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USC Morning Buzz: An Update On Matt Campbell

A source in the USC athletic dept. said this morning that conversations with Iowa State coach Matt Campbell took place before Friday’s final regular-season game for the Cyclones.

There were some initial snags in luring Campbell to USC but more conversations are expected to take place this weekend to see if any differences can be resolved.

“There’s more opportunities to talk, which is good,” the source said. “It would have been nice to wrap it up sooner but these things tend to take a little time.”

103 thoughts on “USC Morning Buzz: An Update On Matt Campbell”

  1. Iowa State recruiting the last 4 years:

    54, 47, 44, 56 per Rivals. I know Iowa State has two strikes against it when recruiting, but still…

    One spin – he can do more with less talent. But will he be able to bring in top 10 recruiting classes at USC? Hope the old adage of “USC recruits itself” can be revived.

    Fingers crossed he is successful. But it is telling that USC couldn’t hire away the HCs from Baylor or Cincinnati.

    Liked by 3 people

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    2. Baylor and Cincinnati were in their 40’s in 2021. All 3 schools are getting mainly 3-star recruits. I think all 3 would do fine recruiting-wise at USC.

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    3. If you know what you are looking at you can pretty much count on this. Matt Campbell will recruit better than usc has in it’s best year over the last 7. His worst years, it will be better than Helton’s best. Taking that as a known, He is a master developer. That is part in parcel to the fact that as a defensive lineman, he is an offensive line coach by trade. So he knows how the other side thinks. (See Joe Brady who was a receiver and coached the first 6 years of his career as a defensive coach and analyst).So Matt develops as well as anyone in the country. Finally, he is a better “in game” coach than anyone usc has had in the last 12 years. Plus he is a defensive minded offensive coach. Unlike, Kiff, Sark and of course Helton, he knows how defensive helps set up offense, and how offense helps set up defense and how special teams is just as impactful (despite fewer numbers of plays per game) as the other 2 phases. All that results in a better less sideways, toxic product, in turn, will give an additional boost to recruiting after the first or second year. His offenses utilize more bodies because his teams are deep and the schemes he runs spreads the ball around to multiple backs and tight ends as well as receivers. More likely to make more personal happy and productive. IE his retention of personal will be far better than what it has been recently at usc. Check it out. ISU has had some of the lowest losses to the portal or pre portal transfers. So better classes and superior retention as well as light years better development. Top that off with much better “in game” decisions and MANAGEMENT (and we all know how bad that’s been since Pete). Finally, ISU has one of the finest discipline, non self aggrandizing, one-for-all/all-for-one cultures in the nation. Don’t we all seem to think that’s the antithesis of what has gone on for the last 12 years at usc. All three potential coaches would do fine (MC,LF, DA) but he may be the best at what ails usc the most right now, but it is also looking like the other 2 are not going to be available. Just remember how much damage has been done at this place and how hard this remodel job is going to be. 2 years ago would have saved another 3 years on the back end. (a 5 year mistake)

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      2. simple solution… don’t read them. You obviously do have the time cause you are on the blog reading the comments. Just leaving some perspective on a coach which no one has taken the time to research.

        Liked by 1 person

    4. 1. If he can get the current 3 Stars to immediately play to their full potential as he did at Iowa State, USC will win the South and probably the Pac-12 next year. That success will then lead to the 4 and 5 Stars coming in future years. Pete didn’t have a lot of top recruits until after the 2002 success. Then Reggie Bush etc…
      2. What happened to Mike Tomlin?

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    5. You forget USC is a dumpster fire and the new coach will be expected to bring Traveler back from the dead. Who really wants a job that they’re probably going to get fired from a few years from now? It ain’t a great job right now. Remember Pete Carroll was the 5th choice. Lower your expectations and you won’t be disappointed. It’s a long road back.

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      1. You are an asshole and just plain wrong.

        This BYU game just proved one very important thing. The players at USC have all the talent they need to be good, maybe not CFP good, but still Pac-12 winners. All they need is competent coaching.

        Dart is a winner and it really comes down to the fact that his teammates want to work hard for him. His o-line will try harder for him. His receivers will bond with him. We just need a coaching staff that has a competent schematic plan and puts the best players on the field.

