Lincoln Riley Throws Cold Water on Leaving USC Rumors: 'I'm Where I Need to Be'

There are numerous blue-chip head coach vacancies in college football right now — including LSU, Penn State, Florida and Auburn — and USC head coach Lincoln Riley has seen his name surface as a candidate for one of those positions.

However, he set the record straight on those recent rumblings. 

"I've been underwater for the last five days," Riley said Friday after USC's home win over Northwestern. "You guys know what I sacrificed to come here. I'm where I need to be."

In 2021, Riley, the then-Oklahoma head coach, shared that he wasn't going to leave following the Sooners' Week 14 loss to Oklahoma State when asked a question about LSU's head-coaching search. Ultimately, he didn't go to Baton Rouge. Instead, the very next day, Riley was named the next head coach at USC.

In his three-plus years at USC (2022-present), the Trojans are a combined 33-16 under Riley. During his five years at OU (2017-21), the Sooners went 55-10, including three College Football Playoff appearances and four Big 12 titles. 

No. 19 USC is now 7-2 overall and 5-1 in Big Ten play this season. The Trojans host No. 20 Iowa next Saturday, followed by a road matchup against No. 9 Oregon and the annual in-city bout against UCLA.

Riley signed a 10-year, $110 million contract with USC in 2021.

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