Clay Helton: 'My Happiness Is More Important Than Where I’m At'

Helton was hired by Georgia Southern on November 2, after spending 12 years at USC.

During an interview with The Athletic, former USC head coach Clay Helton was asked if he would ever return to coaching at the Power 5 level.

“You know what, I’ve done it. I’ve done it. I think my happiness, my happiness at this point in time in my coaching career for the job is a lot more important than where I’m at,” Helton said of coaching a Power 5 school. “That fire can be really hot at that level.”

Helton spent 12 years at USC, and was fired on September 13, following a loss to the Stanford Cardinal. 

“You have purpose in your life for 26 years, and then all of a sudden, this was my first time sitting out. And it was, ‘Wow. This is different,’” Helton told The Athletic.

Georgia Southern Head Coach, Clay Helton

It didn't take long for Helton to find himself a new job. On Nov. 2, Georgia Southern announced Helton as the team's next head football coach.

“There’s only 130 of these jobs in the world at the FBS level,” Helton said. “I’ve seen guys that have won national championships that decided to … hold out and try to find the exact right thing, and then it passes you by. The game meant more to me.”

Helton, 49, went 46-24 as the head coach of the USC Trojans. 2022 will be his first season as the Eagles head coach.

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