College football analyst identifies USC as a team with a lot to prove in 2025
The Trojans went 7-6 in 2024, and are just 15-11 over the past two years. As USC enters the offseason, it feels as though next season is a "put up or shut up" year for Lincoln Riley.
Notable college football analyst Josh Pate of CBS Sports agreed with this sentiment. In a recent episode of popular his "Josh Pate's College Football Show", Pate listed the Trojans as one of the teams in the country with the most to prove in 2025.
"I'm looking at the three years [Lincoln Riley has] been there," Pate said. "11-3 to 8-5 to 7-6. You know what they call that on the streets, they call that regression—or something worse."
"It's year four. If [USC isn't] significantly improved record wise . . . we're running the risk of falling off the radar. And Lincoln Riley's running the risk of kind of slipping towards irrelevance as a head coach. And that is something I never thought I'd say. USC should be a prime player in the Big Ten. Instead ... just a non-factor."
If the Trojans do not show serious signs of a turnaround next season, Riley's job could seemingly be in jeopardy, even despite the massive buyout that USC would reportedly owe him should they make a coaching change.
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