As pressure mounts on an embattled Southern California football team that just dropped a road game to Wisconsin, one Trojans legend has opined on the future of coach Lincoln Riley.
It wasn't exactly a ringing endorsement.
Former USC receiver and No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick Keyshawn Johnson ripped into the fifth-year USC coach in a profanity-laden post on X, blasting the coach's supposed offensive acumen after the 24-7 loss to the Badgers. It was not only the largest margin of defeat for a Riley-coached team at USC against an unranked team, but also the fewest points scored.
"All I can do is sit
here and look at myself and laugh," Johnson said in the video. "We really just lost to Wisconsin. Not only did we lose, we got run out of the building. We're supposed to have this offensive guru, high-octane, Heisman Trophy-coaching quarterback head coach. But seriously, did you see the offense? All I could do was laugh. It's a (expletive) joke. It really is a joke."
Riley's offense had a tough outing against the Badgers. Jayden Maiava struggled at quarterback, completing 31 of 50 passes for 258 yards and one touchdown to two interceptions. The team also rushed 25 times for minus-17 yards, thanks in large part to Maiava losing an astounding 57 yards rushing on five registered attempts. Excluding his rushing output, USC would have rushed 20 times for 40 yards — a paltry 2 yards per carry.
The loss dropped USC to 6-2 on the season, placing the Trojans' hopes of a College Football Playoff berth into serious jeopardy. It follows a string of disappointing seasons that saw USC fail to reach double digit wins since Riley's first year in 2022, when the Trojans went 11-3 and narrowly missed a CFP berth after a loss to Utah in the Pac-12 Championship.
Johnson went on to compare USC's loss to Wisconsin to the Badgers' game against crosstown rival UCLA. The Bruins defeated the Badgers 17-7 en route to a 7-0 start to the season under first-year coach Bob Chesney.
The former USC receiver did, however, compliment Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell — even offering a potential solution to USC's coaching woes.
"Maybe you could be our coach," Johnson said of Fickell. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Lincoln Riley. I respect you, I like you. You're cool with me. But it ain't working out, man. It's just not working. Sometimes things don't work out. And we gotta recognize that, understand that it makes some tough decisions.
"Tough decisions have got to be made. Whether you want to or you don't. They gotta be made. And right now, a tough decision for (athletic director) Jenny Cohen, the administration, the boosters, the financial people, you name it: It's gotta be made."
Johnson finished his point with a look ahead to the schedule, which includes games against Indiana, Ohio State and, of course, UCLA.
Said Johnson: "Do the math."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: USC legend puts Lincoln Riley on blast: ‘Tough decisions have got to be made’
