Big-Time offensive line coach COMING??

USC, Lincoln Riley seeking to add big-time offensive line coach to Trojans' staff

John Brice -

Sources: USC, Lincoln Riley seeking to add big-time offensive line coach to Trojans' staff (msn.com)

Brandon Jones has Pac-12 and Big-12 experience and helped Houston to an 11-win season this fall

Brandon Jones’ meteoric rise in the coaching ranks is once again taking a greater arc.

A former standout-player at Texas Tech University and currently the co-offensive coordinator and offensive line coach for Dana Holgorsen at the University of Houston, Jones is contemplating departing the Cougars’ program for a similar position working with the offensive line in Lincoln Riley’s University of Southern California program sources tell FootballScoop.

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It Jones were to agree to come onboard, it would be a key addition for Riley’s Trojans’ staff and another strong move for Jones, a Dallas native who’s also logged time on staffs at his alma mater, as well as Sam Houston State, East Carolina and Cal.

While Riley, who guided Oklahoma to a 55-10 record and a trio of College Football Playoff appearances in five seasons as Sooners’ head coach, has assembled much of his defensive staff, he has yet to publicly reveal much on the offensive side of the ball, where Dennis Simmons is set to serve as the Trojans’ wide receivers coach.

Jones has emerged in recent years as a top assistant coaching asset; sources told FootballScoop that Jones previously was pursued for additional jobs but had remained at Houston for the past three seasons as the Cougars have taken a sharp rise under Holgorsen, finishing the 2021 season with 11 regular-season wins.

During his work with the Cal Golden Bears’ offensive line, Jones helped transform a unit that in 2015 had been ranked 82nd nationally in sacks allowed into a group that finished second-best in the Pac-12 and inside the top 25 nationally in that metric.

Last week, the Trojans did get some good news along their offensive front, after seeing numerous players on both sides of the ball either declare for the NFL Draft or enter the NCAA Transfer Portal. Veteran offensive lineman Andrew Vorhees announced via social media that he is returning to the Trojans for a sixth season. Vorhees already had appeared in 32 games prior to the 2021 season, and he showed his versatility this past season when the 6-foot-6, 320-pounder shifted from the interior of the offensive line to left tackle as the Trojans dealt with injuries and reshuffled their parts.

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