The head coaching job for the USC Trojans football team is one of the most coveted in college football. The program was a dynasty not too long ago and could easily become one again in the wide-open Pac-12. When Clay Helton was fired on Monday, it opened the door for the school to find the right fit for the position. And while a lot of people think Jacksonville Jaguars coach Urban Meyer would love nothing more than to jump ship and return to college football, there are plenty of other candidates in the mix for real.
Some of the notable candidates who have been floated up until now include mostly college football folks, such as Cincinnati’s Luke Fickell, Oregon’s Mario Cristobal, Penn State’s James Franklin, former Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops, and Alabama OC Bill O’Brien.
NFL insider Adam Schefter reported on Tuesday that there’s also an NFL coach in the potential mix, albeit not one who is currently a head coach.
League sources believe Chiefs' OC Eric Bieniemy will emerge as a head-coaching candidate for USC. Bieniemy is from Southern California and has told confidantes in the past, that USC is one of the only college jobs that might interest him.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 14, 2021
According to Schefter, Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinate Eric Bieniemy will “emerge as a head-coaching candidate” for the position. The reporter says that Bieniemy has told those close to him in the past that USC is “one of the only college jobs” that he would be interested in.
Bieniemy has been an extremely hot head coaching candidate in NFL circles for the past two seasons. The Chiefs have made it to two consecutive Super Bowls largely in part to their offense, which Bieniemy has orchestrated along with head coach Andy Reid. While he hasn’t been able to land a head coaching job in the NFL, for somewhat suspect reasons, he remains a very popular candidate and the kind of potential coach that many players have voiced wanting to play for.
Bieniemy, who went to school in Colorado, coached as an assistant at UCLA and Colorado before transitioning over to the NFL in recent years. And many fans are already expressing some excitement over the possibility of bringing him back to Los Angeles.
I would love to have Eric Bienemy as the next coach of my Trojans!!!#FightOn ✌🏽
— ✌️Robert✌️ (@fan4usc) September 14, 2021
USC should try and land Eric Bieniemy to replace Clay Helton
– brilliant offensive mind
– relates well to players, by all accounts would be a phenomenal recruiter
– has experience in the PAC 12 after coaching stints at UCLA & Colorado pic.twitter.com/4QwUOeACxQ
— Jordan Elliott (@splash_cousin) September 13, 2021
Others have noted that Bieniemy shouldn’t have to “prove himself” in college football in order to appease NFL franchises when so many other coaches didn’t have to. Also, if he gets the job and succeeds, a lot of NFL teams will have to consider why they didn’t hire him.
https://twitter.com/NotoriousVIC007/status/1437881115302260736
If the NFL loses Eric Bieniemy to USC, so many teams need to have their hiring decisions taken away from them. https://t.co/G8ZptLLwde
— The Roundtable Podcast (@PodRoundtable) September 14, 2021
First things first, all the USC fans need to learn how to properly spell “Bieniemy.”
