The Big Lead

Lincoln Riley shockingly isn't prioritizing local recruits at USC

By Joe Lago

Oct 5, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley looks on during the second half against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Huntington Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images
Oct 5, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley looks on during the second half against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Huntington Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images / Matt Krohn-Imagn Images
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For Lincoln Riley, his hot seat as USC head coach isn't too unbearable, but it's definitely getting warmer with every loss now that the Trojans' College Football Playoff hopes are toast after last Saturday's 33-30 home loss to then-No. 4 Penn State.

USC brought Riley to Los Angeles to return what was once the West Coast's signature football program to prominence. Instead, the onetime offensive whiz has the Trojans lugging a disappointing 3-3 record into Saturday's Big Ten game at Maryland.

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Riley has been under close scrutiny since last season, when Caleb Williams' Heisman Trophy encore went awry due to an offensive line that couldn't block and a defense that couldn't tackle. He created an unnecessary controversy by temporarily banning a beat reporter as USC finished 8-4 and salvaged the season with a Holiday Bowl victory.

Riley's job at USC is to win football games. He's also expected to mine the talent-rich Southern California high school football landscape and prevent top prospects from leaving the Trojans' backyard.

Shockingly, Riley isn't even doing the latter.

According to Luca Evans of the Orange County Register, Riley has been pretty much a ghost at the two Southern California prep football powerhouses — Mater Dei of Santa Anta and St. John Bosco in Bellflower — having made just one spring visit.

While SEC powers Alabama and Georgia and Big Ten bullies Oregon, Ohio State and Penn State canvass SoCal schools, Riley has turned most of his attention to the South to find the "right guys" for his program, especially with an increased focus on Georgia.

Riley said the shift wasn't a "conscious effort," and the four commitments from California in USC's 2026 recruiting class supports that claim. Still, the recruiting strategy goes against what had long been the blueprint for success for the Trojans.

“I would think that, if you have two of the best teams in the country year-in and year-out in your backyard, that you would — set up a tent on their campus trying to get all of our guys,” St. John Bosco head coach Jason Negro said. “And they haven’t done that. So I don’t know why that is.”

Negro fired a mild shot at the USC coaching staff. "We must be the greatest coaches in America, is what they’re basically telling me, because we’re doing it with a bunch of guys that aren’t qualified to play at USC," he said.

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