        What kind of person hangs out on a message board to just trash other people and trash the team?

        Liked by 1 person

    7. A move to the Pac 12 for CFB coaches no longer seems like career progress. Empty stadiums, fickle fan base, West Coast CFB malaise, Pac12 after dark…

      IMHO, USC will be lucky if it can hire an young HC with a positive trajectory. Hackett and JRII both had a negative trajectory.
      I think Pete Carroll was hurt by being a part of the hapless Jets organization, but his trajectory was in the negative direction at the time.

      I’ve watched Campbell’s teams play O and D, and they fundamentally block and tackle well. They always have a 1000 yd rusher, and his QB’s–while not flashy–play well.

      I have friends with kids at Baylor. It is a high ranking academic school. The community loves its College Sports teams and make a big deal out of Saturday Home football.

      It would be a great place for a coach and his family to make a lot of money and have a nice life. If Aranda is not leaving, I can see why.

      Campbell MIGHT come and could build a “proper” USC program that blocks and tackles well, keeps its gaps, sets the edge, with players who do their job on each play, and don’t showboat and get stupid penalties.
      Maybe then, Mater Dei players (and others in the pipeline–SJBosco, Serra Gardena, etc) will return and re-build our program.

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  2. Campbell is SO much besterer than Meyer.
    #CampbellKnowsHowToWinNationalChampionships!
    [I’m gonna love listening to Bohn’s umpteenth speech about how USC is all about winning championships —“which is why no coach who has ever come close to winning one wants anything to do with me— they’re afraid of competition”]…..

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    1. Answer, my friend:
      Since Folt arrived.
      We have to face it –she succeeded: USC is now seen as 2nd rate.
      #ItTookALotOfHardWorkButFoltPulledItOff

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      2. I didn’t think this would happen… not in my lifetime…. and not this fast…
        #YaGottaHandItToFolt…SheToreThePlaceDownOvernight…
        #AllByHerself…
        #[FanHatredDoesn’tFazeHer…ForTheTimeBeing]….

        Liked by 1 person

      4. Step away from the ledge bro – back in the day we couldn’t pull the coaches from Oregon or Oregon State either. Anybody here who wasn’t prepping themselves for the third or fourth choice during this hiring run was deluding themselves.

        Liked by 1 person

      6. It took decades to establish records through committment, hard work, pride, etc… and the unholy union of Caruso, Folt, Bohn and Helton destroyed the foundation brick by brick that saw lopsided losses unheard of in most of our lifetimes.
        Truly, the sooner Folt is gone, the better.

        Liked by 1 person

    2. If it comes down that way, I can see Aranda wanting to give Baylor more than just 2 years. The Cincinnati CFP possibility is really screwing up getting Fickell.

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      1. I can some combination of 2 SEC teams, 2 Big Ten teams, and Oklahoma State in the CFP before Cincinnati. The question for the committee is can each one of these teams beat Cincinnati head-to-head? The answer is yes. But we won’t know until next weekend.

        Liked by 1 person

  6. And since when can Baylor hire Aranda in 2019, and not USC?

    #TheCostofKeepingTheVillageIdiot
    #ThanksFolt
    #ThanksBohn
    #ThanksHaden
    #ThanksSwann

    Anybody else meriting thanks?

    Liked by 4 people

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    1. There aren’t enough words in the world to spin this hire…
      #ButThatWon’tStopUSC&LosAngelesTimes…
      #And30%OfFansWillSay”Yes!”……
      #….UntilWeLoseToUtah,NotreDameAndUCLANextYear…
      #…ThenComeTheExcuses… [“It’sTheSupplyChain!”]….

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      2. I don’t like to upset some of the trolls here –ALL of whom I have great affection for —but Biden is as good as impeached already…..

        Liked by 1 person

  7. Fast forwarding in time, we will have gone from 7 win Sark to 9 win Matt.

    That is all the wins that Folt can tolerate. She doesn’t want football to become powerful at USC. So she won’t accept a team in the playoffs. Too much toxic masculinity for her taste.

