Booger McFarland isn’t leaving much wiggle room for Lincoln Riley heading into 2026.
Appearing on the Always College Football podcast with Greg McElroy, the ESPN analyst singled out the USC coach as the one sitting squarely under the brightest heat after Week 0. McFarland’s message was simple: the excuses are gone.
“Lincoln has said himself, ' We have what we need,'” McFarland said. “Well, when you make that statement, then you have to go back it up.”
That line captured the whole argument. Riley has been paid like a program-changing coach since signing a 10-year, $110 million deal before the 2022 season, and USC has spent accordingly around him.
Still, the results have not matched the investment. Riley is 35-18 in four seasons in Los Angeles, and USC finished 9-4 in 2025 before falling to TCU in overtime in the Alamo Bowl.
The Playoff drought is the other big piece of the picture. USC has never reached the Playoff, and it hasn’t played in a conference championship game since Riley’s first season. For McFarland, that’s what makes this season different from the usual preseason pressure cooker.
This time, USC also can’t point to a lack of talent. The Trojans signed the nation’s No. 1 recruiting class, with five-star defensive end Luke Wafle as the headliner.
They also added Gary Patterson, the former TCU head coach, to run the defense. On top of that, quarterback Jayden Maiava is back after leading the Big Ten in passing yards last season, and USC opened its new $200 million performance center over the offseason.
The opener gave them a clean start, too. USC beat San Jose State 42-26, with Maiava throwing for 286 yards and two touchdowns while also scoring on the ground.
McFarland drew a hard line around Riley’s situation, saying the standard is no longer just improvement - it’s breakthrough.
“Lincoln needs to be in the Playoff,” McFarland said. “He needs to host a home Playoff game at the very least. He needs to win that, and I think everybody out west will feel really good about him.”
He contrasted Riley’s position with coaches like Dan Lanning and Kalen DeBoer, saying they can face pressure to take a step forward without being in danger after one bad year. Riley, in McFarland’s view, is operating in a different lane because USC has already committed the money, the roster and the infrastructure.
And the schedule isn’t doing him any favors. USC hosts Ohio State on Halloween and then gets Indiana two weeks later, with a bye week before each of those games, according to the Trojans’ 2026 slate. Both teams played in last season’s Big Ten Championship Game and are expected to be among the conference’s best again.
That stretch could tell the story of USC’s season. If Riley finally gets the Trojans over the hump, the pressure eases. If not, the Playoff drought will keep hanging over the program - and over him.
McFarland’s larger point went beyond one coach. Once a program has money, talent and stability, he argued, the blame for repeated shortfalls lands on the man running it.
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The matchup should tell plenty about where the Trojans are on the line of scrimmage, especially against a front that has made life hard on the run game. Fresno State went 9-0 last season when it kept opponents under 140 rushing yards, and linebacker Tytus Khajavi is expected to be one of the key players helping set the tone. Against a USC offense that wants to establish itself early, that kind of resistance can reveal a lot quickly. [Read more 🡒]
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USC Already Has One Clear Strength And One Growing Concern
USCs season opener against San Jose State offered an early look at what this roster might already do well, and which parts still need work. Jayden Maiava handled his first game of the year with plenty of positives, while defensive tackle Jide Abasiri also stood out in a performance that gave the Trojans something to build on. There were encouraging contributions, too, from wide receiver Trent Mosley and running back King Miller, suggesting the offense has multiple pieces ready to matter right away.
The concern showed up on the other side of the ball, where the secondary and some individual defenders had a rougher time keeping things clean. Kam Crawford was among the players who struggled, and that mattered because USCs defense is still trying to sort out its identity as the schedule moves forward. One game does not settle the bigger picture, but it did give the Trojans a pretty clear snapshot of where the strength is and where the questions are likely to linger. [Read more 🡒]