Head Coaching Carousel

[zelezo vlk]

So if Clay Helton is fired at EOY, who could SC realistically get? I know Colin Cowherd has said that the Rams' OC, Jedd Fisch, would receive some interest, but who else?

 

[Rack Em]

So if Clay Helton is fired at EOY, who could SC realistically get? I know Colin Cowherd has said that the Rams' OC, Jedd Fisch, would receive some interest, but who else?

Well it depends which aisle they're shopping down. If they're going down the "Steve Sarkesian" aisle, I'd say they should look at Bobby Petrino and Zach Smith.



On a more serious note, anyone think that Mike Leach could jump here? I'd also venture they'd look at Mark Stoops, Steve Addazio, Jeff Brohm, Dino Babers, and maybe Luke Fickell.

 

[stlnd01]

So if Clay Helton is fired at EOY, who could SC realistically get? I know Colin Cowherd has said that the Rams' OC, Jedd Fisch, would receive some interest, but who else?

Pete Carroll.

Wow. I'd, Carroll left USC the same year we fired Weis. They could soon be on their fifth head coach in the time we've had Brian Kelly.

 

[IrishLion]

I wonder if they'd try to poach Chip from across town... that's who they should have gone after last time.

 

[arrowryan]

I hope Clay Helton is there forever

 

[Ndaccountant]

Well it depends which aisle they're shopping down. If they're going down the "Steve Sarkesian" aisle, I'd say they should look at Bobby Petrino and Zach Smith.



On a more serious note, anyone think that Mike Leach could jump here? I'd also venture they'd look at Mark Stoops, Steve Addazio, Jeff Brohm, Dino Babers, and maybe Luke Fickell.

I think Leach would be cultural nightmare in LA. He seems grounded enough to be self aware to that fact.

I think Dino Babers would be targeted, but I also wonder if they would sniff around Jeff Tedford. I would also think Dave Doeren, Matt Campbell, Mike Norvell and Josh Heupel would all get looks.

 

[greyhammer90]

Well it depends which aisle they're shopping down. If they're going down the "Steve Sarkesian" aisle, I'd say they should look at Bobby Petrino and Zach Smith.



On a more serious note, anyone think that Mike Leach could jump here? I'd also venture they'd look at Mark Stoops, Steve Addazio, Jeff Brohm, Dino Babers, and maybe Luke Fickell.

I would hate to see Leach at USC. First because I like Leach. Second because I think he would make them really scary. His ability to use skill players mixed with LA croots could be a deadly combination. At worst he would make it so that I would be holding my breath every time we played them. Third because I think his zany attitude would create a lot of positive coverage for USC.

 

[BabyIrish]

Chip Long was put on a list for the Louisville head job. He was around 10th on the list but he was put on the list because he was a GA there for a number of years.

 

[Rack Em]

I think Leach would be cultural nightmare in LA. He seems grounded enough to be self aware to that fact.

I think Dino Babers would be targeted, but I also wonder if they would sniff around Jeff Tedford. I would also think Dave Doeren, Matt Campbell, Mike Norvell and Josh Heupel would all get looks.

Tedford - He'd be a PAC-12 re-tread. I don't see it happening since he's already 57 and didn't have any sustained success at Cal in the 2000s.

Doeren - Maybe. I'm not sure he'd be a good cultural fit at USC.

Campbell - I meant to put him in my original post. Good call.

Norvell - I think he has a little more to prove at the moment before a big jump to USC

Heupel - Still in his first year as a HC. It's hard to evaluate how good he is since UCF's play this year could be a product of Scott Frost's coaching

 

[Rack Em]

I would hate to see Leach at USC. First because I like Leach. Second because I think he would make them really scary. His ability to use skill players mixed with LA croots could be a deadly combination. At worst he would make it so that I would be holding my breath every time we played them. Third because I think his zany attitude would create a lot of positive coverage for USC.

This.

Imagine Mike Leach at a school with deep enough pockets to get him a top 5 DC in the country. He could finally have defensive players and a scheme to keep up with the Air Raid™ offense. That, my friends, is a nightmare.

The USC brass will have to let Leach be Leach and realize he's going to piss off the LA media from time to time. But winning cures all ills in CFB and they'll quickly overlook that.

Plus, the PAC-12 is PRIME for someone to take control. Oregon, Stanford, Washington, and UCLA are all down right now. USC could run train on that conference for years if it gets its shit together before Chip Kelly does.

 

[ab2cmiller]

This.

Imagine Mike Leach at a school with deep enough pockets to get him a top 5 DC in the country. He could finally have defensive players and a scheme to keep up with the Air Raid™ offense. That, my friends, is a nightmare.

The USC brass will have to let Leach be Leach and realize he's going to piss off the LA media from time to time. But winning cures all ills in CFB and they'll quickly overlook that.

Plus, the PAC-12 is PRIME for someone to take control. Oregon, Stanford, Washington, and UCLA are all down right now. USC could run train on that conference for years if it gets its shit together before Chip Kelly does.

Time to time? LOL. Mike Leach in any major market, would be a sight to see. He would infuriate the press weekly.

