When USC hired Lincoln Riley away from Oklahoma in 2021, it was seen as the return of USC football. The premier program of the 2000's had been in a prolonged downturn. From 2010-2021, USC had just three winning seasons and one PAC-12 championship.
They had three different head coaches over that time period, and all of them were fired in the middle of the season. They were most famous for firing Lane Kiffin on the tarmac or firing Steve Sarkisian due to his personal issues off the field. Clay Helton was just fired for not winning, but the Trojans went big game hunting. They got Lincoln Riley from Oklahoma.
Riley won 11 games or more in every full season at OU, and won four Big 12 titles in five years. Oklahoma is seen as one of those dream jobs or destination jobs, and USC took their coach. Five years later, the Trojans have won nothing of significance, and the fanbase is getting impatient. Ohio State could help accelerate that process on Saturday night, which would cause major long-term ramifications for OSU and the Big Ten at large.
USC has a 41-20 record under Lincoln Riley in his fifth season in Los Angeles. His best season there was his first one, in 2022, when they went 11-3 and made the PAC-12 championship game. Buckeye fans will remember that game well, as USC's loss to Utah put Ohio State in the College Football Playoff after their loss to Michigan. Since joining the Big Ten, USC is 14-9 in conference play.
That's not good enough for such a historic program like USC. If this season goes awry, I wouldn't be surprised to see them try to get enough money together to pay his $70 million buyout.
The one thing Lincoln Riley has going for him is the recruiting. The Trojans brought in the number one recruiting class in the country in 2026. A lot of those players are big contributors to the team as freshmen, and a case could be made that USC would be better off keeping Riley around for at least one more year as those players develop.
USC's schedule might be a little bit easier next year, although they do have to come to Ohio Stadium. If they beat Ohio State on Saturday, it's hard to envision them making a change, but a loss could put him squarely on the hot seat, with games remaining against Indiana and UCLA.
Ohio State could look to poach USC players
In this era of college football, a coaching change usually means a roster exodus. If USC's young stars enter the transfer portal, Ohio State could be a massive beneficiary. The team that benefited the most when Nick Saban retired at Alabama was Ohio State.
They had previous relationships with Caleb Downs and Julian Sayin, whom they had just barely missed out on in high school. Both of those players went to Alabama to play for Saban, and once he was out of the picture, they transferred to Ohio State. We could see a similar scenario happen here.
I'm talking about two players in particular who have made huge contributions to the Trojans as true freshmen. Wide receiver Kayden Dixon-Wyatt was an Ohio State commit. He flipped to USC on National Signing Day after Brian Hartline left Ohio State for South Florida.
Dixon-Wyatt, playing for his hometown Trojans, has been Jayden Maiava's top target in his true freshman season. He leads the team with 32 catches for 443 yards and is second on the team with four touchdowns. Ohio State is losing Jeremiah Smith after this season, but if Dixon-Wyatt comes to Columbus to join his high school teammate in Chris Henry Jr., Wide Receiver U shouldn't miss much of a beat.
The other player I want to look at is defensive end Luke Wafle. Wafle got an offer from Ohio State in the spring of 2024 and took one of his official visits to Columbus in the summer of 2025. Other than USC, Wafle took official visits to Florida and Penn State, who have both fired their head coaches since then.
Ohio State would probably be the leader for Wafle to replace Kenyatta Jackson next season. Wafle has 7.5 tackles for loss and 3 sacks for the Trojans in his first eight college football games. I expect him to be a problem on Saturday night, and I hope he can be a Buckeye in 2027.
If you were thinking maybe this game at USC lost some juice after the Trojans' loss in Madison last weekend, think again. We will get a chance to see the new Ohio State offense under Luke Fahey for the first time, and we could see some future Buckeyes on the other side. These players coming to Columbus are all based on a reality where OSU wins on Saturday night, and it speeds up the process of getting Lincoln Riley fired.
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