Commentary: Lincoln Riley should be on hot seat after USC flops again in big game

"Another big game, another big stink. Another loaded season, another lost season. Four years after Lincoln Riley arrived at USC amid gaudy promises to return the football program to national prominence, well, two words. Still waiting. Needing a win at Oregon's Autzen Stadium Saturday to have a chance at its first college football playoff berth, the Trojans once again fell short, fell deep and basically fell on their faces. Still waiting."

"In front of jubilant fans roaring like USC fans once roared, Oregon used an 85-yard punt return, a terrible Trojan penalty and awful Trojan play calls to roll to a 42-27 victory. Still waiting. With the win, the seventh-ranked Ducks almost certainly have earned a playoff spot. With the loss, the 15th-ranked Trojans have definitely been eliminated for the fourth time in Riley's four seasons while hanging an equally damning number on the embattled coach. Under Riley's leadership, the Trojans are 0-5 against top-10 teams."

"If USC beats UCLA next weekend as expected, the Trojans will finish with a 9-3 record and a nice vacation in some anonymous bowl game. And that will not be enough. That cannot be enough. One wonders how long the USC deep-pocketed people will endure such failed expectations, such fruitless autumns, such ... mediocrity. Heck, if UCLA can buy its way out of the Rose Bowl, one imagines that USC could buy its way out of a head football coach. Just saying."

USC lost 42-27 at Oregon after an 85-yard punt return, a costly penalty and poor play calling. The defeat eliminated USC from college football playoff contention and likely secured a playoff spot for seventh-ranked Oregon. Under Lincoln Riley, USC is 0-5 against top-10 opponents and has recorded only three road wins against teams that finished above .500 in four seasons. USC can still finish 9-3 with a probable win over UCLA but would likely end in a non-descriptive bowl. Persistent unmet expectations, frequent late-season failures and growing dissatisfaction surround the program's performance.

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