Caleb Williams Reuniting With Lincoln Riley at USC Makes a Ton of Sense

Oklahoma freshman quarterback Caleb Williams announced he was entering the transfer portal on Monday. The highly-touted signal-caller led the Sooners to a win over Oregon in the Alamo Bowl last week and could now be headed elsewhere. A reunion with Lincoln Riley at USC makes a ton of sense for both parties.

Riley recruited Williams to Oklahoma when he was a five-star recruit and top-10 player nationally. Williams thought he'd be playing under a guy who had developed several NFL quarterbacks, two Heisman Trophy winners and two No. 1 overall picks. With Riley now at USC, that has changed. While new Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables has put together a solid staff, Riley is who Williams planned to play college football for.

USC's quarterback situation is a bit unsettled. Kedon Slovis lost his job this season and transferred to Pitt. The team's returning quarterbacks are freshmen Jaxson Dart and Miller Moss. Dart showed promise this season in six games of action, but he was nowhere near as impressive as Williams. And he doesn't know Riley's offense the way his former pupil does.

USC has a high-profile commitment from five-star quarterback Malachi Nelson, but he's a 2023 recruit who could sit behind Williams during the latter's junior season. It would be a perfect succession plan for Riley & Co.

Williams saw action in 11 games as a freshman and eventually took the starting job from previous QB1 Spencer Rattler. For the season he completed 64.5 percent of his passes for 1,912 yards, with 21 touchdowns and four interceptions. he also rushed for 442 yards on 79 carries (5.2 yards per carry) and six touchdowns.

Riley will almost certainly be Williams' first call and it won't be surprising if, like many other young stars, he winds up in LA.