News broke earlier this week that Lane Kiffin was fired as head coach of USC after an up-and-down few years. Early on, Kiffin looked perfect for the job. He had the pedigree, USC was his alma mater and he had the attitude to survive in Los Angeles. In 2011, the Trojans went undefeated, but were unfortunately not allowed to play in a bowl due to NCAA sanctions. In 2012, they entered the season as the team that was supposed to finally end the SEC’s championship reign. Unfortunately, they crumbled under the expectations. The Trojans finished the season 7-6, including an embarrassing appearance in the Hyundai Sun Bowl against Georgia Tech.

This season did not start off well. USC struggled against Hawaii and lost to Washington State. The last straw was the embarrassing 62-41 loss to Arizona State.

Ed Orgeron, in the meantime, has been named interim head coach. Orgeron is widely known as one of the best recruiters in the college football, and does have previous head coaching experience in a BCS conference, when he was the head coach of Ole Miss from 2005-2007. However, the Rebels were 10-25 under Orgeron, with an abysmal 3-21 record in SEC play. It is likely he will be kept on staff because of his recruiting abilities. However, barring an immaculate turnaround, the Trojans will likely look for a new coach at the end of the season.

So the coaching hunt has begun in Los Angeles, and here are a few names that USC may look to hire.

The Early Favorite: Jack Del Rio (Defensive Coordinator, Denver Broncos)

Early signs point to Del Rio being the favorite to replace Kiffin. Del Rio is a USC alum and has a good track record as a head coach while in Jacksonville. He has a good feel for the current recruiting process, as his son, Luke, is currently a freshman walk-on at Alabama. USC is still a dream destination for many California high schoolers thanks to its rich tradition, and not many will understand that better than someone who was a part of the program.

Del Rio will be the easiest of the NFL names to draw back to Southern Cal, as he is currently not a head coach. However, he has said he will not leave the Broncos as long as they are still playing, which if the Broncos reach the Super Bowl, will not be until mid-February. Unfortunately, he would miss a good portion of the heart of recruiting season leading up to National Signing Day. USC could potentially fall behind on plenty of big recruits if they have to wait until early February to name a head coach.

Another Big Name Alum with an NFL Pedigree: Jeff Fisher (Head Coach, St. Louis Rams)

Fisher, like Del Rio, is also a USC alum who has a deep knowledge of the history of the program. He also will be a huge draw for recruits, as a head coach with Super Bowl experience, when Fisher led the Titans to the 2000 Super Bowl against the Rams, which ended 1-yard from a game-tying touchdown.

Unfortunately for USC, Fisher likely won’t leave the Rams unless he is fired. While the Rams finished under .500 last season and are off to a 1-3 start this year, it’s hard to believe that the Rams would part with a coach like Fisher after only two seasons.

Also, Fisher is the co-Chair of the NFL Competition Committee, a role he would very likely have to give up to move back to the college ranks.

The Established College Coach Possibly Looking for a Change: Chris Petersen (Boise State)

Petersen has done an incredible job building on the foundation that Dan Hawkins started at Boise State and turning the Broncos into a national power. To date, Boise State has a record of 87-10 under Petersen with five conference championships, two undefeated seasons and two BCS bowl victories.

However, Boise has become stagnant in recent years. The past three seasons, Boise has appeared in the Maaco Las Vegas Bowls, winning all of them, but Petersen set the bar high for himself with the two BCS appearances. This season, Boise is off to a slow start, currently 3-2 with losses to Washington and Fresno State. It may be time Petersen finally looks to move on from Boise.

Thanks to being near the west coast, Petersen already has connections in California, which will be beneficial if he were to make the move to Southern Cal. Nearly half of Boise State’s roster is from California.

Over the summer, eDraft listed Petersen as the top head coach in college football, not in a BCS conference.

The Hot-Name Coordinator: Chad Morris (Offensive Coordinator, Clemson)

Morris has done an incredible job establishing Clemson as one of the premier offensive powers in the country. Meanwhile, USC has struggled on offense this year, despite all of the talent they have. Morris would be perfect to help revitalize the Trojan offense.

Recruiting-wise, Morris will need to make the connections necessary to keep the top in-state recruits. However, he will bring plenty of east coast and SEC-country connections that could help open up new pipelines for USC to take advantage of.

Morris was in contention for the Texas Tech job after Tommy Tuberville left for Cincinnati, so he has drawn plenty of interest in the past year as potential head coach material.

Over the summer, eDraft listed Morris as the one of the best offensive coordinators in the FBS.

The Dark Horse: Ken Norton, Jr. (Linebackers Coach, Seattle Seahawks)

Norton is a surprise name, especially because he was part of the Pete Carroll era. Norton was the linebackers coach from 2004-2009, and assistant head coach during the 2009 season. He left USC for the Seattle Seahawks with Carroll, and has been the linebackers coach since.

It may be hard for athletic director Pat Haden to bring back someone from the Carroll era to help lead the program. However, Norton would be good for the program as a familiar face who knows the program and understands the tradition that surrounds it, as well as bringing an enormous amount of recruiting connections.

Norton may be the best fit for the program outside of the alums, Del Rio and Fisher. The only problem will be if Haden is willing to look past the fact that Norton was on staff during the Reggie Bush saga.