USC assistant football coach Monte Kiffin announced today that he will resign from the Trojan staff after USC’s upcoming bowl game in order to pursue opportunities in the NFL.

“I wanted to make this announcement now so that our players who are preparing for the bowl game and our recruits who will be visiting campus are aware,” said Kiffin. “I really enjoyed my time at USC and the opportunity I had to work with our players and coaches. The chance to work for my son, Lane, was unique and memorable, but we always treated each other professionally on a coach-to-coach basis.

“Although things didn’t always go as well as we would have liked this year from a defensive and win-loss standpoint, I will leave USC with the utmost respect for the University, the Trojan Family and, most importantly, the players I had the good fortune to coach. I see great things ahead for the USC football program.”

Kiffin has 47 years of coaching experience, including 26 years (1983-2008) in the NFL, where he was a member of 13 playoff teams and was the defensive coordinator of Tampa Bay’s 2002 Super Bowl champs. He returned to the college coaching ranks in 2009 at Tennessee and then spent the past 3 seasons at USC.

Said USC head coach Lane Kiffin: “I respect my father’s decision and his desire to return to the NFL. We are very appreciative of the hard work and effort that he put in at USC these past three years. He has a tremendous passion for coaching young men and he is a phenomenal recruiter.

“The timing of this allows us to move forward now in the hiring of a new coach.”