Lincoln Riley’s hot seat just went from warm to full-on inferno after USC’s pathetic display against Wisconsin Saturday night. Seriously, we’re in oven-bake territory for this coaching hot seat. How in the world can Riley possibly retain any shred of trust or respect as USC head coach after a performance like that?
Punched in the Mouth, Again
USC got absolutely punched in the mouth by Wisconsin, and it wasn’t pretty. They couldn’t run the ball to save their lives and let the Badgers dominate the line of scrimmage, especially in the second half. Wisconsin came out of the tunnel after halftime and immediately scored a touchdown on a drive that ate up nearly six minutes. From there, it was a clinic in grinding down the clock, as the Badgers gradually overwhelmed USC in the fourth quarter. Wisconsin led by 10 or more points for over 23 minutes in that second half. This wasn’t just a loss for USC; it was a decisive, humiliating defeat.
Two Weeks Off Made Them *Worse*? That’s The Real Problem.
Here’s the kicker: Riley had two full weeks to regroup and get his team better for the stretch run of the season. Instead, we got this miserable performance against Wisconsin. Think about that for a second: two weeks on the practice field and the team got *worse*, not better. That tells you everything you need to know about the coaching.
Jayden Maiava, who Riley has generally done a good job with, was clearly not prepared for this game, evidenced by two brutal first-quarter interceptions. You just can’t point to a single thing Riley did well in this game after having so much time to prepare.
And let’s not even start on special teams. What an absolute disaster! USC missed two field goals, and the kick protection unit completely failed on one attempt, leading to a blocked kick. Riley’s special teams have been consistently bad, and guess what? Nothing has changed in Year 5. USC also still can’t run the ball, a problem they’ve needed to fix to become a more dangerous and complete team. Wisconsin’s defensive front absolutely smothered them.
Meanwhile, Luke Fickell, who’s been a below-average coach at Wisconsin and even on the hot seat himself for the past few years, ran circles around Riley. Fickell obviously had a far better plan for Riley’s offense than anything Riley offered. Talk about getting outcoached.
Year 5 Failures Demand Action
The issues don’t stop there. Bringing in Trumain Carroll as the new strength coach isn’t yielding results, because USC was clearly second best in terms of overall physical prowess and brute strength against Wisconsin. Plus, the dumb penalties piled up: a horrible pass interference and a careless late-hit penalty both aided Wisconsin touchdown drives. That “clean” performance at Penn State? Yeah, that was an aberration, an outlier, not the norm for this team.
If this is what happens in Year 5 under Lincoln Riley, why in the world would Year 6 be any different? Jen Cohen and the USC administration have to face the cold, hard facts about Riley and the future of the football program. USC fans can’t take this anymore, and frankly, they shouldn’t have to. It’s time for action. It’s time for a change at USC.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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