Wisconsin loss was the last straw for Lincoln Riley at USC | Opinion

On Saturday evening, the USC football team suffered an embarrassing 24-7 road loss to Wisconsin. With the defeat, the Trojans dropped to 6-2 on the year and 3-2 in Big Ten play.

USC has had plenty of embarrassing losses under head coach Lincoln Riley before. But the Trojans have not had anything quite like this. Plain and simple, USC was completely dominated by a Wisconsin team that is not even very good.

This was not just a bad performance. This was the type of performance that gets people fired. If Riley was already on the hot seat entering Saturday’s game, this felt like the point of no return.

At this point, it is not a question of if the Trojans decide to move on from Riley. It is a matter of when and how it happens.

Riley is now five years in at USC. And based on what we saw Saturday night, the Trojans are no closer to being a national championship contender than they were four years ago.

USC has given Riley everything that he needs to succeed. One of the best general managers in college football. An extremely talented roster. An elite recruiting class. An incredible new facility.

Yet, despite all that he has been given, the results this year have been worse, not better. That is not just a failure—that is a failure that should cost people their jobs.

Unlike other people, I have never once called for Riley to lose his job. However, this was the last straw for me—and for many USC fans, too.

At this point, a coaching change in Los Angeles feels inevitable. It is merely a matter of when—not if—it happens.