Why he makes sense: Jarmond is familiar with Herman’s skill as a play-caller given they overlapped at Ohio State while Jarmond was an assistant athletic director and Herman the offensive coordinator who helped the Buckeyes win the 2015 national championship. Herman went on to meteoric success in two seasons as Houston’s head coach before a relatively disappointing four seasons at Texas in which he went 32-18. Herman grew up in Simi Valley, played wide receiver at Cal Lutheran and knows his way around Southern California.
Possible drawback: Herman’s star is fading given his dismissal from Texas and an uninspiring first season at Florida Atlantic in which the Owls went 4-8 in 2023.
Other possibilities
Tommy Rees, 31: An L.A. native, his deep ties to UCLA include father Bill working for 15 years under Terry Donahue and brother Danny playing for the Bruins. After serving as offensive coordinator for three seasons at Notre Dame and one at Alabama, Rees recently took a job as the Cleveland Browns’ tight ends coach and pass game specialist.
D’Anton Lynn, 34: This would be sweet, albeit unlikely, revenge considering Lynn just made the move across town to USC after a spectacular debut season as UCLA’s defensive coordinator. Going to a rival so quickly probably eliminates Lynn from consideration given Jarmond said he wanted someone eager to be a Bruin.
Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll walks on the sideline during a game against the Arizona Cardinals on Jan. 8.
(Rick Scuteri / Associated Press)
Pete Carroll, 72: After presiding over USC’s last golden era — not to mention its last major scandal resulting in NCAA sanctions — the former Trojans and Seattle Seahawks coach would undoubtedly be energized to ascend the L.A. college football mountaintop once more. But for how long?
Chris Horton, 39: A former All-Pac-12 safety at UCLA and quality control coach under Jim Mora who is now a special teams coordinator with the Baltimore Ravens, Horton has annually turned his unit into one of the best in the NFL.
P.J. Fleck, 43: Winning big at Minnesota is no small feat given the school’s football history and recruiting struggles, but Fleck faced allegations of fostering a toxic culture from former players in 2023.
Jamey Chadwell, 47: He built Coastal Carolina into a name brand and is coming off a 13-1 debut season at Liberty, but his Charleston Southern teams were forced to vacate 18 wins because of NCAA violations.