    #FireFolt
    #Now
    #LerHerKeepTheSantaMonicaHouse

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    2. Sark could never win 9 games at Iowa state. Hell he took over a solid Herman texas team and went 5 and 7 out the hole with talent. And don’t forget he is new and improved, touched by the hands of the Messiah Sark with 10x the resources as Campbell.

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      1. Matt didn’t get 9 games at Iowa State this year…or any other year except, I think, once. If I’m not mistaken he got to 9 during that weird ass covid year. He’s talented …and authentic…. and he might be the guy…but we’re taking a bigger chance than I thought we’d have to….
        #..AndThat’sSquarelyOnBohn

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      3. don’t forget. Last year he torched a team that torched a 6 and 1 usc team. The team he torched had a bevy of 4 and 5 stars. That team torched a usc team with a bevy of 4 and 5 starts. My original comments back higher up was due to the fact that people were comparing his class rankings to helton’s. It’s comparing apples to oranges as far as location and tradition.

        Liked by 1 person

    3. Campbell’s annual competition:

      Ferentz’ Iowa–always tough.
      Baylor–very good the last decade.
      OSU fighting Gundy’s
      OU–coached by the greatest QB HC in football, Lincoln Riley.
      TCU–very good the last 20 years under Patterson.

      Any one of those 4-5 teams would clean up in the Pac 12, and Matt
      has taken one of the worst programs in CFB and made them consistent winners in an Iowa town that none of us would dare visit.

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    1. I think Bohn is behind the leaking of Campbell’s name ….partially to see if he can get away with it…. but also cuz he can’t close any other deal and wants to soften the blow to fans with the old drip, drip ……

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      1. Bohn shouldn’t have said “Trojans are gonna be VERY happy when they find out who we have!” Very happy is Meyer. Very happy is not Campbell.

        Liked by 3 people

  9. NEWS UPDATE: Carole Folt has ordered Mike Bohn to interview Kamala Harris. She wants USC to hire the first female football coach in the history of college football.

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  10. No one will be happy with anyone SC’s hires. I liked Aranda, it might be Campbell, time will tell if he works out in the long run.

    Not many people liked the PC hire.

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      1. Campbell might be the next PC, he might be the next Larry Smith, time will tell.

        It is pretty fucking telling that USC can’t get a top name to coach their football team, and it’s supposed to be a coveted job.

        Liked by 4 people

      2. Don’t get me wrong. Campbell is a good man (who really loves his players instead of faking loving them like Helton) and a good coach who either wins or keeps it close (his teams don’t quit on him) ….but he’s NOT the hire a great A. D. would make….
        #But,Then,WhoeverCalledMikeBohnAGreatA.D.?

        Liked by 2 people

  11. I can almost guarantee you that the “further discussions” has to do with keeping Donte Williams and/or assistant coaches salaries. If I’m Campbell, I’m saying no way to Bohn dictating who’s going to be on my staff. Campbell needs to be able to come in and shit can every member of the present staff. This could be another chink in the incompetent armor of Bohn.

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      2. All of the above — If Campbell has the brains he was born with (and whatever I think of him as a coach, I know he does), he won’t want any of the old crew —including Donte — around. And he certainly doesn’t want Folt exercising what we call in the law ‘conditions subsequent’ over his every move….
        [If Bohn gets him to give in on these elementary matters, we’re in for 5 more years of hell]….

        Liked by 3 people

  13. “There’s more opportunities to talk, which is good,” the source said. “It would have been nice to wrap it up sooner but these things tend to take a little time.”

    You’ve had since September to get this done, what the fuck have you been doing ?

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    1. Answer: Getting turned down by better coaches…who will head to Washington and LSU….
      #FurtherConfirmingUSC’sSecondRateStatusUnderBohn
      [How is Bohn gonna put on a happy face when the coaches mentioned over the last month turn up leading our competition]?

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      1. Well, yeah, but shit, how hard can it be for this school to make a deal ?