 

[Ndaccountant]

Tedford - He'd be a PAC-12 re-tread. I don't see it happening since he's already 57 and didn't have any sustained success at Cal in the 2000s.

Doeren - Maybe. I'm not sure he'd be a good cultural fit at USC.

Campbell - I meant to put him in my original post. Good call.

Norvell - I think he has a little more to prove at the moment before a big jump to USC

Heupel - Still in his first year as a HC. It's hard to evaluate how good he is since UCF's play this year could be a product of Scott Frost's coaching

Agree with Norvell and Heupel, but they could be names that could pop up. Disagree on Tedford though. He finished in the top 25 coaches poll 4 out of 5 years between 2004 and 2008, including Cal's only Pac 10 championship. I think his W/L's weren't really the issue, but think he got bad press for graduation rates. Since 1950, Cal has had 3 10 win seasons and Tedford owns 2 of them. He was the only real glitter of football hope the school has had in the last 60 years outside of Bruce Snyder's brief stint.

 

[BobbyMac]

Dino Babers makes the most sense and is the one who scares me. Westcoast guy, wins wherever he goes, exciting style of play that would get the attention of the typical SC recruiting target.

 

[zelezo vlk]

Dino Babers makes the most sense and is the one who scares me. Westcoast guy, wins wherever he goes, exciting style of play that would get the attention of the typical SC recruiting target.

He's definitely gonna go somewhere after this year, I didn't know he was a West Coast guy. Damn, that's not great. I don't want to face that offense with SC-caliber skill players

Nobody's rowing the boat all the way to LA?

 

[BobbyMac]

He's definitely gonna go somewhere after this year, I didn't know he was a West Coast guy. Damn, that's not great. I don't want to face that offense with SC-caliber skill players

Nobody's rowing the boat all the way to LA?

Biographical details
Born July 19, 1961 (age 57)
Honolulu, Hawaii

Playing career
1979–1983 Hawaii
Position(s) Running back, defensive back

Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1984 .............. Hawaii (GA)
1985 .............. Arizona State (GA)
1987 .............. Eastern Illinois (RB)
1988–1989 ..... UNLV (ST/RB)
1990 .............. NAU (ST/DB)
1991–1993 ..... Purdue (WR)
1994 .............. SDSU (WR)
1995–1996 ..... Arizona (WR)
1997 .............. Arizona (RB)
1998–2000 ..... Arizona (OC/QB)
2001–2002 ..... Texas A&M (OC/QB)
2003 .............. Pittsburgh (RB)
2004–2005 ..... UCLA (WR)
2006 .............. UCLA (RB)
2007 .............. UCLA (AHC/RB)
2008 .............. Baylor (WR/RC)
2009–2011 ..... Baylor (ST/WR)
2012–2013 ..... Eastern Illinois
2014–2015 ..... Bowling Green
2016–2018 ..... Syracuse

 

[zelezo vlk]

Damn and with ties to Hawaii? Guy would get all the Samoan players. No more Robby Tomas.

Maybe being 57 will work against him?

 

[irishog77]

I didn't know Babers is 57.

I was surprised a couple years ago he only got the Syracuse job from Bowling Green- thought he would have gotten a bit better of one.

 

[GowerND11]

I don't think Leach would want to go to a major market. He thrives on being eccentric, out of the public eye, etc. He enjoys being almost anonymous in Pullman. Doesn't he walk to work? I can't see him wanting the limelight and pressure.

Also, to Rack Em, he did have Grinch who was really good, and the D is playing well now too (Though it is the Pac-12)

 

[Wild Bill]

Plus, the PAC-12 is PRIME for someone to take control. Oregon, Stanford, Washington, and UCLA are all down right now. USC could run train on that conference for years if it gets its shit together before Chip Kelly does.

On the flip side, securing a playoff spot out of the PAC is difficult b/c the talent is being spread across the conference, and even if USC started recruiting like they did during Carroll's reign of terror, they have to deal with several teams who have coaches in place that beat you with scheme rather than talent.

Washington State/Leach - tough to lock up that offense.
Washington/Peterson - will have a solid defense and a disciplined team.
Stanford/Shaw - will pound you and play smart, as we already know.
Utah/Whittingham - almost always play above their talent level and find ways to win.
UCLA/Chip - not great right now but it's a safe bet he builds a team that wins.
Oregon/Cristoball - recruiting is going well and they have piles of money behind the program.

It's just a hard path to the playoffs in the PAC right now, and I'm not sure that'll change any time soon.

 

[BabyIrish]

On the flip side, securing a playoff spot out of the PAC is difficult b/c the talent is being spread across the conference, and even if USC started recruiting like they did during Carroll's reign of terror, they have to deal with several teams who have coaches in place that beat you with scheme rather than talent.

Washington State/Leach - tough to lock up that offense.
Washington/Peterson - will have a solid defense and a disciplined team.
Stanford/Shaw - will pound you and play smart, as we already know.
Utah/Whittingham - almost always play above their talent level and find ways to win.
UCLA/Chip - not great right now but it's a safe bet he builds a team that wins.
Oregon/Cristoball - recruiting is going well and they have piles of money behind the program.

