This season, Josh Pate lists college football teams “on the clock” that resemble a who’s who of programs with sky-high expectations and fan bases that aren’t exactly known for their patience. You’ve got Auburn under Hugh Freeze, a program desperate to claw back into national relevance. Oklahoma, with Brent Venables, is trying to prove last year’s struggles were a fluke. Alabama with Kalen DeBoer, where Nick Saban’s shadow looms so deep that everyone picks apart every decision, and every misstep feels earth-shattering.
Pate’s opinion is that being “on the clock” is not only about employment safety; it’s about story. It’s whether these programs and coaches are able to deliver in the moment, turn the narrative around, and demonstrate actual improvement. And this is where the narrative shifts over to Lincoln Riley and USC. Pate puts USC squarely in this group. Riley left Oklahoma a few years back, landing in sunny Southern California with a $110M contract for 10 years and all the hype and hope you’d expect. But since he arrived, USC’s record has regressed every year.
“USC ought to be able to score 45 if they need to, but they ought to be able to hold someone under 20 if they need to,” Pate says on his show on the 10th of July. “What were they? Six and six, I think, in the regular season last year. So the one possession stuff just got to be better. Got to be better.” Riley’s offense, at one point the envy of the college game, has lost its sting. He boasted loudly about needing a powerful run game to win big.
However, the performance hasn’t lived up to the bluster. Coaches have recruited along the offensive line poorly, and this has manifested at the worst possible times. A time when they gave away a halftime lead against Michigan last season because the line simply couldn’t block. The pressure isn’t necessarily about winning and losing, either.
Riley’s got a huge contract, and so do his handpicked staff members. USC put millions into this vision. And the Big Ten’s not the kind of league that waits for you to get it together. “No one has faith in Lincoln Riley anymore if that happens,” said Josh Pate about Riley. “If he regresses even more after finishing 7-6 last season. Very few people would have faith in him, and so the energy around the program would crater, which means that the recruiting class likely falls apart, or at the very least, it splinters. It’s fragmented at the very least, and that’s the genesis of a lot of the momentum around the program right now.” If Riley can’t get it turned around and USC falls further behind, Pate says the trust in Riley would shatter.
But here’s the catch: there’s hope, too. Defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn is steering the unit in the right direction, and both sides of the ball are bringing back legitimate talent. Some, such as CFB Hall of Famer David Pollack, even believe USC could pass Michigan this year. The schedule is workable, with only two ranked foes (Michigan & Oregon). The hope isn’t to be improved. It’s to demonstrate that USC is on its way to being a true contender again, not merely a pretty offense with no teeth.
Joel Klatt’s no-nonsense warning
The pressure on Lincoln Riley at USC just increased even further with the latest callout from Joel Klatt following Pate’s hot seat announcement. Klatt, normally level-headed in his opinions, was blunt. “He’s going to have to win this year. You can’t go 7-5 again. You just can’t.” He adds, “You look at last year, you start with a win over LSU. And you end with a win over Texas A&M. They showed they’re capable. They took Penn State to overtime.” The Trojans began strong, winning a Pac-12 title game in their inaugural season. Since then, though, it’s been a free fall: disappointing seasons, blown games, and a defense that couldn’t stop a nosebleed.
Klatt mentions that, indeed, Riley’s experience has some criticism that could be somewhat overblown, but results are what count. The Trojans recruited blue-chip recruits, signed top transfers, and even poached a talented defensive coordinator (Lynn). Klatt points to last year’s playbook. A robust beginning with a victory over LSU, a thrilling rally over Texas A&M, but all those near misses and that 7-5 finish just don’t get it done for a program with USC’s tradition.
The stakes are even greater now that USC is in the Big Ten. This is where the competition never stops, and the margin for error is wafer-thin. But Klatt isn’t painting everything in doom-and-gloom terms. He envisions a way out if Riley can shore up the run game, get the offensive line healthy, and convert those devastating losses into victories. With quarterback Jayden Maiava returning and a defense that’s improving, a turnaround is possible.
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