As USC Welcomes Lincoln Riley, New Trojans Coach Says 'The Pieces Are in Place'

Outgoing Oklahoma coach says "we accomplished some great things" at OU but is eager to return the USC brand to glory.

John E. Hoover | Nov 29, 2021

As USC welcomed Lincoln Riley to Los Angeles on Sunday night, Riley expressed gratitude to Oklahoma and sounded eager to embrace the challenge of a significant rebuild at Troy.

However, Riley says “the pieces are in place” for a quick return to glory at Southern Cal.

“I am truly excited to come to USC and join the Trojan family as its new head football coach,” Riley said in a USC statement. “USC has an unparalleled football tradition with tremendous resources and facilities, and the administration has made a deep commitment to winning. I look forward to honoring that successful tradition and building on it.

“The pieces are in place for us to build the program back to where it should be and the fans expect it to be. We will work hard to develop a physical football team that is dominant on both lines of scrimmage, ands a dynamic balanced offense and a stout, aggressive defense.”

At USC, Riley takes over a program that hasn’t had a 10-win season since 2017 and has only had four since 2009.

After Pete Carroll left for the NFL following the 2009 season — and left the Trojan program strapped with significant NCAA sanctions — the Trojans have cycled through Lane Kiffin, Steve Sarkisian and Clay Helton, with an interim stay from Ed Orgeron and two interim stops by Helton.

Helton was fired just two games into the 2021 season this year and was replaced by interim coach Donte Williams.

Helton’s record as head coach at USC was 46-24 and produced five bowl trips, including the Rose Bowl and the Cotton Bowl.

Riley, 38, comes to USC with a 55-10 career record.

After issuing a statement through OU, Riley said his goodbyes again through USC.

“I want to thank the administration, coaches and players at Oklahoma for five incredible years as their head coach,” Riley said. “We accomplished some great things there and I will always cherish my time as a Sooner.”

Published Nov 29, 2021

JOHN E. HOOVER

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.