        Bohn : Do you want the gig ?
        Campbell: yes and I want total control over hiring and firing
        Bohn: Done

        Except it probably went like this

        Bohn : Do you want the job
        Campbell: Yes, but I want total control over who my assts will be.
        Bohn: Well, that’s a problem, you have to keep Donte
        Campbell: Why ?
        Bohn: Well, he can recruit
        Campbell: I’ll hire 8 guys that can recruit better than him
        Bohn: Yeah but, Donte’s got pictures of me blowing Sonsa and going down on Folt
        Campbell: I’m going to LSU

        Liked by 3 people

      2. After a conversation like that I bet even Urban Meyer would contact the local police department ….

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      3. …and then Folt wouldn’t have to call him ‘radioactive’ anymore….
        #…OfCourseShe’dHaveOtherProblems

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    1. ..And if he doesn’t get 100% of what he wants he should walk…and leave Bohn standing with his dick in his hand….
      #SomeoneNeedsToShowBohnHowAMANActs….
      #..It’sALessonThatMightComeInHandySomedayDownTheRoad

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      1. No MG, Campbell supposedly does not have an agent, if things stall over control all he has to do is excuse himself from the meeting and make a call.

        Call: Hello, may I speak with Mr. Sexton…..Yes, tell him it’s Matt Campbell.

        Liked by 2 people

  15. The guy from Fresno St looks like a better hire than Campbell at his point.

    2005 Sioux Falls 11–2 9–1 2nd L NAIA Semifinal 4
    2006 Sioux Falls 14–0 10–0 1st W NAIA Championship 1
    2007 Sioux Falls 13–1 10–0 1st L NAIA Championship 2
    2008 Sioux Falls 14–0 10–0 1st W NAIA Championship 1
    2009 Sioux Falls 15–0 10–0 1st W NAIA Championship 1
    Sioux Falls: 67–3 49–1
    Fresno State Bulldogs (Mountain West Conference) (2020–present)
    2020 Fresno State 3–3 3–3 T–5th
    2021 Fresno State 9–3 6–2 2nd (West)

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    2. I’m starting to cool down –I mean, hiring Campbell is not like re-hiring Helton or anything — it’s just we were led to believe (by Bohn himself) that he was about to make this super duper pooper hire….and this ain’t it…
      #ButIWishCampbellNothingButLuckDealingWithLosersLikeFolt

      Liked by 3 people

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    4. Big step up from NAIA to D1 Power 5. I hope DeBoer is on the list, however. Is he better than the SDSU options?

      I sense that Campbell has a competitive fire and is respected and well-liked by his players. I see no reason he won’t beat Utah and everyone in the South. He should regularly beat most or all of the North. I’ve watched a lot of ISU this year (his three star offensive players have been there a long time) and they’ve been close to winning every game.

      Still, with Fickell and Aranda likely not coming to USC, the list of next tier coaches GROWS.

      Jon Smith had a good year and would be a great hire when compared to the staff presently at USC. He could bring in some Northwest talent along with the So Cal talent. I’d still take out of HS FB mad Texas as much as I could. Remember RoJo? Keontay?

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      1. Ha!
        Bohn: “We only have 3 more slots to fill and the Search Committee will be ready to go!”
        #”It’sAllAboutTheSeed!”

        Liked by 1 person

  17. So it sounds like they’re already into the negotiations. I have 1) Aranda, 2) Fickell, 3) Campbell. Get one of those three and I’ll be happy. If not, it’ll be a effing disaster.

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    1. I’m watching every Campbell interview on YouTube. He’s a smart, decent man. He’s also a deeply caring man. And that’s not the best man [&, to be fair, not the worst either] for this team at this time. This team needs General Patton, not General Bradley.
      I’m also worried that Folt and Bohn will encourage Campbell’s soft side…and he does have one…and it’s REALLY not what’s needed at this point in our program.
      #ThisTeamHasHadEnough’Sensitivity’ToLastALifetime

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      1. I like the Patton analogy a lot. I’m a big fan of Urban’s and I would compare him as a football coach to Patton. But USC had its chance to get him in 2019. Campbell has a different style, but he’s still an effective coach. In terms of coaching ability, I think he’s right there with Aranda and Fickell. Campbell may be the best that USC can get. For me, anything less would be a failure.

