USC Trojans, seeking ‘change in leadership,’ fire head football coach Clay Helton

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Southern California football head mentor Clay Helton has been fired, athletic director Mike Bohn announced Monday.

The choice will come two days just after the Trojans, who began the season with convention-title aspirations, ended up embarrassed in a 42-28 household defeat to Stanford.

“As I committed to upon my arrival at USC, throughout the past two off-seasons we supplied each individual source important for our football application to contend for championships,” Bohn reported in a assertion asserting the dismissal. “The extra methods carried noticeably increased expectations for our team’s overall performance, and it is presently obvious that, inspite of the enhancements, individuals anticipations would not be satisfied without the need of a change in leadership.”

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Helton was below contract by way of the 2023 time. His buyout is in the $12 million array, sources explained to ESPN’s Chris Lower.

Donte Williams will provide as the interim head mentor. Williams joined the USC personnel in 2020 as the cornerbacks coach and defensive move game coordinator and was elevated to associate head mentor after final time. A Los Angeles-place indigenous, Williams gets to be the 1st Black head mentor in USC soccer heritage.

In a tweeted assertion, Helton termed coaching USC “the possibility of a life span,” thanking the university, gamers and followers.

“To our players, both equally past and current, I am without end indebted to you for what you have supplied me,” Helton, 49, stated in element. “I am so appreciative for all of the hard get the job done that our present workers and pupil-athletes have set into preparing for this time, and though it will be difficult to not be in the fight with you, I am confident that great items lie forward.”

Williams, 39, mentioned he didn’t obtain out about the administration’s plans right until times prior to Helton and Bohn broke the information jointly to the gamers.

“We have a ton of video games remaining, but the year has begun,” Williams stated. “It truly is tricky to make, I guess, huge modifications right now, so my largest matter is about improving almost everything we do.

“Everyone in this corporation desires to do some thing a minimal little bit [more] than what they were being accomplishing ahead of, like myself.”

Helton experienced been with the application due to the fact 2010, when he was hired to be the quarterbacks mentor on Lane Kiffin’s initial staff members. He served as the offensive coordinator below the two Kiffin and Steve Sarkisian before staying employed as the head mentor by then-Advertisement Pat Haden in 2015.

Which includes two stints as the interim head coach, Helton went 46-24 as the Trojans’ coach, which include a Rose Bowl gain to cap the 2016 year. USC went 1-1 beneath Helton this year.

“I want to be extremely very clear: our university and its leadership are dedicated to winning countrywide championships and restoring USC football to glory,” Bohn said. “This choice signifies our next phase towards that purpose in what has been a thoughtful and strategic approach to construct a in depth soccer business equal to the premier applications in the present day landscape.”

A countrywide lookup for Helton’s substitution will consider location above the subsequent quite a few months, Bohn claimed.

Info from The Associated Press was employed in this tale.