USC is 3-4 and led well into the fourth quarter in all four losses, all of which have come in the Trojans' last five games. Safe to say things have been better in Heritage Hall.
Lincoln Riley is now 5-9 in his last 14 games, and when that happens people start asking themselves and aloud what it would take to make a coaching change, if one were so inclined to do so.
And it turns out USC would have to be heavily inclined.
"People are unhappy about USC," ESPN's Pete Thamel said on the College GameDay podcastg. "My sources told me this week that Lincoln Riley would be owed $90 million if you were going to fire him. Right around $90 million. That's like Jimbo (Fisher) super-sized buyout. It feels like those two are a little bit stuck with each other right now, Lincoln Riley and USC."
USC is a private institution so we've yet to see Riley's deal there, but reports pegged his initial contract at 10 years and $110 million. He's now in Year 3 at USC which, if that was accurate and he was paid an even $11 million a year, Riley would then have roughly $77 million left on the deal after this season.
If that's the case, either Thamel's number is off, Riley's deal was actually richer than previously reported, or USC extended him at some point along the way.
Regardless, it would take a sum that would make even Jimbo Fisher blush to force Riley out of Hollywood, while his deal also reportedly offers little penalty for Riley if he took another college job. The issue then becomes: where would he go?
Thamel speculated Riley could be an option at Baylor if he chose to leave USC and the Bears moved on from Dave Aranda, but the size of the salary cut would pale in comparison to the blow to the ego that would come with self-firing from USC to go to Baylor. (No offense intended to Baylor.)
"I don't want to say the NFL market for Lincoln Riley as a head coach has disappeared, but it certainly isn't what it was at the end of Oklahoma when he was the belle of the ball and going and talking to all of these folks about his pass game," Thamel said. "I would think it has dissipated significantly because what he has not proven at USC is that he can build a holistic football team. He's proven that he can move the ball and gain yards."