Lane Kiffin’s Ole Miss team will face Clay Helton’s Georgia Southern team up next on the schedule, and there is plenty of connection between the two.

Kiffin recalled, on the weekly SEC teleconference, Monte Kiffin finding Helton and having Lane interview him at USC when he had the job in 2010. Helton was ultimately hired to be the program’s quarterbacks coach.

“It’s another one of the hundreds of stories that remind me of my dad and his ability to find not just a great person but also to find coaches. When he was in the NFL, he found a number of coaches out of college,” Kiffin said.

Kiffin’s late father had a particular process in who he hired, and it did not always come down to popular opinion.

“He didn’t just hire big names because you’re supposed to. Him studying Clay, having played him at Tennessee and how well he did…and having me interview him at USC. Otherwise, I would have never known who he was. Clay is just an unbelievable person.”

Helton would go on to continue to grown in the program, promoted to offensive coordinator in 2013. When Kiffin was fired and Ed Ogeron resigned, he served as the Trojans’ interim coach for a bowl game.

Helton also recently reflected on how grateful he is to the Kiffin family and for the opportunities extended.

“I owe them a bunch. I wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for them,” Helton said. “That relationship will carry on forever,” Helton described. “I’ve got so much respect for coach and what he does but not only the coach he is but the person he is, too.”

Georgia Southern and Ole Miss are set to kick off at 6:45 p.m. CT on Saturday in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.