USC football ended the 2018 with a loss to Notre Dame on Saturday night, casting serious doubt over the future of head coach Clay Helton, who posted 5-7 record in his third year in charge.
But it didn’t take long for athletic director Lynn Swann to quiet the speculation about Helton’s job status. On Sunday morning Swann released a statement backing Helton and ensuring players, recruits and fans that he will be back for 2019.
That may have quieted speculation, but it did little to quiet the noise around Helton’s performance as a head coach.
Though he won 10 games in each of his first two seasons at USC, skepticism has followed Helton since the day he was first appointed.