All the talk around college football teams that struggle against ranked opponents surrounds James Franklin at Penn State. One name that has slid under the radar when it comes to struggles against ranked opponents is Lincoln Riley at USC.
During his time in Los Angeles, Riley is 4-10 against ranked opponents after going 15-6 in five seasons at Oklahoma. On Saturday, the Trojans will host 15th-ranked Michigan at the Coliseum, and Jordan Mendoza of USA Today called this matchup a big one for Riley.
Reporter Calls Out Lincoln Riley Ahead of Michigan Game
Four wins in 14 chances against ranked opponents is not great. It doesn’t look good for a coach who is making $11.5 million a year to win those games. At 4-1, this would be a signature win that Riley desperately needs.
“It’s time to put up or shut up for the Trojans. More importantly, time for Lincoln Riley to prove he’s the guy making $11.5 million this season, one of the highest-paid coaches in the sport,’’ Mendoza wrote.
Riley is the third-highest-paid coach in college football right now. He is behind Kirby Smart of Georgia and Ryan Day at Ohio State. Riley is just north of Clemson’s Dabo Swinney. What is the common theme with the other three coaches? They are generally in the mix every season for the National Championship. You can’t say that for Riley’s USC teams.
The Trojans’ lone loss this year was at Illinois. How quickly is USC falling? At 4-1, the Trojans are not a ranked team, which is rather stunning. It wasn’t too long ago that a 4-1 USC team would be ranked in the Top 15, if not in the Top 10.
Loss to Michigan Would Damage USC’s CFP Hopes
Losing at home to the Wolverines would put a major dent in USC’s hopes to get into the 12-team College Football Playoff. The Trojans still have a trip to Notre Dame next weekend and a trip to Oregon in late November.
“These are special games,” Riley said. “These are games that you remember. These are games that provide great opportunities for players, for fans, for everyone. I think you embrace it.”
Embrace it is something that USC needs to do on Saturday night. A win over Michigan changes the narrative for the Trojans heading to South Bend next Saturday. To add more intrigue to the game, Riley and Michigan coach Sherrone Moore got into a war of words earlier this week.
Riley winning 15 of his 21 games against ranked opponents at Oklahoma is one reason why USC went after him. They were hoping he could turn the Trojans around in those games in the PAC-12 before they left for the Big Ten. No such luck to date.
Also at stake for USC is not just a potential spot in the CFP, but also a major bowl game should they not get into the playoff. Since arriving in Los Angeles, the Trojans have been to the Cotton Bowl in 2022, the Holiday Bowl in 2023, and the Las Vegas Bowl in 2024 under Riley. Not exactly what USC was signing up for when they pryed him away from Norman. Now it’s time to prove it was the right move.
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