Within the last month, three of college football’s biggest jobs — Florida (Billy Napier, fired Oct. 19), LSU (Brian Kelly, fired Oct. 26), and Penn State (James Franklin, dismissed October 12) — have opened midseason, producing an expansive carousel that outlets now call one of the busiest in decades.
Athletic departments, donors, and media have placed several top names into daily rumor cycles, including Ole Miss’ Lane Kiffin, Oregon’s Dan Lanning, Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman, and notably, USC’s Lincoln Riley.
After No. 19 USC defeated Northwestern 38-17 on Friday night, Riley addressed swirling reports that he’d consider leaving the Trojans when the season ends.
“You guys know what I sacrificed to be here. I’m where I need to be,” Riley told reporters postgame.
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Riley has built a strong .770 winning percentage over the last nine years as a college head coach (four seasons at USC, five at Oklahoma).
He has also developed multiple Heisman winners and first-overall NFL draft picks, notably Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray, and Caleb Williams.
That track record is why any power program with an opening immediately gets talked about as a potential landing spot for Riley.
The Trojans’ uneven season hasn’t exactly helped slow rumors either.
Following three straight 12-win campaigns and four bowl trips at Oklahoma, Riley arrived at USC in 2022 and made an immediate impact — guiding the Trojans to an 11-3 finish, a No. 12 ranking in the AP Top 25, and a Cotton Bowl appearance (lost 46-45 to Tulane).
Unfortunately, since that point, the Riley’s record has slowly declined: 8-5 in 2023, 7-6 in 2024, and now 7-2 this season with a challenging finish that includes hosting No. 20 Iowa, a trip to No. 9 Oregon, and a rivalry matchup with UCLA.
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Florida and LSU are both marquee SEC jobs with immediate expectations, while Penn State carries similarly high stakes in the Big Ten.
Riley might be one of the hottest names out there right now, but his public insistence that he’s “where I need to be” is as much a message to USC as it is to external suitors.
For the market, the coaching carousel will keep roiling until vacancies are filled, and big names like Riley will continue to get floated around.
