USC Trojans Coach Lincoln Riley Shuts Down Other Jobs, UCF Knights: 'I'm Home'
The UCF Knights have inquired about the potential availability of USC Trojans coach Lincoln Riley, in a a report from The Athletic. In his National Signing Day press conference, Riley shut down any questions about him leaving USC.
"I tell them I'm a USC Trojan. I'm at the place I want to be. It's a non-starter, it's a non-issue. I'm home," Riley said when asked what he tells other schools that might be interested in him.
The Knights' former coach, Gus Malzahn, recently stepped down to accept the offensive coordinator position at Florida State University and left a vacancy at the once premier group of five programs.
Now a member of the Big 12, the UCF program is still highly regarded and considered one of the better non-blueblood opportunities available. Similarly to Lincoln Riley’s USC Trojans, the UCF Knights are coming off the heels of a disappointing season where they underperformed expectations. However, the inquiry about Riley’s availability signals how serious the program is about the next potential hire.
“Representatives from UCF reached out to Riley’s representatives last weekend to inquire about his interest in making a move across the country, one source said,” said the report from the Athletic.
“Any discussions about adjusting the terms of Riley’s contract would be between him and USC, sources said.” continued the report.
Lincoln Riley’s estimated buyout ahead of the 2024 regular season was around 88 million dollars. That was the second-highest total after Georgia’s Kirby Smart. The language around Riley’s contract isn’t clear as it hasn’t been made public, but the expected financial involvement from UCF to pull off an acquisition of that magnitude would be significant.
“Two sources said even if Riley had an interest in making the move, it would require some payout of his current deal with USC to make up for what he would be giving up in the transition — like a professional sports trade where one team pays a chunk of a player’s remaining salary on a large contract and the receiving team picks up the rest,” the report stated.
Lincoln Riley is 25-14 in three seasons as coach at USC and 14-11 the last two seasons. However, Riley is 80-24 overall as a head coach and boasts two College Football Playoff appearances and four Big 12 conference championships.
The Trojans are still awaiting news of placement in their upcoming bowl game, as well as putting a bow on their 2025 signing class.
MORE: USC Trojans Land Top-10 Recruiting Class? Early National Signing Day Tracker
MORE: USC Trojans Offensive Lineman Gino Quinones Enters Transfer Portal
MORE: USC Trojans' Matt Entz Raves About Freshman Linebacker Desman Stephens II's Potential
MORE: USC Trojans' Matt Leinart, Matt Barkley Disturbed By USC Trojans After Notre Dame Loss
MORE: USC Trojans Recruiting: Trending For Elite Defensive Lineman Christian Ingram
MORE: USC Trojans Quarterback Miller Moss Enters Transfer Portal: NIL Value, Landing Spots
MORE: USC Trojans Predicted To Land Five-Star Jahkeem Stewart's Commitment Over LSU?
MORE: Can Chicago Bears' Quarterback Caleb Williams Break Franchise Passing Yards Record?
MORE: Should USC Trojans Lincoln Riley Be Fired After Notre Dame Loss, Mediocre Season?
MORE: NFL Coaching Carousel: USC Trojans' Lincoln Riley, D'Anton Lynn Potential Hires
MORE: Why USC Trojans Running Back Commit Duane Morris Flips to Tennessee Volunteers