ICYMI: Lincoln Riley appears for grand ceremony of $200 million worth state-of-the-art USC facility

USC Athletics is upgrading its infrastructure; an athletic project called "moonshot," worth $200 million (according to usctrojans.com), is set to ramp up the athletics program and provide advanced resources to its students, "offering the best of the best."

One of the key infrastructural projects is the Bloom Football Performance Centre, which is a gift from philanthropist and Trojan alumnus Ronald H. Bloom, who believes that the revamped facility will provide the finest facilities and help boost Lincoln Riley's recruiting efforts.

On Monday, Riley visited the facility, which is presently under construction, with his family.

"The structure is set, and the future is bright. The final beam has been laid at the Bloom Football Performance Center," USC Football's post's caption read.

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"USC offers the best of the best; from academics to location to athletics, it's first-class in every way," Riley said in Novemebr 2024, according to usctrojans.com. "Now, we will have the football facility to match.

"With the continually evolving demands of college football, this facility is going to be on the cutting-edge of sports science, media, recovery and nutrition, with top-of-the-line resources to offer our student-athletes. It's going to be the perfect home for our team."

The facility, which is more than 160,000 square feet, will showcase USC's 11 national championships, eight Heisman Trophies and the Trojans' 176 All-Americans.

Analyst gives blunt take on Lincoln Riley's USC

After the shift to the Big Ten, USC has struggled to raise its performance, wrapping up its last season with a 7-6 record. Although the Trojans are known for developing quarterbacks, the team's entire strategy and merit cannot be put on just the quarterback.

The program's poor performance has led fans to concoct hot seat theories, but analyst J.D. PicKell has a different take.

"Maybe some people are a little more positive on a Lincoln Riley front, but I think that's kind of how people feel based on what happened last year," PicKell said on his podcast on Friday. "But my rebuttal to that would be, well, you're saying they're in a middle of a packed Big Ten team, right?

“It's probably the basis you're standing on to Lincoln Riley not being a great head coach of college football. OK, did you watch the games? There's a difference between box score scouting and then actually watching the games themselves.”

After Caleb Williams' departure to the NFL, Jayden Maiava, who passed for 1,201 yards, 11 touchdowns and six interceptions last season, is projected to be the starting quarterback in the upcoming season.

The USC Trojans will begin their 2025 season against the Missouri State Bears on Aug. 30 at LA Memorial Coliseum.