Clay Helton extols ultimate respect on Lane Kiffin ahead of Week 4 matchup

Clay Helton will lead Georgia Southern into an SEC matchup vs. Ole Miss this weekend, but the head coach of the Eagles will have nothing but respect for the head coach on the opposite sideline.

That’s because Helton and Lane Kiffin can trace their connection back to their time at USC when Kiffin was the head coach of the Trojans. When Kiffin took the USC job in 2010, Helton was hired to be the program’s quarterbacks coach.

Helton would eventually be given multiple roles during Kiffin’s tenure, including offensive coordinator in 2013. He would later serve as the Trojans’ interim coach for a bowl game after Kiffin’s firing and Ed Orgeron’s resignation from his post as the interim following the season.

During his weekly press conference, Helton had nothing but praise for the Kiffin family, including the late Monte Kiffin. He went on to say he would “hug the neck” of Kiffin before and after Saturday’s game.

“Coach Kiffin and I have kept a relationship even past USC all the way up until now,” said Helton. “I’ve got so much respect for him… the man changed my life, him and his dad, God rest his soul.”

Helton would also attribute a lot of his growth as a coach to the Kiffin family and said his relationship with Lane will continue on well past football:

“I owe them a bunch. I wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for them. That relationship will carry on forever,” Helton described. “I’ve got so much respect for coach and what he does but not only the coach he is but the person he is, too.”

As for Saturday’s game, Georgia Southern is having a solid start to the year at 2-1 with the loss coming in a high-scoring affair vs. Boise State. However, Ole Miss looks like one of the most explosive offenses in the country and enters the game at No. 5 in the country.

The Rebels are a 36-point favorite for the matchup per bet365, so it should be a smooth game for Ole Miss to reach 4-0 on the year.

"I owe (the Kiffin family) a bunch. I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for them."

Lane Kiffin, with the guidance from his father Monte, hired Clay Helton to be the quarterbacks coach at USC in 2010. According to Kiffin, Helton was sleeping on the couch in his Arkansas State… pic.twitter.com/Eq038Ak0FP

— Jeff Roberts (@JeffRoberts__) September 16, 2024

Paul Harvey

Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.