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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Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /

1. USC head coach candidates: Matt Rhule, Carolina Panthers head coach

As he leads a rebuild for the Carolina Panthers in his second season as head coach, Rhule has the comfort of a long contract to take away pressure. On Monday evening’s SportsCenter, Rece Davis said the first call he would make if he was in charge of USC would be to Rhule.

Rhule had one season as an NFL assistant on his resume before taking the head job in Carolina. In-between those points, he turned around two college programs in short order. Temple went 2-10 in his first season to 10 wins in his third and fourth seasons (2015 and 2016). Then he took on the challenge of resuscitating Baylor, and the Bears went from 1-11 in his first season to 11 wins and a Sugar Bowl appearance in his third season (2019). USC is not in the dire state Temple or certainly, Baylor was in when Rhule came in.

The Panthers might not be really good for another year or two if Sam Darnold isn’t markedly better than he was with the Jets. Rhule won’t be easily convinced to leave though. Would he go back to college, take on a lot of pressure (and probably less money) to try to revive USC? Never say never. But even if he should be somewhere on the radar to replace Helton, Rhule probably isn’t.

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