Midway through his 5th season in Los Angeles, Lincoln Riley is reportedly on the hot seat.
CBS Sports insider Matt Zentiz reported that development on Monday afternoon, which comes a couple of days after USC’s 41-27 loss to Oregon. The Trojans have repeated struggled against elite competition under Riley and lost the 4th quarter by 14 points on Saturday despite Oregon playing most of the game with a backup quarterback.
The cloud over Riley’s future also comes despite a reported $70 million buyout that would be owed if USC decides to move on this year. According to Zenitz, Riley’s future at USC has come under “serious question” following the loss to Oregon.
Here’s an excerpt from Zenitz’s reporting:
The larger concern for Riley is the gap between USC’s investment and its results. People associated with the program expect the Trojans to contend for national championships and the investment matches those expectations: USC’s No. 1 2025 signing class is already making waves on a roster that is one of the sport’s 12 most expensive. The reality, though, is stark: USC averaged five losses per season over the three years preceding 2026 and Riley is now 5-15 against ranked opponents at USC.
Riley left Oklahoma for the USC job after the 2021 season, but peaked with an 11-3 campaign back in 2022. USC has lost at least 4 games in each of its last 3 seasons.
USC’s defense has also continued to be a problem, which has been a theme of most of Riley’s teams. The Trojans will enter Week 5 ranked 115th nationally in yards per play allowed.
RELATED: Ready to get in on DFS action? Check out our Underdog review to understand the pros and cons of the app!
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
