Lincoln Riley on Hot Seat Despite $80 Million Buyout

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Hunter Hodies | Last updated Jul 26, 2025 11:00 PM ET

It's been an underwhelming three seasons for USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley since he took the job before the 2022 season.

Riley has guided the Trojans to a combined 26-14 record during that time, and for most programs, that would be a good record. However, USC isn't like most programs and has a long history of winning.

Despite a reported buyout of $80 million, Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times thinks that Riley has to be on the hot seat heading into his fourth season.

"Lincoln Riley has to be better, right? He has to win double-digit games for only the second time in his four seasons, right? He has to lead the 2025 squad to a bowl game that isn’t played in San Diego or Las Vegas, right?" Plaschke writes.

Before coming to Southern California, Riley was the head coach at Oklahoma for five seasons and took the program to the College Football Playoff three times. He also compiled a 55-10 record.

Trojan fans would love to see Riley bring that type of success to the program since the Trojans have only had one 10+ win season since 2018.

USC will open the 2025 college football season at home against Missouri State on August 30. The Trojans will then open Big Ten play against the Purdue Boilermakers on September 13.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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