USC’s first year in the Big Ten hasn’t gone well, as the Trojans are 6-6 and need to win their bowl game to avoid a losing season.
It wasn’t that long ago that Lincoln Riley and the Oklahoma Sooners were the toast of the Big 12, but now the only thing keeping him employed at Southern Cal is a monstrous buyout approaching nine figures in size.
Riley’s record has gotten worse in every season since his departure from Oklahoma, and after three years in Los Angeles, he’s put together a 25-14 record — a far-cry from his 55-10 mark at OU.
The tension is rising around The Coliseum, but it appears Riley might have a way out, should he want it bad enough.
According to a report from The Athletic, UCF is reportedly inquiring about Riley’s potential interest in the Knights’ head coaching vacancy.
“Representatives from UCF reached out to Riley’s representatives last weekend to inquire about his interest in making a move across the country, one source said,” the report reads. “Any discussions about adjusting the terms of Riley’s contract would be between him and USC, sources said.”
Getting Riley to travel across the country, though, would be much more difficult than just convincing him that life would be better in Orlando.
The Athletic reports that Riley is in year three of a contract that is estimated to be worth an estimated $10M per year. If UCF were to try and lure Riley away from USC, it would cost cost them at least that much annually.
“The first source added that UCF has not received any word from Riley’s camp that he is interested in leaving USC, and the school is still looking at multiple candidates to fill its head coaching vacancy,” the report said. “Firing Riley, whose win total with the Trojans has decreased in each of his three seasons, would cost USC about $90 million, according to one of the sources. If Riley were to leave for another school, he would owe USC nothing. But UCF is not in position to replicate the deal Riley has at USC. Malzahn made $4 million in 2024 at UCF.”
Is it possible that Lincoln Riley could come back to the Big 12 as the head coach at UCF? Maybe, but he would either have to agree to a significant pay cut, or UCF would have to pony up cash that it currently doesn’t have.
