Lincoln Riley’s tenure as head coach of the USC Trojans has not lived up to expectations.
While there have been flashes of brilliance, primarily during the 2022 season, his first in LA, SC has yet to reach the College Football Playoff, or compete for a Big Ten Championship. Some of that can be blamed on Riley, as the Trojans’ defense was, to put it mildly, atrocious during his first two years on the job.
Some of the underperformance, however, can also be blamed on USC’s complete lack of preparation for name, image, and likeness-based recruiting.
Despite the wealthy alumni base, location in Los Angeles, and historic success, SC’s athletic department, coaching staff, and donor base were not aligned properly when NIL came into effect. And recruiting suffered. After putting up classes perennially in the top 10 of national rankings, SC dropped to #18 and #15 in 2024 and 2025 respectively. Unsurprisingly, per most analytics-based rankings, that’s just about where the team finished nationally in overall success rate.
Well, thanks to a new general manager, Chad Bowden, better coordination, and weaponizing that prolific donor base, SC brought in the #1 recruiting class in the country for 2026. And Riley is already making some bold claims about it.
“We’re excited Jim, you know, I think this will be the most complete roster that we’ve had here at USC,” Riley said to Jim Rome on a recent episode of “The Jim Rome Show. “We return some really good productive players that we think are teed up to be the best they’ve been in their career, including some positions that historically you would say, ‘hey, this is pretty important’ in terms of returning production at quarterback, offensive line, running back, defensive line.”
Riley explained that it’s not just the returning talent that has him excited, it’s the “great class” they brought in.
“We’ve got, you know, we’ve got quite a bit there, which is exciting starting piece,” he continued. “And then, you know, we brought in a great class. We signed the number one recruiting class in the country.
“You know, it’s been great to get up the majority of those guys here for spring ball. And so that combination from a roster standpoint is excited. And we’ve just gotten a little bit better every single year.”
Riley went a bit further though, saying that this class and the returning talent have them in position to compete for “championships” at USC.
“I think it’s caused for a lot of optimism,” he said. “So yeah, I can’t wait for this season to come up. You know, we came here to win championships. You know, that’s why you come to USC. And we feel like this group is certainly prepared and positioned to do that.”
There’s little doubt that this is Riley’s best roster at SC. The recruiting class, a good transfer class, and important players returning at key positions. Another year of development for Jayden Maiava, Jakheem Stewart, incredible running backs, and so on. The problem is that until SC wins a big game against a marquee opponent that they weren’t “supposed” to win, no one will take him seriously. Yes, Riley beat Notre Dame with Caleb Williams, and had a big win over Michigan at the Coliseum in 2025. But the schedule in 2026 is daunting.
Ohio State, Oregon, and Washington in LA. Penn State, Indiana, and Wisconsin on the road. Plus the rivalry game against UCLA at the Rose Bowl. In order to seriously compete for “championships,” Riley needs to beat Ohio State and Oregon, or one of those two plus Indiana and/or Penn State on the road. Having a talented roster is one thing. Delivering on that talent is another. Do that, then start talking.
