Three years ago, when Lincoln Riley made the stunning decision to leave Oklahoma for USC, he mentioned the Trojans’ strong administrative alignment as one of the biggest factors that motivated him to do so. Three years later, he might be starting to question that decision a little.
One of the biggest X-factors in USC’s wooing of Riley was chief of staff Brandon Sosna. However, Sosna left for a front office job in the NFL before Riley even coached his first game in Cardinal and Gold.
USC certainly does not hire Riley without athletic director Mike Bohn. Under Bohn’s leadership, USC’s athletic department went from being a scandal-driven laughingstock to one of the premier operations in the country. However, Bohn resigned after Riley’s first season amidst reports of inappropriate conduct.
One of the speakers at Riley’s introductory press conference was USC Board of Trustees President Rick Caruso. However, Caruso resigned just a few months later to pursue a campaign for Mayor of Los Angeles.
And of course, spearheading the entire operation was USC President Carol Folt. While Bohn and Sosna may have done most of the dirty work, ultimately it was Folt who had to sign off on Riley’s nine-figure contract. Just last week, Folt announced her plans to retire at the end of the academic year.
At Riley’s introductory press conference in November of 2021, the head coach posed for a photo with Folt, Bohn, Sosna, and Caruso. Now, Riley will be the only one of the five still at USC next year.
Is this the end of the world? Not at all. Ultimately, Riley’s job is to coach the football team. It is not as though he is spending multiple hours with the president and athletic director on a daily basis.
But given that Riley was promised strong administrative alignment when he signed on, the fact that the four biggest people responsible for hiring him will be gone less than four years later is not exactly a great sign.
It is too soon to know what this will mean for Riley’s long-term future, but if he does not feel he has the support of the new administration, he could potentially decide to jump ship for the NFL sooner rather than later.
After all, there is a very good chance Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears will need a new head coach this offseason. Just saying . . .
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