"Your bark is louder than your bite" - Oregon legend rips into Lincoln Riley's USC for taking shots at Dan Lanning

Lincoln Riley's USC aimed a cheeky dig at Dan Lanning's Oregon after landing a major commitment from five-star tight end Mark Bowman of the 2026 class. Since the Ducks were also linked with Bowman, the Trojans uploaded a video on X featuring USC alum Will Ferrell, portraying his iconic character "Ron Burgundy," jumping into the pool as part of a clip from the movie "Anchorman."

For those who remember, Lanning celebrated a commitment from five-star defensive end Richard Wesley earlier this offseason by ripping his shirt off and jumping into a pool. However, Wesley de-committed and is still deciding his future before heading to college.

A couple of weeks after USC's jibe at Lanning and Oregon, former Ducks running back Kenjon Barner hit back at Trojans fans.

“All you’re doing is running your mouth. Your bark is louder than your bite,” Barner said on his "Ducks of a Feather " podcast on Saturday (46:40). “You guys haven’t been relevant since Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush.”

Barner also had some advice for USC fans to remain humble.

“My advice to SC fans: humble yourselves, get quiet and win more than seven games,” Barner said. “SC keep fighting on, baby. You all been fighting for a long time.”

Barner played for Oregon from 2009 to 2012 before entering the 2013 NFL draft. He went on to win three Super Bowls during his pro career, one each with the Philadelphia Eagles, New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Barner's pro football career ended in October 2022 after he was released by the Buccaneers.

CFB analyst Joel Klatt summarizes Lincoln Riley's spell at USC ahead of his fourth year in the 2025 season

NCAA Football: USC Trojans HC Lincoln Riley - Source: Imagn

Fox Sports analyst Joel Klatt summarized Lincoln Riley's time at USC on his podcast last week, suggesting that the pressure will be mounting on the coach heading into his fourth season with the program.

“Lincoln Riley is firmly in the category of, is this going to work,” Klatt said. “We have seen it work once, in the year that they almost went to the College Football Playoff, that was his first year. And yet we look up and it’s like last year was incredibly underwhelming.

"Riley’s tenure started off gangbusters, but he’s coming off these two underwhelming seasons. I will say they had a good finish last year. I do think that there’s things to get excited about."

In three seasons, Riley has compiled a 21-14 record. He led the Trojans to the Pac-12 Championship Game in his first season at the helm, where his team lost 47–24 to Utah.

Since then, Riley's USC has not been in strong contention to qualify for the College Football Playoff. As such, the 2025 season will be important for Riley to deliver success.