"This was not an easy decision," he said Tuesday night, reading a brief statement on Tennessee's campus. "This is something that happens very quick. We've been here 14 months, and the support has been unbelievable here. I really believe the only place I would have left here to go was ... Southern California."

The hiring was first reported by ESPN.com.

"We are really excited to welcome Lane Kiffin back to USC," Garrett said in a statement. "I was able to watch him closely when he was an assistant with us and what I saw was a bright, creative young coach who I thought would make an excellent head coach here if the opportunity ever arose. I'm confident he and his staff will keep USC football performing at the high level that we expect."

Kiffin, the former Oakland Raiders coach, led the Volunteers for only one season.

Kiffin has been on the move of late. He was 7-6 in his one season at Tennessee and 5-15 in one-plus seasons with the Raiders before being fired in September 2008.

He was a member of the USC coaching staff from 2001 to '06, first as wide receivers coach and then as offensive coordinator under Carroll.

Kiffin's contract calls for him to pay a $800,000 buyout for leaving Tennessee after only one season.

"Those payments shall be made in monthly installments over a 36-month period," the contract reads. It was not immediately clear if USC would pay any of that sum.

Tennessee will now make a run at Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp to replace Kiffin, a source close to the situation told ESPN.com's Chris Low late Tuesday. Texas has said that Muschamp will succeed Mack Brown as Longhorns head coach, but no timetable has been set for that transition. The source says that Muschamp is Tennessee's No. 1 target.

Meanwhile, a source with direct knowledge of the situation told ESPN.com's Gene Wojciechowski that several members of Tennessee's Board of Trustees have contacted former Vols coach Phil Fulmer about the possibility of becoming either athletic director or even football coach, but not both. The same source says Fulmer was receptive to those inquiries.

Tennessee athletic director Mike Hamilton indicated on Wednesday that Fullmer is not a candidate, and the Board of Trustees issued a statement saying that approaching candidates is the responsibility of the AD.

For now, Tennessee wide receivers coach Kippy Brown, who joined Kiffin's staff less than four weeks ago, will be named interim coach. He had been given the opportunity to follow Kiffin to USC as well, sources told Low.

Meanwhile, sources close to the school told ESPN's Shelley Smith on Tuesday night that a deal is being worked on in hopes of bringing longtime offensive coordinator Norm Chow back to USC in the same capacity.

Chow's agent, Don Yee, said Wednesday afternoon there was contact initiated by a USC representative who expressed serious interest in Chow. Yee said the conversation was brief but both sides agreed to talk again in the near future. Yee was adamant there was no prior contact or negotiations with himself, Chow or with Carter Chow, an attorney with Yee's agency who is the son of the UCLA offensive coordinator.

The current UCLA offensive coordinator held that position with USC from 2001-04. He was also the coordinator at Brigham Young from 1973-99, at NC State in 2000 and with the Tennessee Titans from 2005-07.

Kiffin will bring his father and defensive coordinator, Monte Kiffin, and assistant head coach and recruiting coordinator Ed Orgeron to Southern California with him.

Orgeron was with the Trojans for seven seasons before becoming the head coach at Mississippi and then an assistant with the New Orleans Saints.

Lane and Monte Kiffin and Orgeron will hold a news conference on Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET in the Heritage Hall Varsity Lounge at USC.

Some USC players were excited about the hiring of Kiffin.

"It's great news," starting quarterback Matt Barkley told ESPNLosAngeles.com's Steve Mason. "I remember meeting Kiff way back on the recruiting trail when I was a freshman in high school. I liked him when I met him. I like that he knows how to live and breathe the Trojan way."

Barkley, who was tapped by Carroll to start as a true freshman and helped lead the team to a 9-4 record and a victory in the Emerald Bowl on Dec. 26, also expressed relief that there will be stability in terms of offensive system.

"It's comforting to know that not a lot is going to change," Barkley said. "Kiff will have his own way of doing things, but I'm glad the offense isn't going to be a whole lot different."

Running back Marc Tyler is also on board.