USC Football: Lincoln Riley Puts NFL Rumors to Rest After Upsetting Utah Defeat
After the Trojans loss to Notre Dame last week, the rumors about the possibility of USC head coach Lincoln Riley leaving for the NFL started up. This tends to happen anytime a big college coach suffers a loss, and Riley was the next in line.
But after another disappointing loss to Utah this week, it seemed that the rumors would get even louder. But Riley quickly put those to bed after the game when asked about it.
"We're not going anywhere," Riley said. "We signed up to do this thing for a long time."
Coaches always say things like this, but until we see Riley on the sideline for the Trojans next season, the NFL remains an option.
If Riley is serious about staying at USC, he must fundamentally change how he has gone about things. Especially with the Trojans entering the Big 10 next season, USC will be eaten alive by the more physical squads in that conference if they don't mix things up.
Riley has had a habit of fielding strong offensive teams but defenses that couldn't stop a minor leak on a sink. It has been a problem for his teams for years, and most teams in the Big 10 actually play defense.
While USC is fun to watch, they have a clear problem. This isn't what anyone at USC anticipated when Riley took over, and after the loss to Utah again, he is 2-5 against ranked teams with USC.
Riley will get another year or two of leeway before things get really tight for him. The Trojans fans demand excellence, and so far, that has been far from what they have received.
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