Interim coaches are often just placeholders to ease the transition from one coaching regime to another.

It is rare they earn the chance to keep their jobs after an abbreviated time at the helm.

But the Battle of Los Angeles may dictate whether interim head coach Tim Skipper earns the official head honcho title or another position on the UCLA coaching staff after the 2025 season.

UCLA and USC have relied on eight interim head coaches combined throughout both programs’ histories.

And most of these coaches have never even coached in the LA rivalry, with only three getting a taste of the feud. Additionally, only one interim head coach has prevailed in the history of the UCLA-USC conflict.

Former USC head coach Clay Helton helped capture the Victory Bell in an interim position when he led the Trojans to a 40-21 victory against the Bruins in 2015 during his second stint as the team’s interim coach, after the program fired Steve Sarkisian earlier that year.

Despite Helton’s success at the temporary helm, his name pales in comparison to the likes of Ed Orgeron – who served as LSU’s head coach from 2016 to 2021 and helped capture the 2020 national championship – and Jedd Fisch – who is in his second year as Washington’s head coach.

Orgeron lost just two games during his eight-game interim stint at USC in 2013, and Fisch held a 1-1 record during his brief stint as UCLA’s placeholder coach.

But neither coach won the Battle of LA – Orgeron and his Trojan squad lost to the Bruins by 21 points, and Fisch was promoted to the interim position just a day after the Bruins lost to the Trojans, a loss that marked the conclusion of the Jim Mora regime.

Donte Williams is the only other interim coach to lead USC against UCLA, but Williams notched a 3-7 record during his sole campaign at the Trojan helm, which included a near 30-point defeat at the hands of UCLA in 2021. The Bruins mauled the Trojans’ defense for 609 yards, with former Bruins Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Zach Charbonnet combining for 568 total scrimmage yards.

Skipper is set to make history come Nov. 29, when he will become the first interim coach to helm the Westwood bunch against USC in program history.

And it is not a coincidence that he will be the first to do so.

The four prior UCLA interim coaches have been promoted after substantial losses against USC.

Former Bruin head coach Rick Neuheisel was fired after suffering a 50-0 defeat to USC in 2011, which ushered in the appointment of interim head coach Mike Johnson, and Bob Toledo was relieved of his duties a game after sustaining a 31-point loss to USC in 2002, resulting in Ed Kezirian’s one-game promotion.

Even when Mora’s squad, led by former Bruin quarterback and 2018 NFL Draft first-round pick Josh Rosen, lost by only five points to the Trojans in 2017, Fisch assumed the role.

For UCLA, ringing the Victory Bell is not just a luxury – it is a requisite for coaches to protect their jobs.

Many people have already discounted the possibility that Skipper returns to Westwood for the 2026 season.

James Madison head coach Bob Chesney, along with Fisch, who may be eyeing a UCLA return, have emerged as favorites to take the mantle next season.

Although Skipper holds a sub-.500 record as the interim coach, he has shown he can lead the squad to wins in big games.

The former Fresno State linebacker helped spearhead UCLA’s 42-37 upset win against then-No. 7 Penn State in just his second game at the helm and paved the way for the team’s 20-17 triumph against Maryland in crunch time.

And no game is bigger than the Battle of LA, regardless of the teams’ records.

Skipper has also thrived where former UCLA head coach DeShaun Foster, who logged a winless 2025 record with the same Bruin squad, faltered.

The interim coach will be coaching for his job Nov. 29, and a rivalry victory may erase all of the Bruins’ 2025 disappointments.

Thus, Skipper will dictate whether his coaching stint will continue into next season, and whether his status will shift from a placeholder to a program staple as UCLA builds for the future.