USC football: 5 outside the box replacements for Clay Helton

USC head coach candidates: 5 outside-the-box replacements for Clay Helton

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 11: Head coach of the USC Trojans Clay Helton, cheers on his team during warm up before the game against the Stanford Cardinal at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on September 11, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

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Credit: Sam Greenwood/AAF/Getty Images /

3. USC head coach candidates: Jeff Fisher, former NFL head coach, USC alum

Fisher has routinely surfaced on the periphery as a name to replace Helton at USC. That’s been based almost solely on having played for the Trojans, but also as a nod to a long resume as an NFL head coach. A return to coaching, and what would be his first foray into college coaching, at Vanderbilt was bandied about at one point a couple of years ago. Fisher refuted reports around that time that he was set to become head coach of the XFL’s Houston franchise.

One of Fisher’s former Titans’ players, Eddie George, took over as a first-year head coach at Tennessee State this season. Fisher came aboard as an advisor, probably as much at George’s request as his own desire to get back in the game to some degree. If nothing else, the news he took the role at Tennessee State put Fisher briefly back on the map.

Fisher has never coached in college, even as an assistant. But he shouldn’t have much trouble assembling a solid coaching staff if there were an opportunity out there, and for USC he fits the label of “one of us.”

The question marks are clear. Fisher became a punchline toward the end of his time as coach of the Rams, he’s now 63 years old (64 by the time the 2022 season starts, of course) and he hasn’t coached anywhere since 2016. But is he outside the box enough that it just might work?

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