Lincoln Riley calls criticism of USC crowd 'false narrative' - ESPN

USC coach Lincoln Riley said Tuesday that he believes the criticism surrounding the Trojans' sparse home attendance at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum this past weekend is a «false narrative.»

«This is USC — people are going to have an opinion,» Riley said. «I don't buy into the false narrative. I think that comes from a lot of people that don't follow our program, and most of those have never stepped foot in the Coliseum.»

The 14th-ranked Trojans opened their highly anticipated fifth season under Riley with only 51,144 fans — which appeared to be a generous estimate — in reported attendance Saturday against San Jose State. The game kicked off at noon local time, and the temperature reached 96 degrees at one point, with a heat index over 100 degrees. USC won 42-26.

«We understand the factors that impacted Saturday's attendance,» the school said Monday in a statement. «We have high expectations and a premier home schedule this season, and we know the competitive advantage an electric Coliseum atmosphere can provide our program. We thank our fans who showed up Saturday and look forward to seeing increased attendance the rest of the season.»

The National Weather Service issued a heat advisory for Los Angeles County through 8 p.m. Saturday. Many fans left their seats at various points during the game and watched from the few shaded areas around the Coliseum. The father of USC freshman wide receiver Boobie Feaster said in a post on X that his wife passed out from the heat Saturday «along with 15-20 other people in the medical tent.»

The topic of USC's attendance Saturday has been a point of discussion among other coaches across the country as well.

«Not to take any shots, because I have a lot of respect for USC and Lincoln