USC scored the biggest coup of this coaching carousel by hiring Lincoln Riley away from Oklahoma. On Monday morning, Riley's move became all the more real, as he landed in Los Angeles as the new Trojans football coach.
Riley stepped off the plane with members of his family, as well as a number of coaches who are making the jump to the Pac-12 with him. Jason Kersey of The Athletic spotted defensive coordinator Alex Grinch, wide receivers coach Dennis Simmons, strength coach Bennie Wylie, and OU football director of operations Clarke Stroud boarding the flight to L.A. with Riley.
The official USC football account had video from the other tarmac, as Riley officially steps into his huge new role.
The scene in L.A. on Monday morning caps a truly wild few days for Riley and college football as a whole. On Saturday night, after losing a dramatic edition of Bedlam to in-state rival Oklahoma State, Riley flatly denied interest in the major job that he was most heavily connected to: LSU.
“Let me stop you right there. I’m not going to be the next coach at LSU," he said to Kersey after the 37–33 loss to Oklahoma State. "Next question."
A day later, he was announced as the next coach at USC, making a move few even considered as a significant possibility given the stature of the Oklahoma program.
"USC has an unparalleled football tradition with tremendous resources and facilities, and the administration had made a deep commitment to winning," Riley said in Sunday's release. "I look forward to honoring that successful tradition and building on it."
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