USC AD Pat Haden "made the call" to give interim football coach Clay Helton the full-time position and a guaranteed five-year contract, but "significant doubt remains about how much longer Haden will stay in his job," according to Rich Hammond of the ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER. Haden, 62, yesterday said that he did "not have a timetable for his possible retirement." Haden, hired in '10, has often said that he "never intended for the job to be a longterm one." Hammond notes Haden now has "handed a five-year contract to a coach who stands a good chance of outlasting him" (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 12/1). In L.A., Bill Plaschke notes Haden has "not been seen at a football game in several weeks," leading to speculation that yesterday's hiring of Helton is the "first part of Haden's exit strategy." Some people think Haden's involvement in other businesses "has distracted him from his duties to the university." Others are "concerned that health problems are making it impossible for him to safely devote the necessary time to run the program." USC ADs are "ultimately judged on only one task: did they hire the right football coach?" Failure for Haden here "could level his reputation as an athletic director forever" (L.A. TIMES, 12/1). ESPN's Paul Finebaum said, "It doesn't take a genius to figure out that Pat Haden is not long for this job" ("College Football Live," ESPN2, 11/30).
TIMING IS EVERYTHING: ESPN.com's Ivan Maisel writes the timing of Haden's decision "is shrewd." It is better to name Helton now, "on the wave of emotion after winning the Pac-12 South, than to wait and see how the conference championship game comes out." Helton has "brought a sense of calm to the Trojans." Maisel: "But don’t confuse calm with a new direction. ... This is Haden insisting that his vision for USC is the right one" (ESPN.com, 12/1). SPORTS ON EARTH's Kyle Kensing wrote the hire itself and the timing "are risky for Haden and USC athletic brass." A win Saturday against Stanford to "land the Trojans in the Rose Bowl vindicates Haden." A loss -- and "especially a lopsided loss -- could throw a program enduring a half-decade of turmoil into further chaos" (SPORTSONEARTH.com, 11/30).
FLASH IN THE PAN? Fox Sports Radio's Colin Cowherd said of Helton's hiring, "In a city that gives you flash, you don't need to hire flash." FS1's Bruce Feldman said the hire "brings some much-needed stability" to a program that has been through some "ridiculous stuff in the last few years." Feldman said the people who "have frustration with this hire were the ones more taking issue" with Haden than Helton. Feldman added it was "kind of rare" to see Haden "not even field questions" at yesterday's introductory press conference for Helton. Feldman said of Haden, "He basically retreated and we had to go chase him down in the hallway and he didn't have many answers" ("Fox Sports Live," FS1, 11/30). ESPN Radio's Mike Golic said it is an important hire for Haden, who "hasn't gotten many right. ... I do like the stability that that is going to bring even though it's not a name guy." But SEC Network's Booger McFarland said he thinks Haden "could have done better" ("Mike & Mike," ESPN Radio, 12/1).