        Liked by 2 people

    1. Oh, shiiiittttt… Bohn is totally screwing the pooch…..
      #IfIWeren’tAFanThisWouldBeHilarious….
      #BetThisDisasterHasTheTrojansAllPumpedUpForTonight’sGame!

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      2. This is what Incompetence looks like…..
        #OurGuysDeserveSoMuchMoreThanThis…
        #Folt’sTalkAbout”ThePath”IsStartingToRingPrettyFuckingEmpty

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      2. Part of Bohner’s CU West Dream Team, along with Dan Hawkins, Jon Embree, Eric Bienemy, Mike MacIntyre. Minimum 33% winning percentage is the only job requirement.

        Liked by 1 person

  19. Somehow, those geniuses in the USC athletics dept. didn’t get the memo about not leaking news until it is news…Assuming the Iowa State leaks are legitimate.

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      2. Ha!
        ESPN: “USC finally thinks out of box! Decides not to hire coach for 2022 season!”
        #Bohn:”ThisTakesSomePressureOffAssemblingSearchCommittee!”

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      3. Maybe we would…. if our new ‘pet’ tight ends could catch a football more often. Last time a tight end caught a ball that mattered was way back when Josh Falo caught a 4th down pass and RAN for a first down to preserve a win…
        #Wisely,WeNEVERUsedHimAfterThat…
        #[Imatorbhebhe&Falo…PunishedForCatchingFootballs]

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      4. MG – USC needs to look at what UM committed to Jimmy, including time to fix the program, and what could be possible in Troy with the same blueprint – JDR. Lots of people though Jimmy would bomb but it’s obvious he cares and is deeply committed, and is connecting with the kids.

        Liked by 1 person

      5. Harbaugh’s a $#iTard.
        No one I despise more in College sports.
        I expect OSU to resume the annual whipping of UM thanksgiving 2022.

        And I hate Buckeye nation.

        Liked by 1 person

  21. I don’t read the papers, so what is going on today?– No matter, it doesn’t affect me much either way.

    I don’t know about you, but I am diverting all my attention away from the BYU-SC football game tonight. The game is mindful of how in olden times in Europe they would have public hangings in the town square. It was entertainment and a show. And women would lament how they had nothing to wear to the big event.

    Well, that is how I look at tonight’s game.

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    1. Bohn wrote this piece and Arledge was given the honor of putting his name on it. Giveaway? The line about what a disaster Aranda’s first year was but how we should throw out Campbell’s first year “because first year’s are always a disaster.”
      [I also never like it when somebody tells us if we don’t agree “then we don’t know football.” Yeah, come back and tell us that next year after the Notre Dame game, Arledge]…..

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  23. Okay my turn? Around the internet I’ve read that Mike Bohn has scheduled a press conference for Monday December 29th but the last Monday in December is the 27th so is it a typo or are we waiting a few years? I am still a hard NO on Campbell, until he proves me wrong he’s Helton 2.0 or seven win Sark. Why does Bohn look at such low hanging fruit? The only thing less desirable than low hanging fruit is fruit is fruit on the ground rotting- that’s where Bohn will settle.

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    1. The thing I like is how Bohn really seems to retain his dignity in this clip….
      #…ExceptMaybeForTheCryingAtTheEnd..

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  26. I really just dont understand how/why the new coach for USC is not already locked in. Why would you fire your HC at the second game and then wait until there is lots of competition for the best coaches?

    They should have vetted their best options and known what it would take to get a great coach and then just moved forward weeks ago, maybe even two months ago.

    All they did was give the best potential coaches an opportunity to hold a gun to our head.

    Did they hang their hopes on a coach like Aranda, but never get a real decision from him? That would be real stupid.

    I’m not convinced by Campbell, although some people think he is great. I think the best idea might be to hire the best DC we can get. The guy from Wisconsin or Lanning from Georgia come to mind. I would rather have a coach with great potential and a great ability to recruit than a coach who is satisfied with winning 9 games a year. If we hire a DC, then we need to pair him with a great OC.

    But to think that this is all coming together last minute is really troubling.

    Liked by 1 person

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