USC gauging NFL offensive coordinator's interest in vacant HC role

USC boosters have reached out to Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn to gauge his interest in the vacant head coach position according to Jim Trotter of NFL Media.

Trotter reported that Lynn would be interested in the job but that to date, there has been no contact between the school and the Detroit offensive coordinator.

Anthony Lynn is in his first season as the Lions offensive coordinator after four seasons as the Los Angeles Chargers head coach. Lynn went 33-31 in his time in Los Angeles, he led the Chargers to their first playoff berth since 2013 in his second season.

After going 5-11 and 7-9 in 2019 and 2020, Anthony Lynn was fired.

Weeks after his firing, Lynn was hired as the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions under first-year head coach Dan Campbell.

Through the first three weeks of the season, the Lions are 0-3, but have lost two games by one score. Anthony Lynn’s offense has gained 1,118 total yards and rank relatively middle of the pack in offensive production.

Prior to his head coaching stint with the Chargers, Anthony Lynn served as running backs coach for Jacksonville, Dallas, Cleveland, and the New York Jets between 2003-2014. Lynn added the title of assistant head coach in 2014 with the Jets. In 2015, Lynn served as assistant head coach and running backs coach for Buffalo. He was promoted to offensive coordinator in 2016, before taking his first head coaching job with the Chargers.

USC fired Clay Helton after a week two 42-28 loss to Stanford. Helton served as interim head coach in 2015 after the Trojans fired Steve Sarkisian and had the interim tag removed at the end of the season. Helton finished with a a 46-24 record. Over his last three seasons, the Trojans went 19-15 and had not won the Pac-12 since 2017.

USC named associate head coach and cornerbacks coach Donte Williams as the interim head coach. Under Williams, USC is 1-1 with a win over Washington State and a loss to Oregon State.

Williams remains in consideration to have the interim tag removed but  USC is unlikely to replace a former unproven interim head coach in Helton with another unproven interim coach.

Cincinnati head coach Luke Fickell, Minnesota head coach PJ Fleck, Penn State head coach James Franklin and Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott are among the names on the shortlist for the job.

Among NFL candidates linked to the USC vacancy include Jacksonville head coach Urban Meyer and Kansas City offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, in addition to the aforementioned Anthony Lynn.