'I’ve had plenty of opportunities to leave': Lincoln Riley, USC sound like they're about to break up

USC Trojans head football coach Lincoln Riley may be feeling that the wolves are circling him after his team's loss on the road to Wisconsin.

The Trojans are now 6-2, which isn't terrible, but the 24-7 road loss to a Big Ten opponent was demoralizing.

Not only that, but the expectations for this USC team were much higher than the product that has been on the field. This was a team many thought could finally compete in the College Football Playoff.

Heck, USC hasn't even made the CFP in the Riley era, and the loss to Wisconsin greatly decreased the odds that this will be the year that finally happens.

If Riley is feeling the walls closing in, that's because they are.

Perhaps that's why he offered a full-throated defense of himself earlier this week when speaking to the media.

“If I didn’t want to be at this place, I wouldn’t have come here in the first place,” Riley said (h/t On3). “I’ve had plenty of opportunities to leave. 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 guys."

Lincoln Riley and USC Trojans appear to be on the precipice of a divorce 

It sort of sounds like a marriage that's on the rocks, doesn't it?

The "I've had plenty of opportunities to leave" line is telling, and it sort of feels like the thing one partner says not long before the other serves them with divorce papers.

Riley and USC can still turn it around, of course, but the path forward will be treacherous.

Three out of USC's next four games are against No. 2 Ohio State, No. 4 Indiana and No. 7 UCLA.

Riley is only 5-15 against ranked opponents at USC.