While the Oregon Ducks needed a win badly on Saturday Night against USC, the game meant far more to the Trojans. A loss would've dropped Dan Lanning's team to 2-2, and likely would've killed any hopes of making the College Football Playoff, but it wouldn't have raised many questions within the program. On the USC side, this is supposed to be the year for the Trojans as Lincoln Riley declared a championship window was opened this offseason.
USC looks far from College Football Playoff and National Championship contention, and the loss is incredibly bad news for Lincoln Riley. The Trojans are in the 5th season of the Riley era, and the team has yet to make the College Football Playoff despite all the hype around his arrival. USC didn't go all-in just to deal with these underwhelming results.
Dan Lanning may have signed Lincoln Riley's ticket to the unemployment line
Dan Lanning and the Ducks didn't just beat USC, they ensured that the Trojans left the game looking bad in many different ways. If USC lost to Dante Moore a projected Top 10 pick it would be one thing, but Gary Patterson's defense couldn't get a stop against the Dylan Raiola led offense. The way the Trojans celebrated Moore's injury didn't make USC look good, and Riley's answers in the post game press conference only brought more heat upon himself.
A look at the headlines following the game indicate people are sick and tired of Lincoln Riley's act.
Swanson: USC didn't just lose to Oregon. Lincoln Riley fumbled away the Trojans' integrity.https://t.co/olmR8RTHh2
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) September 27, 2026
USC has seen enough and it’s time to move on from Lincoln Riley. https://t.co/5OAH1xl42X
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) September 27, 2026
"Everybody knows who the fraud is. It's Lincoln Riley… it will cost about $70 million to get rid of Lincoln Riley. But I promise you, USC people, it will be worth it because this guy is bringing your program down to the gutter" – Paul Finebaum pic.twitter.com/Ir21TYRTlF
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 28, 2026
Heading into the game, there was a ton of talk about Lincoln Riley potentially being on the hot seat if the Trojans lost the game. On Monday, CBS Sports' Matt Zenitz reported that Riley is indeed on the hot seat, and that Dan Lanning's postgame shots at the Trojans didn't go unnoticed.
Our @mzenitz reports Lincoln Riley is on the hot seat. He first shared the intel on College Football Insiders on CBS Sports Network, which you can watch RIGHT NOW.
— Brandon Marcello (@bmarcello) September 28, 2026
Here's his story that just hit @CBSSportsCFB: https://t.co/ADVBA8CmSQ
If Dan Lanning started the beginning of the end of the Lincoln Riley era than it's disappointing for the Ducks in a lot of ways. Lincoln Riley has been a blessing for Oregon as he's gone 0-3 against the Ducks, and hasn't given the team much of a challenge. Add in how important the state of California is for Oregon on the recruiting trail, and Riley's mediocre results have been a blessing.
The Trojans firing Lincoln Riley would be shocking in a way, given the fact that he carries a $70 million buyout. When you add in the costs to hire a new staff, and build a new roster it would be a massive expense. Money hasn't been an issue for USC, but Riley's staff has let it go to waste with their failures to make the Playoff.
Will it be funny to point and laugh at USC if they end up firing Lincoln Riley? Of course. Will it be funny to see USC finally realize Lincoln Riley is an absolute fraud? No question. The bad news is that USC firing Lincoln Riley likely means that they'll hire a new head coach who doesn't keep making the same mistakes year afer year, allowing Oregon to capitalize.
Dan Lanning and the Ducks will be okay regardless of which way USC rules on their head coach's future. The best possible outcome for Oregon however is Riley staying in Southern Cal as long as possible, as he's made facing the Trojans one of the most exciting days of the year as Oregon routinely breaks their spirit.
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