Frustration is mounting, and a cloud of uncertainty hovers over Los Angeles.
With that in mind, is USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley thinking about leaving?
“If I didn’t want to be at this place, I wouldn’t have come here in the first place,” Riley said when asked about his future at USC in a press conference Wednesday.
“If I didn’t want to be at this place, I’ve had plenty of opportunities to leave, and this is where I want to be. This is the right place for me. I’m the right person to be here. That’s as honest and transparent as I can be with you.”
While USC is 6-2, its wins have been a struggle and its losses have raised concerns.
For starters, all the Trojans’ Big Ten wins have come against teams with losing records in conference play, two of which have losing records on the season altogether in the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and Penn State Nittany Lions.
Regarding the defeats, USC lost at home to Oregon in a game that saw Ducks starting quarterback Dante Moore get knocked out of the contest with a head injury. Then, last week, the Trojans — who were ranked No. 16 in the nation entering the week — were held to seven points in a loss on the road to the Wisconsin Badgers. USC is now unranked.
USC’s Mixed Results With Riley
Following five seasons as the head coach at Oklahoma (2017-21), which saw the Sooners make the College Football Playoff in three consecutive years (2017-19) and win a double-digit number of games in four seasons, Riley left for USC following the 2021 regular season.
In Riley’s five seasons at USC, the Trojans are 41-20 and haven’t made the College Football Playoff. In 2022, they had a chance to do so, but a loss to Utah in the Pac-12 Championship Game ended their playoff bid; USC left the Pac-12 for the Big Ten in the 2024 season.
The 11 games the Trojans won in 2022 stand as the only time they’ve won a double-digit number of games under Riley.
What’s Lincoln Riley’s Buyout Number?
If USC decided to fire Riley, it would involve an estimated $70 million buyout.
Riley originally signed a reported 10-year, $110 million contract with USC. Maryland, Baylor and NC State are the current Power Four schools with a head-coaching vacancy.
USC’s Daunting Schedule
The good news for USC is that its remaining schedule is on the lighter side.
Wait, actually, it is NOT on the lighter side!
USC hosts the No. 2-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes on Saturday night. Following a bye, the Trojans will have a road matchup against the No. 4-ranked Indiana Hoosiers. They then host the Maryland Terrapins and close out the regular season with a road tilt against the archival and No. 7-ranked UCLA Bruins.