It's just a hard path to the playoffs in the PAC right now, and I'm not sure that'll change any time soon.

Yeah but it's USC. You don't go there worrying about the other teams. You go there to compete for championships year in and year out

 

[Wild Bill]

Yeah but it's USC. You don't go there worrying about the other teams. You go there to compete for championships year in and year out

You're not wrong - it's a great job. My point is just that USC's path to the playoffs as compared to other top tier programs eating shit, like Miami, Nebraska, Tennessee seems to be much tougher right now. Give Miami a great staff with their talent, and they're going to easily dominate the Coastal and coast into the ACC title game, Nebraska is playing in a division that is sending a 6-4 NW team to the conference title game, Tennessee has a tougher road than the other two but aside from Georgia they could easily destroy everyone else in the SEC East with the proper staff.

 

[greyhammer90]

You're not wrong - it's a great job. My point is just that USC's path to the playoffs as compared to other top tier programs eating shit, like Miami, Nebraska, Tennessee seems to be much tougher right now. Give Miami a great staff with their talent, and they're going to easily dominate the Coastal and coast into the ACC title game, Nebraska is playing in a division that is sending a 6-4 NW team to the conference title game, Tennessee has a tougher road than the other two but aside from Georgia they could easily destroy everyone else in the SEC East with the proper staff.

The main difficulty staring down Tennessee is that historically Tennessee does well when they recruit Georgia well. UGA doing really well hurts Tennessee's ability to pick themselves up a lot. It also doesn't help that the secret of Georgia is out and national teams from all over (including ND) are camping in the major metro areas where UGA has less pull.

 

[NDRock]

The main difficulty staring down Tennessee is that historically Tennessee does well when they recruit Georgia well. UGA doing really well hurts Tennessee's ability to pick themselves up a lot. It also doesn't help that the secret of Georgia is out and national teams from all over (including ND) are camping in the major metro areas where UGA has less pull.

True. UT is doing ok in Georgia this year with 8/20 recruits coming from there. The interesting part is they are doing terrible in their own state. Only 1 committ for the top 10 kids in the state (#10 ranked OL). Georgia has 3, South Carolina 2, Oklahoma, Ohio State, Oregon, and Arkansas have all come in and grabbed a top 10 kid. Would have figured Pruitt would be doing better in the state. Overall, they are ranked 11th by Rivals so they are doing pretty well. Need to develop them now.

 

[irishff1014]

Anyone think that Les Miles would be a candidate? He can recruit well players seem to like him. Just get him a real OC.

 

[T Town Tommy]

Anyone think that Les Miles would be a candidate? He can recruit well players seem to like him. Just get him a real OC.

Les is great with players but some coaches just can't seem to change with the times and the game passes them by. Sadly, Les is one of those coaches.

 

[Luckylucci]

Dino Babers makes the most sense and is the one who scares me. Westcoast guy, wins wherever he goes, exciting style of play that would get the attention of the typical SC recruiting target.

This is where I'm at.

 

[Wild Bill]

The main difficulty staring down Tennessee is that historically Tennessee does well when they recruit Georgia well. UGA doing really well hurts Tennessee's ability to pick themselves up a lot. It also doesn't help that the secret of Georgia is out and national teams from all over (including ND) are camping in the major metro areas where UGA has less pull.

Very true and if Mullen works out it adds to the difficultly of coming out of that division. The issue I see for the next USC coach really isn't whether or not he'll be able to gather the talent. They'll get talent. The bigger issue for them is that the conference has several teams who have coaches that can consistently win games against a more talented roster. That's going to make it difficult for anyone in the PAC to run the table or go on a tear like Pete Carroll's USC teams or Chip Kelly's run at Oregon.

That may all change with one or two moves - Chip Kelly not being able to work his magic at UCLA would be huge. Plus USC plays on the weaker side of the division, so they only have to play three or four teams per year from the Pac North.

USC made it's own bed with their awful hiring process. Since Carroll, they've basically hired two pre-determined candidates, Kiffin and Helton, without exploring other options. Then the geniuses in their athletic department, if you believe the rumors, decided to give Petersen a half ass interview when they really wanted to hire Sark away from Washington. USC got a drunk and Washington picked up a coach that has won two conference titles in four years, and made the playoffs once.

And if rumors about hiring another "SC guy", Del Rio, to replace Helton turn out to be true, it appears they haven't learned from their mistakes.

 

[dublinirish]

Les is great with players but some coaches just can't seem to change with the times and the game passes them by. Sadly, Les is one of those coaches.

he'd be a bad hire for kansas nevermind USC

 

[calvegas04]

I think the SC AD wants a clean program more than winning which is why Helton will stay

 

[stlnd01]

I think the SC AD wants a clean program more than winning which is why Helton will stay

USC is capable of doing both. This isn’t Auburn or Louisville we’re talking about.

Dino Babers. He’s the guy.
But, definitely USC, go hire Jack Del Rio..