It's water under the bridge when he walks back in

Former Trojans coach Helton has nothing but gratitude upon his return as he gets immersed in Georgia Southern tradition

- By Ryan Kartje

CLAY HELTON says it will be special to lead his team out the tunnel Saturday and noted that USC "was a place that changed my life."

Beautiful Eagle Creek sits just off Tillman Road in Statesboro, Ga., tracing the edge of the practice field at Georgia Southern University, where for more than four decades, the creek has been considered holy ground.

But to call Beautiful Eagle Creek a creek at all is, well... a stretch. It's really a drainage ditch. Its water usually sits stagnant, attracting swarms of gnats to the field during the more humid months of the year.

When Erk Russell arrived in Statesboro in 1981 to resurrect the football program, he gave it the name and declared its muddy water "magical" to inspire the team. The story stuck. And Beautiful Eagle Creek became a central part of the program's mythos. During every road trip, Russell would bring along a jug full of its brown water with him to sprinkle on the opponent's field. To this day, at the start of every new season in Statesboro, any new players or coaches are "baptized" in its magical waters.

Three years ago, Clay Helton stood knee deep in that creek for his baptism, eager to start anew. He came to Georgia Southern after a dozen seasons at USC, where he started first as quarterbacks coach, then offensive coordinator and finally the head coach. During six seasons leading the Trojans, he brought a sense of stability back to the USC football program after a decade of dysfunction. He even led the Trojans to a Rose Bowl win (in 2016) and Pac-12 title (in 2017), something no other USC coach has done since Pete Carroll.

But recruiting slowed, discipline slipped and the program hit a wall. USC went 18-13 from 2018 to 2020.

Fans by and large blamed Helton. Then, two games into the 2021 season, the school fired him.