LOS ANGELES (AP) — Lincoln Riley always speaks glowingly of the future at Southern California, with extraordinary recruiting classes and a lavish training complex on the way to lift the Trojans back to their customary perch atop college football.
Sure, the future could be great. But Trojans fans really wish Riley had done something to make the present more attractive after two mediocre seasons under their high-priced coach.
USC is not ranked in the preseason AP Top 25 for the first time since 2019,
reflecting the college football world's skepticism about the state of Riley's project in its fourth year. It's still unclear whether Riley and defensive coordinator D'Anton Lynn can translate USC's vaunted brand, bountiful resources and roster talent into wins.
“Seeing how our roster has evolved on all sides, especially defensively after the huge improvements that we made a year ago, the depth, the championship-caliber depth that started to be established across the board is something that we all have worked hard for,” Riley said. “It’s been a long journey to work towards that point, but it’s pretty exciting to watch unfold right now.”
Trojans fans wish Riley would do his unfolding a bit faster.
Riley's first USC team won 11 of its first 12 games with Caleb Williams working wonders, but the high-priced coach is 15-13 since then. USC went 7-6 in its Big Ten debut last season, needing a late comeback to steal the Las Vegas Bowl from Texas A&M just to avoid posting the Trojans' third losing record since 2000.
Quarterback Jayden Maiava is back after starting the final four games of last season. The UNLV transfer isn't on many lists as a star in the making, but he has the firm backing of Riley, a head coach with a resume including three Heisman-winning quarterbacks and Jalen Hurts, a second-place Heisman finisher who just won a Super Bowl.
Waiting in the wings is Husan Longstreet, one of the nation's top prep quarterbacks last fall.
USC's lack of difference-makers at the offensive skill positions was glaring last season, but receivers Ja'Kobi Lane and Makai Lemon are back after an offseason of building trust with Maiava.
Tailback U will have its usual selection of elite rushers, including juco transfer Waymond Jordan. But they're behind an offensive line that didn't look dominant even before projected starting guard DJ Wingfield was denied an eligibility waiver.
USC's most interesting defensive player is safety Kamari Ramsey, the UCLA transfer who starred last year. Lynn will rely heavily Ramsey's versatile playmaking to control the back of a defense with a much-improved line and question marks at linebacker.
Unless the team on the field profoundly collapses this season, Riley probably isn’t in serious jeopardy.
USC has indeed landed a stellar recruiting class arriving for 2026, and the lavish Bloom Football Performance Center opens next summer. What’s more, the school itself appears to be in dire financial straits with a $200 million operating deficit — not exactly ideal conditions to buy out one of the fattest contracts in college sports.
Still, Trojans fans are weary of waiting for Riley to end 15 largely mediocre years of post-Pete Carroll football.
“It’s very apparent that USC is extremely serious about making this football program and returning it back to being one of the greats in college football,” Riley said. “You can see that investment level really all the way across our program. The excitement that comes with that, the anticipation, the opportunity is real, and I think we all feel it.”
After ex-coach Clay Helton brings Georgia Southern to the Coliseum on Sept. 6, things get difficult quickly. The Trojans host Michigan State on Sept. 20 and Michigan on Oct. 11. The annual meeting with Notre Dame follows on Oct. 18 in South Bend. The Trojans return to Oregon on Nov. 22.
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