Clay Helton wasn't a splash hire for USC, but neither was Pete Carroll when he took over the Trojans program for the 2001 season. All Carroll did was lead USC to one of the great dynasty runs in college football history.
That's not to say Helton should be compared to Carroll as much as it makes the point that splash hires don't equal the right hires. Rather, what matters for Helton from here on out is the type of staff he puts together. By and large, Helton cleaned house from the Steve Sarkisian era and started over while bringing back a few familiar names to USC's program.