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USC Football: Top 10 coaches in program history

By Quinn Douglas

LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 05: Coach Pete Carroll of the USC Trojans leads his team to the field prior to the start of the NCAA college football game against Arizona Wildcats at the Los Angeles Coliseum on December 5, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 05: Coach Pete Carroll of the USC Trojans leads his team to the field prior to the start of the NCAA college football game against Arizona Wildcats at the Los Angeles Coliseum on December 5, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images) /
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LOS ANGELES – SEPTEMBER 1: Detail view of the decal honoring the late Mario Danelo #19 of the USC Trojans on the back of a player helmet before the game against the University of Idaho Vandals on September 1, 2007 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. USC won 38-10. (Photo by Jeff Golden/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES – SEPTEMBER 1: Detail view of the decal honoring the late Mario Danelo #19 of the USC Trojans on the back of a player helmet before the game against the University of Idaho Vandals on September 1, 2007 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. USC won 38-10. (Photo by Jeff Golden/Getty Images) /

2. Howard Jones: 1925-1940

Career Record: 121-36-13

Awards and Accolades: 1927-’29, 1931-’32, ’38-’39 PCC Champions, 1928, ’31-’32, ’39 National Champions, College Football Hall of Fame Class of 1951

If Gus Henderson was the one who built the foundation for USC football, then Howard Jones built the building all the way to the second level. Jones played his college football at Yale and never lost a game in his three years as a Bulldog. Immediately following graduation, Jones was hired as head coach at Syracuse. He spent a season there and went on to a one-year stint at Ohio State and two, one-year stints at Yale until Iowa lured him back into coaching in 1916.

While at Iowa, Jones turned the Hawkeyes into a powerhouse, with the pinnacle being Iowa’s national championship in 1921. A contract dispute led to Jones leaving Iowa following the 1923 season and spent a year as head coach of the Duke Blue Devils in 1924 before USC came calling following the departure of Gus Henderson.

Jones took over the USC program in 1925 and by 1927, had them as conference champions. A year later, USC won their first national championship in school history. In his 16 seasons with the Trojans, Jones won seven Pacific Coast Conference Championships and won the first four national championships in USC’s storied history. Unfortunately, Jones couldn’t build further on his dynasty, as he tragically died of a heart attack before the 1941 season.

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