Todd Orlando isn’t the only former Texas staffer making the move from Austin to Los Angeles.
According to a report from The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman, former Longhorns co-defensive coordinator/safeties coach Craig Naivar is joining the staff at USC. His addition should, barring any other surprise changes, complete Clay Helton’s coaching staff for the 2020 season.
SOURCE: #USC is hiring former #Texas Co-DC/safeties coach/special teams coordinator Craig Naivar to the Trojans staff. He is expected to coach safeties.. Naivar was UT’s DC for the Alamo Bowl win when the Horns held Utah to 254 yards and 11 points.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) January 30, 2020
Naivar was not retained by Tom Herman this offseason after overhauling his own staff, which included letting Orlando go and bringing in former Rutgers head coach Chris Ash to lead UT’s defense. The veteran safeties coach served as the Longhorns defensive coordinator for their bowl game win over Pac-12 South champ Utah and was also highly regarded for his recruiting abilities in bringing in a number of high-profile players to the Forty Acres.
While Naivar is expected to be responsible for safeties with the Trojans, it’s possible he could also moonlight as a special teams coordinator for the cardinal and gold after Helton let go of previous ST coordinator John Baxter after a staff shakeup. In addition to his work at Texas, Naivar also coached at Houston, Rice, Texas State and Kentucky among other stops.