You think I wanted to start my first Daily Trojan column defending a man who received roughly $11.5 million to lead our “prized” football team to a 4-5 record in Big Ten play, 7-6 overall, in its inaugural season in the powerhouse league?

I’m a reluctant audience. 

While I am a fall sports editor — a position intertwined with football as much as it appears I am with returning to sports writing every few months after proclaiming “I’m so over this, this time!” — I am also a well-chronicled football hater. 

Let’s just say I don’t handle a breakup very well, and I’m always back for seconds … or fourths, in this case, but who’s counting? Despite my reluctance, I heard a calling in the wind when I, also reluctantly, came back to column writing: “If I, standing high and mighty at 5-foot-8, don’t stand up for the little guys, who will?”

I know for sure the wind wasn’t talking about football, let alone USC football Head Coach Lincoln Riley. But the wind is known to mislead from time to time, and a columnist must always stay true to their beliefs, no matter the influence. I’m also known to hallucinate occasionally, but you didn’t hear that from me.

OK, if you’re still here after getting to know me a little bit, give me just a few more words to explain why this multimillion-dollar man needs defending.

Entering his fourth season with USC, Riley, I fear, will need much more than two dozen roses or to hang the moon to repair this struggling relationship. (You’ll also have to spare me a country-music reference or two, I can’t help it.)

While a struggle to close games has been the biggest sticking point for Riley’s critics — USC had a fourth-quarter lead in five of its six losses last season — recently, another controversy has made headlines: the future of the Trojans’ historic rivalry with Notre Dame.

As of now, the matchup’s future — beyond its 96th iteration scheduled for Oct. 18 and its 97th planned for 2026 — is unclear. 

When asked about the rivalry in August 2024, Riley mentioned powerhouse Alabama’s nonconference scheduling, saying it made its schedule to win championships rather than “for their fans” — an approach he hoped to bring to USC.

“I would love to. I know it means a lot to a lot of people,” Riley said when asked whether he wanted to continue the matchup, according to the Los Angeles Times. “Now, if you get in a position where you’ve got to make a decision on what’s best for SC to help us win a national championship versus keeping that, shoot, then you gotta look at it.”

So what is there to complain about?

Trojan fans can’t complain Riley isn’t winning enough, then criticize his efforts to do so. The sport has changed and so must the approach to rivalries like Notre Dame.

Even while being pensive, the L.A. Times reported in May that USC was the one to offer the Fighting Irish a one-year extension to 2026, which later went through, to wait out changes to the NCAA playoff format. Notre Dame was reportedly looking for a longer-term plan.

While USC called it the “greatest intersectional rivalry in college football” in its pregame notes for the 2024 bout, Notre Dame officials have alluded to USC being the one to hold up a years-long extension.

“It’s pretty black and white for me,” said Notre Dame Head Coach Marcus Freeman, according to the L.A. Times. “I want to play USC every year because it’s great for college football.”

Now, while I enjoy a good black-and-white argument, it’s hard to have such a defined opinion on the College Football Playoff system, especially after undefeated Florida State was left out in 2023, yet league winners like Boise State and Southern Methodist University couldn’t come close to winning their matchups in 2024. 

The fix requires nuance and time, which Riley doesn’t have much of if he hopes to keep revolt-ready USC fans on his side.

While the 12-team format has improved upon this slightly, the incentive to maintain a historic yet tough matchup for a rebuilding program like USC is simply not there. 

A loss, even to a team that made last year’s finals, could derail a season before the Trojans even get to face tough opponents like Ohio State or Penn State — or, depending on the game’s scheduling, ruin a playoff bid if USC handles business in conference play.

The proposal that Riley and other Big Ten coaches have advocated would give the conference four automatic playoff bids, eliminating the implications of non-league games but allowing for rivalries like USC vs. Notre Dame to continue. Riley called the maintenance of historic rivalries perhaps the most important benefit of the change, according to the L.A. Times.

Either way, it will take a couple of big steps for the Trojans to become a true title contender — despite the stellar job Riley has done recruiting. USC currently has the No. 1-ranked 2026 class according to ESPN.

But, after the promise shown by a near win against one of the best teams in the nation in Penn State and a bowl win to finish above .500, Riley said he is “refreshed” and ready to lead his team, according to the L.A. Times.

“My allegiance and my loyalty is not to Notre Dame and not to anyone else. I’m the head coach of USC,” Riley said at Big Ten media day in July, according to the L.A. Times. “I’m going to do everything in my power to make USC as good as it can be. I’m not going to let anything stand in between that.”

More than his accomplishments, though, what I admire most about Riley is the language used when answering the question “Do you want to play Notre Dame?”

“Hell yeah, I want to play the game,” Riley said, according to the L.A. Times. “It’s one of the reasons I came here.”

A coach who can recruit and swears by his team, literally, is a combination only heard of in dreams. But many, including last year’s two most seasoned Daily Trojan sports columnists Stefano Fendrich and Thomas Johnson, have questioned whether Riley should be on the hot seat after the 2024 season.

But, Lincoln, they’re both over 6-feet tall. They don’t know what it’s like … 

Damn it.

On second thought, I think that’s just me. Forgot I was defending a big dog today.

Next time you catch me defending a hot take, just know it will be about basketball or maybe volleyball. You know, places where we little guys can really make it big.

Sean Campbell is a sophomore writing about all facets of USC sports in a voice and reference heavy style in his column “A Wannabe Sports Writer,” which runs every other Thursday. He is also a sports editor at the Daily Trojan.