USC coach Clay Helton entered the 2019 season on the hot seat. It appears he has avoided being canned as the Trojans head coach.
Zach Barnett of FootballScoop reported late Tuesday that Helton will be retained at Southern Cal. This weekend, a writer for Sports Illustrated’s Maven USC team site had reported that Helton would be fired, citing sources. Many national media members reported otherwise, but USC had not addressed the report or stated Helton would be retained.
Helton being retained is big news for the coaching carousel. If the USC job had come available, it would have overtaken Florida State as the best job available. Obviously, the FSU opening has an impact on who will be hired at Arkansas, Missouri and Ole Miss.
Helton’s Trojans turned things around in 2019, improving to 8-4 after a 5-7 season in 2018. Helton is 40-21 overall as a head coach, including his 2013 interim season and 2015-present stint as the full-time head coach.
USC opens the 2020 season against Alabama on Sept. 5 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, home of the Dallas Cowboys.
Saturday Down South reports and comments on the news around the Southeastern Conference as well as larger college football topics.
