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USC coaching search: Hot name emerges for Trojans job, per report
By Keith Farner
Published:
Dave Aranda has seen his stock rise in recent weeks as Baylor has turned around its season, most notably with Saturday’s win over Oklahoma.
Aranda has seen his profile jump so much, he’s been mentioned as a possible candidate at Southern Cal to replace Clay Helton. As Bruce Feldman of The Athletic points out, “When USC fired Clay Helton, Dave Aranda had a career record of 4-7. In the 2 months since, he’s led Baylor to an 8-2 record and now his coaching stock is soaring.”
Aranda is getting more attention because the Baylor defense bottled up Oklahoma to its fewest yards (260) since 2014 as the game served as a perfect showcase for Aranda and his program.
Aranda’s Bears were 2-7 in 2020 in his first season, but have improved to 6-1 this season. Aranda was also the defensive coordinator for LSU from 2016 through the 2019 season, when the Tigers won a national championship. After the 2019 season, Aranda left to take the head coaching job at Baylor. Aranda’s name has also come up in relation to LSU.
About 3 weeks ago, Aranda responded to being mentioned for possible openings.
“I love it here,” Aranda said. “My family loves it here. Baylor has been everything that I thought it would be. Coming here has been an opportunity to grow.”
A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.
