"Their record has regressed every year" - Josh Pate believes USC HC Lincoln Riley is in hot seat going into 2025 

When Lincoln Riley initially took over as the head coach of the USC Trojans, fans expected him to enjoy the same kind of success he did with Oklahoma. However, things took a different turn for him. After an 11-3 debut with the team in 2022, the win total of Riley with the Trojans has been on a decline.

Last year, during their debut in the Big Ten, the team could only muster a 7-6 record and a Las Vegas Bowl victory over Texas A&M. Riley has yet to help the Trojans become a playoff contender. This has led to questions regarding his future with the program.

On Thursday, college football analyst Josh Pate discussed Lincoln Riley's hot seat status heading into the 2025 season. He believes that the outcome of year four will have an impact on whether the team decides to part ways with Riley.

"None of this stuff is unreasonable," Pate said on his show (Timestamp- 8:45 onwards). "Lincoln Riley left Oklahoma several years ago for USC. And he's been out there and their record has regressed every year. That's reality. That's not an opinion. That's reality.

"..We got to be able to win games in a variety of different ways. To be honest, 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... That's the kind of team you're going to have to have to win anyway in major college football," he added.

Josh Pate continued that it's not championship or bust for Riley in 2025. However, improving upon their 7-6 campaign last season is critical for the coach to have a sense of job security.

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Joel Klatt opens up about Lincoln Riley's future with USC ahead of 2025 season

Riley is known as one of the best offensive-minded coaches in college football. However, this has failed to pay dividends on the field and help the Trojans emerge as a national championship contender.

On Monday, analyst Joel Klatt talked about Riley's year four with the Trojans. He believes that it is important for him to regain the form he had with the team during his debut campaign back in 2022.

"I personally believe that Riley has maybe come under some criticism that might not be fair, but I could be wrong," Klatt said on his show (Timestamp- 12:10 onwards). "I could be wrong because he's going to to have to win this year. You can't got 7-5 again. You just can't ... I still think that they need to get back to running the football like they were able to do in his first year at USC, and like he was able to do for the majority of his time in OU."

The College Football Playoffs made its debut in 2014. However, the Trojans are yet to make their first postseason appearance. Only time will tell if Lincoln Riley can end this streak this year.