Lincoln Riley may or may not coach college football at USC next season. The 42-year-old says he will.
His past tells a different story.
Actually, his past tells a very similar story. That is why his college football future still remains uncertain.
Lincoln Riley says one thing.
There are a lot of open head coaching jobs in college football this season and the list will only continue to grow over the next few weeks. It is already being labeled as the craziest coaching carousel of all-time.
Schools like Penn State, Florida, LSU, Auburn, Arkansas and UCLA are some of the biggest name brands within the sport. Riley has been loosely attached to the Gators and Tigers by pundits in need of clicks.
Perhaps that does come to fruition! Nobody knows. Somebody will be hired. Maybe it will be Riley!
However, that seems unlikely.
Lincoln Riley supposedly signed a 10-year contract worth ~$110 million at USC in 2022. His buyout is currently estimated to cost around $70 million if another school was to try and poach him. Ouch.
As all of this chatter about the coaching carousel gets louder, Riley was asked about the rumors that he might leave the Trojans at the end of this season. He gave a very direct response.
“You guys know what I sacrificed to be here,” Riley said. “I’m where I need to be.”
Fair enough. That settles that. Unless…
History could repeat itself.
Riley’s name was attached to the LSU job when he was still at Oklahoma back in 2021. Asked if he or his representatives had been in touch with the Tigers, he gave an answer that might sound familiar.
“I coach at the University of Oklahoma,” Riley said. “You know how I feel about this place and this program. We’ve all been down this road many times before. You guys know where I stand and that hasn’t changed.”
And then he left for USC just a few weeks later.
Although the circumstances of Lincoln Riley’s current situation are completely different from four years ago, what he said about the latest rumors sounds a lot like what he said about similar rumors in the past. So, yes, it is reassuring for the Trojans to hear he is where he needs to be. But it means nothing.