he would only own Penn State a $1 million buyout if he left for another job.

Competing in the Big Ten East with Ohio State, and to a lesser degree Michigan and Michigan State right now, there’s a ceiling for reaching a high level on a national scale at Penn State.

USC may not be able to offer Franklin much of a raise over his $4.8 million base salary at Penn State (from 2018). But it’s easy to see them circling back to him when this year’s coaching carousel fires up, with an aggressive new athletic director ready to replace Helton unless the Trojans improbably pull out a great 2019 campaign.

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