Clay Helton Knows USC Is About To Fire Him
Clay Helton Knows USC Is About To Fire Him
Clay Helton Knows USC Is About To Fire Him
Clay Helton knows that USC is about to fire him.
Heading into his weekend, it was widely assumed that if the Trojans lost in dramatic fashion to No. 7 ranked Oregon, Helton was likely done for good.
Sure enough, the Ducks dismantled USC 56-24 at the Coliseum – a fitting way to cement Helton’s inevitable termination.
The 56 points that Oregon dropped was the most anyone had scored on USC since Arizona State put up 62 points against them back in 2013.
It was also the most the Trojans had given up at home since the Ducks put up 62 on their heads back in 2012.
After the game, Helton was pressed on whether the Trojans really had any good reason to keep him as the head coach.
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“I’ve been here 10 years, and I believe in being a servant to this university and to the young men that are here,” Helton said.
“Each and every day I wake up and I represent them and our school; and I will continue to do that, each and every day.
“And I’ll fight like hell with the people that I believe in and the people that I love, until they ask me not to do it anymore,” he continued.
“And I’m gonna show up on Monday and work my butt off for the next one.”
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Thoughts on Clay Helton: He was the right choice at the time for the hire. USC’s program was in extreme turmoil off the field & he was finally an adult in the room. It’s time for the program to move on, but I hope that it’s handled in the best way possible. Helton deserves that.
— Lindsey Thiry (@LindseyThiry) November 3, 2019
Obviously those are the words of a man who knows he is as good as gone.
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The loss to Oregon was USC’s fourth of the year and second in conference play. They now sit at 5-4 on the year and 4-2 in the Pac-12.
“I’m worried about helping them with the Pac-12 South championship and trying to win a Pac-12 championship,” he continued.
“Whatever is written is already written; God already has that plan. Until then, I’m in a dang fight and help them to try to win the Pac-12 South.
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“We’re in a hole right now. We’ve gotta do our job and win the next three games and hope for a little help.”
Any hopes of winning the Pac-12 South are probably gone at this stage, even though USC holds a tiebreaker over Utah.
With the Utes holding a one-game lead over USC, Helton would need Utah to lose one of their three upcoming cupcake games against UCLA, Arizona and Colorado – all of whom have losing records.
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It’s just not going to happen, despite what anyone says.
For what it is worth, left tackle Austin Jackson did what he could to defend his doomed head coach.
“I love him to death,” Jackson insisted.
“We came here to play for coach Helton, so, obviously, that’s the guy you want to play for.
“He’s doing a great job leading us. He’s a great coach.”
USC hired a new athletic director last week in Cincinnati’s Mike Bohn, and that likely is a signal that change is coming.
The question is no longer if Helton is losing his job. It’s simply when.
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Jennifer Withers Hoey is a former Business Development Manager who transitioned to writing about sports. With valuable connections all over the West Coast, she has used those contacts to break some of the most interesting stories pertaining to the Portland Trail Blazers, Oregon Ducks, LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Seattle Supersonics (RIP), and more.
